Sagepaper

I struggled for years to quit smoking. I damaged my body more for all the failed attempts. I gained weight when I tried to quit. It had been my habit to lose it again before my next stab at abstention. Alas, I married a physician. He was so alarmed that I coughed-up blood that he kept pushing me to quit again as soon as I failed. So, at last, I became a very obese non-smoker. Several months later, now, I am again a smoker and only slightly less obese. I don't think my health can withstand much more repair.

I tried to write poetry tonight that I could post here. Not to my surprise, I produced nothing worthwhile. It has been a long time since I have tried to compose a verse. It will take patience to regain my pen. Even if I were better technically now, I would not have written anything worthwhile. As you can see in the paragraph above, I'm not very happy tonight. I think each of us is capable of committing our own misery to verse. That doesn't make us all poets. In the past, I have been most prolific when depressed, but all those pages are filled with stuff I'd be too ashamed to claim.

I have asked for help in battling the return of my smoking. There is almost none to be had. I requested a blessing for the sick from my home teacher. Alas, I lack the faith for that alone to work. Really, I feel like Tom Dooley. Because of my respiratory problems, smoking blights my future. My life will be much shorter than it might have been. Faced with death, although less immediately than Tom Dooley, there isn't much to do but hang down my head and cry.

Hang down your head, Tom Dooley
Hang down your head and cry
Hang down your head, Tom Dooley
Poor boy, you're bound to die

You have probably learned that FEMA recommends keeping a NOAA Weather Radio with fresh batteries in your home. These batteries should be changed along with your smoke detector batteries twice a year, when you reset your clock. It has always been an important device, and has long been recommended by FEMA. A NOAA Weather Radio can give you life- and property-saving alerts. It can help you if your community is faced with the possibility of a hurricane, too.

Many people do not have this life-saving equipment. They choose to rely on local television for storm information, including radar. Other media can be useful supplements, but cannot serve as a replacement for the battery-operated NOAA Weather Radio. This device will give you ongoing detailed information when there are power outages. More importantly, though, you receive your warning faster. When the National Weather Service issues a warning, it goes out by weather radio at the same time it goes to other broadcast stations. The other media then forward this information to the public, but not instantly.

Now we have an even greater reason to have and maintain a NOAA Weather Radio. The Department of Homeland Security has designated the NOAA Weather Radio as the official source of emergency information. Unfortunately, this has not been widely publicized. Whenever there is an emergency of any kind affecting your community, instructions to citizens will be issued on the National Weather Service frequencies.

If there should be a toxic chemical spill from an overturned truck, and emergency management officials want to evacuate you, they will notify you by NOAA Weather Radio. Maybe, though, in the same scenario, they would want you to "shelter in place," remaining in your home with outside ventilation turned off until the mass of toxic air no longer affects your neighborhood. Another scenario is a Gas main break. This could result in road closures, and immediate evacuations.

Of course, since September 11, 2001, we have also been faced with the possibility of terrorist attacks. These could come in almost any form. Your FIRST warning will come by NOAA Weather Radio. Because of this, it would now be advisable to make sure every workplace has a battery-powered Weather Radio, as well.

Some people have trouble understanding how to program their radio for their area. Almost any County Emergency Management official can assist you. Often, police officers and firefighters are trained to help you with this essential task. Some Counties host events where radios can be purchased at a discount, and professionally programmed. If you cannot afford a weather radio, Counties often have programs to provide radios to the needy.

There was once a young girl with brown hair,
And she often would drift-off and stare
Into places beyond
Where there'd roam vagabonds.
If you called her, "Aloof," she'd not care.

In his Blog, Neil Boortz asserts that self-defense is a basic human right. I agree totally. Boortz introduces a portion of the new Florida Force-with-Force Law's text thusly:

Here's your actual wording: In Florida a person now has "the right to stand his or her ground and meet force with force, including deadly force, if he or she reasonably believes it is necessary to do so, to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another."

Now we come to a point where the U.S. departs from the global standard. The right to "stand your ground" is almost uniquely American. In other parts of the world, you are required to run for your life. Only if that fails, may you use force for self-defense. Some New England states are like this. There is room here to criticize the U.S. as being swifter to move to deadly force in confrontations. There is also room here to tell the rest of the world that this is one reason they are the rest of the world, and not the U.S.

The right to stand your ground makes sense, tactically, in self-defense. It also is part of the American individual character. We may not be coerced into actions on pain of death or great bodily harm by another citizen. We may, exercising our own judgment, decide to cooperate or resist. Note that the right to stand your ground does not give you the right to preemptively charge forth. You would then be an aggressor, not a defender.

Boortz points out that there was less crime in the Wild, Wild, West than there has been in most urban centers. I can't check his facts, but that sounds right to me. I don't agree that it was simply widespread gun-toting that kept crime down. There are aspects of frontier citizenship that should be passed out along with the fire-arms. One thing that should be taught, and which laws should uphold, is the right to make a citizen's arrest. Those who have heard of such a thing have probably been told, "But don't do it. You'll get sued." Unfortunately, there is a lot of truth to that, especially in the East. Depending on local law, and the way the events unfold, you can even go to prison.

The citizenship virtue of being a Good Samaritan went through several phases. First, it was widespread and hailed by everyone as the right thing to do. Then, Samaritans started getting sued. We tolerated a reasonable suit or two, and then lawsuits became widespread. Good and capable citizens shrank from their civic duty out of fear. This was seen as a bad thing. Laws were passed to protect the Good Samaritan.

I would like to see similar progress in reviving the citizen's arrest. Vigilante? Yes, from Montana.

We should have laws making it a little safer for the citizen's arrest. Citizens making arrests have FAR fewer rights than do police officers. Most importantly, we need good public education about this topic, with instructions on what you can and cannot do. I received this instruction in Billings, Montana in the ninth-grade.

Let me tell you a quick tale from Gwinnett County, Georgia about the absurdity of ignorance about the citizen's arrest. In Georgia, Sheriffs are Officers of the Court, in charge of prisoners and prisons. They are glorified Bailiffs. A Sheriff's Deputy was in his car at a convenience store. An armed robber, knowing the Deputy was not actually law enforcement, brazenly committed his crime. The Deputy hunkered down near the floorboards, by his shotgun, and radioed for back-up. Now, he was a Deputy Sheriff, but he was also a citizen with a shotgun.

My ninth-grade class was taught that, for our own safety, it would be better if we made any citizen's arrest with a shotgun. This might sound to an Easterner like, "the ultimate YeeHaw stuff we don't want in our communities." The instructions we were given were actually to PROTECT life. Say you are at a gas station filling-up. An armed robber enters the store with a nine-millimeter handgun and begins his crime. You have a shotgun in the trunk. You have an opportunity to save the clerk's endangered life, save the robber's life, and not lose your own. You have over-powering force at your disposal. This works even better if your two companions accompany you with their hunting rifles.

Okay, back-up. Look at Florida's civilized, non-vigilante law. Same scenario. You may kill the robber. That does not protect life. It is a little better now, though. Before, you could watch the clerk die, then feel torn between calling the police and running for cover. You might join the clerk in death. Kill the robber is an improvement, but arrest the robber is best.

Of course, if the robber resists a citizen's arrest, he could end up dead anyway. As I recall, for Montana, there was a confusing area when it came to preventing the robber from fleeing the scene. You could use force to detain him, but not kill him just for fleeing, but if he died and you weren't trying to kill him, it was okay. That's one of many reasons the shotgun was recommended: it is more effective if you need to "wing him."

I know that could be harsh, but just as importantly, the Montana robber knows that. When a citizen has both force-of-arms and force-of-law on his side, there is less likelihood of bloodshed. Usually criminals surrender under these circumstances because they are faced with the same means that police officers use.

There is a danger in simply passing laws strengthening the citizen's arrest. It won't work without population-wide education. If I were at a gas station in Gwinnett County, Georgia when an armed robbery began, and I got a twelve-gauge out of the trunk, no one but I would know the rules. The clerk would not swiftly discern that I was not another robber. The clerk might kill me. The robber would not see me as an armed authority figure capable of disarming and detaining him with force. He might try to kill me, and die wondering what happened. (I, perhaps, would have years in prison to mull-over the same question.) Finally, police arriving on the scene would see me armed with a shotgun, with the clerk and robber in any number of combinations of physical condition, and never stop to think that a citizen's arrest might be in effect.

So, the new Florida law has people debating the merits of armed self-defense, and what your rights might be when threatened. You have the right to use force to protect another. Rights. No one seems to be talking about duties. Florida is not yet sufficiently evolved to recognize a civic duty to protect the lives of others. Maybe the Easterners will catch up with our YeeHaw ethics in another century or so.

In a nation still divided into "Hawks" and "Doves," it might be difficult for some to see the parallel between the act of a Good Samaritan, and the act of making a citizen's arrest. One uses bandages and such, and the other uses firearms and such. These seem like completely different implements, so perhaps they are means to different ends. The underlying theme, though, is going out of your way to preserve your neighbor's life.

Here's the URL to Neil Boortz's Blog:

http://boortz.com/nuze/200504/04272005.html#florida

It's so foggy outside in the darkness
And so soft is the mist that has come
I've forgotten the afternoon's starkness
And the worries of things left undone

Unforsakable joys after midnight
When the world is at rest in itself
Now the darkness conceals the moonlight
And I know I could dance like an elf.

Oh the peace that I seek has drawn nearer
And I'll soon settle down in my bed
I expect I'll awake with things clearer
And not swirling about in my head

I have just begun reading the book Shake Hands with the Devil by Romeo Dallaire. He was the UNAMIR Commander for the UN peacekeeping forces present in Rwanda before and during the genocide. His is an account which will add to what I have already learned in researching the Genocide.

It has been hard for me to prepare my mind for more firsthand information about Rwanda. I was deeply disturbed when I first read about it, and had nightmares. A year or two later, I extensively researched Rwanda for a case study to be used in my husband's MPH course at a prominent university.

I had even worse nightmares as I tried to see through the material I was reading to the truth the authors were trying to convey. I also had a brief taste of the pure evil so many described. Observers of all different backgrounds spoke of a palpable evil. So powerful was the evil that Westerners as well as locals and non-Western dignitaries present were all conscious of this hideous thing. At a later date, I might present here some research into the shamanistic aspects of what happened in Rwanda.

In the meantime, my author has helped put me at ease. His mind, wracked by PTSD, is even less willing than mine to return to that place and time. I am almost a quarter of the way through the book, and he still has not stepped on African soil. If I had his burden, I don't know that I could ever overcome the procrastination for which he so profusely apologizes.

So, I need good input for good output. For a while, my readings are not going to be inspiring of immediate writings. I will try to do some creative work in between times. Given the subject matter I am studying, I am afraid some of my writing might take a dark turn. If necessary, I will offer you tid-bits from my archives.

Wish me well as I plunge my mind again into a "palpable evil." Hopefully I will not again meet that face-to-face. Still, you know how people might say, "Get your mind out of the gutter?" Well, when I am done with this book, I will need to get my mind out of the bloodbath.

As some of you may know, there is a crisis confronting Trinity International University. Theirs is a very small Christian School in the Midwest. Some of their minority students have received written death threats which law enforcement officials and school administrators believe must be taken seriously. One of their students speculated about a pattern among the death threats: each recipient was in an interracial dating relationship. Law enforcement officials are not sure that is the issue. The letters contain no reference to interracial relationships.

In response to these death threats, the school has sent all dorm residents from the local area to live with their parents. The minority students have been moved to a hotel, where it will be easier to ensure their security. The Dean of Students is also at the hotel.

I wanted to express my sympathy and support for the TIU community. I went to their Website, but found it had not been updated in light of their gaining national news attention. Their news section contained campus happenings. I was frustrated that they had no guest book, nor other way for me to communicate with them online. I did find a survey form inquiring about how well the Web Design served your needs.

I used the spaces, "Things I dislike about the Website," and, "Other comments." Below are my remarks, followed by a courteous response I received from them. I do hope things turn out well for them.

There is nowhere else to express my sympathy and support for your school during these troubling times. I am a graduate of Thomas More College in Crestview Hills, Kentucky. I know what a small Christian campus is like.

I am not sure from the news if everyone was given the option of staying at a hotel, or if the offer was limited to minority students. I know the hotel arrangements must be a strain on your small budget. I hope, though, that you maintain the unity of your student body by giving them options to stay together among their friends.

Also, you don't want your minority students to think this is about them. It is
not. It is about a perverse, and potentially dangerous mind.

I think it is very good that the Dean of Students is staying at the hotel. That shows you are taking seriously your positions as shepherds over these young people. It also sends a clear message of administrative support for the student in the hotel. You are with them in their hour of need.

Below is their reply:

Thank you for your creative way of getting in touch. Because of
you, we have created a form that people may fill out and submit online. If you go to our homepage at www.tiu.edu and click on the "Update" link at the bottom, you will find a link for the form
at the bottom of the Update page. The address of the form is http://www.tiu.edu/trinity/announcements/updates_form.htm.

Thank you for your concern, interest, and persistence.

Joseph O'Day

Communications Editor

Trinity International Univ.

847.317.8103

"What does the LORD require of you? To act justly
and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." (Micah
6:8)

Once in a while, I will offer you a quote from my memoirs. Here is the first:

Even bitter silence is better than bitter words.

People have disagreed with me on this point. My husband believes that even bitter words are better than bitter silence. He has an easier time falling asleep than I do. When we have quarreled, I come to bitter silence in due course.

The entire issue of silence has been one of my problems with assimilating into mainstream society. Most people are uncomfortable with silence, and will do almost anything to break it. It doesn't matter how bizarre or even rude their behavior and speech are, they must restore conversation. I have tried to learn to cooperate, but sometimes the efforts made are repulsive to me, and I have even less desire to speak.

Oddly, I learned to be a good conversationalist. The trick is to ask the right questions, listen, put off "interested" signals, and ask new questions as needed. Truly listening requires some effort, but not much. For me, I used to find listening far easier than speaking. Now, after years of unpleasantries, I often find it difficult to focus on what is being said to me.

What do you think? I know that neither is desirable, but which would you choose? Bitter silence? Bitter words?

There is a cure for self-condemnation for past mistakes. It is, however, a dangerous cure, that can lead to greater future mistakes. Invoke it only when it is truly needed: You always did your best.

Perhaps you know the mechanism of your past error, and can therefore say, "I could have done better." This is false. You can do better in the future, but you could not have done better in the past. The past is fixed, and no longer fluid. All the influences, subtle and gross, long term and intermediate, deep and shallow, came together in a unique moment.

You might regret that moment, but you could have done no better. Why don't I say, "You could have done no worse?" Perhaps that is also true.

I believe, however, that people are good at their core. I believe that goodness strives incessantly to influence or control us. Some say the same is true of darkness. Some even believe in a Satan that endlessly tempts. I don't have strong beliefs about evil intruders. I just know that many things can hamper or hide the best in us. I'm convinced, though, that goodness holds the center, and expands from there. Evil never holds the center. That means you always did your best. A core of goodness radiated as much goodness as it possibly could on any previous occasion.

Here's the danger: knowing the healing power of this consolation can add another obstacle to your goodness in a tough situation. If you feel like you are losing, you can prematurely comfort yourself with the knowledge that you are doing your best. This can sap your will to fight.

Of course, after that happens, the magic is still there. Your knowledge of this cure became one of the many factors that influenced your ability to radiate goodness. If you could have done better, you would have. Moment-to-moment, though, always try to do your best.

Prose Introduction:

Uncle Jim was a Great Uncle by marriage. We had met, but never gotten really acquainted. I wasn't especially close to my Great Aunt Jessie, either. I paid my respects when I was in town, but we didn't discuss the meaning of life.

All that changed one Christmas vacation. Uncle Jim ended up in the
hospital. The only family they had for support were my octogenarian
grandparents. Aunt Jessie started to lose it when my husband and I stopped by the hospital to say goodbye before flying back home.

I sat next to her and asked her if she wanted me to stay. She did. I thought that was a good thing all the way around. The situation was too stressful for my grandparents to handle alone, and they weren't very good at it, anyway.

Uncle Jim had metastatic lung cancer when I first started getting acquainted with Aunt Jessie and him. We developed a close bond, discovering each other for the first time, and mourning the wasted years when we might have enjoyed each other. Uncle Jim challenged my heart. I opted for the "better to have loved and lost" argument. I wasn't obligated to draw closer to him. In fact, in the face of his imminent death, I really had to push myself sometimes.

I got close to Aunt Jessie, too. They moved to Georgia while Uncle Jim was on hospice. He was one tough old Cherokee. As we agreed, Aunt Jessie moved in with me after his death.

So, here's the poem:

I'm shocked you're gone; what can I say?
We had plans for another day
I prattle idly, fleeing my pain
And now at night my eyes just rain
I walked with you for just a time
You touched me with your heart so kind
I feared to love you but couldn't stop
I warned my heart -- I'm such a sop
Kindred strangers, we'd never known...
How quickly our love had grown.
With my pen I pray for healing
Though, perhaps, I should be kneeling
I feel the pain down deep beneath
The constant thoughts that are your wreath
My mind moves all around its hole
But to the center it will not go
Strange how "Nothing" has wounded me
Your absence is what hurts, you see
You bade me tend the wife you left
That she'd not be alone bereft
I swore to you I'd see her through
You said you thought my love would do
But when you left, my heart you broke
Of this, you see, we never spoke

The above poem is mine, you see, all MINE. As of when I wrote it, or when you try to steal it, whichever comes first. It's not legaleze, but feel free to view this as a copyright notice. Oh, yeah. Same goes for the rest of my writings.

Wow! I just started, and I have missed a day. I didn't even notice. I wrote so much yesterday in emails that I some how thought something had been posted here. Well, I guess my initial flurry of posts might keep folks occupied.

It is my intent to post daily. We will see how that goes. I think I am more likely to write multiple post on a single day than I am to miss multiple days. Thanks for Reading this, I'm glad my brief absence didn't discourage you!

Please make comments. I want a bit of human contact. Besides, I find others' views thought-provoking. And then, there is my ulterior motive: to build my stats.

This site tracks a number of different things about your Blog. Off the top of my head, I know it tracks total number of posts, average posts per week, total number of words, number of times your Blog has been viewed, and number of comments.

Now, most of that is up to me. However, there are two things you can do. First, check back here somewhat often. You might find a new post you like. Even if you don't, my number of times viewed will increase. Second, write me a comment. I'd like that, I hope :-) Even if you spew BS at me, my number of comments will go up.

So, why do I care about my stats? I don't know the details yet, myself. I have done some research on Blogging, and I have learned that to have a successful Blog, you must post frequently to attract readers. Now, I don't know what "successful" means, but it sounds better than "failed attempt." I suspect the word count is to try and catch people trying to post, "Hi," fifty times a week to look active. Average posts per week will help sort regular posters from those who start with a bang and end with a fizzle. Number of times viewed can reflect common interests with others, or some word-of-mouth promotion going on. The ultimate stat is comments.

That shows that you are a thought provoking writer, have a following, and might be worth a look. So, more people view your Blog. Of those, some will comment. When there are more comments, more people will read your Blog, and so forth. Eventually, you become a "must read" at least in some circle. From there, you might have the best "must read" Blog around on a certain day when a certain news story is hot, and somebody quotes you.

Then your stats go way up. After a few decades, who knows? You might be a guest on a late, late, late night show. Sitting right there with a singer who is well known in their town of 10,000.

So, I'm sure you wouldn't want me to miss out on that! Come here. Read. Write. Thank you!

Numerous of you have told me you did not find a way to comment on my Blog posts. That is understandable; the link to click is small, camouflaged, and doesn't say anything really identifying. At the bottom of each post, in the lower right, there is a faded comment counter.

It's format, so far, has been to say, "O Comments." There are, "3 Comments" on the Haiku about John Paul II's Funeral. If you wish to view those comments, click the text that says, "3 Comments." Note that you are taken to a page containing each of the comments, and a form for you to use to add your own remarks, if you wish. You will find your way to this form by clicking, "O Comments," as well.

You have three choices for identifying yourself. If you are a member of this free Blogging service, you may use your member name. Otherwise, you may post under the name, "Anonymous," or you may create any name you like as your handle. You do not have to choose one format forever. In fact, you will be able to choose for each comment you post.

I appreciate your interest, and the comments offered face-to-face and in emails. Someday, I might learn enough about HTML to make the comments thing easier to see and understand. I appreciate your patience in the meantime!

I was referred by my friendly neighborhood accuser to the following site: http://www.antisemitism.org.il/antisemen.PDF This is a brochure with information on the dangers of Anti-Semitism, and how to fight it as an individual Ambassador for Israel. It's kind of a long read. My reaction below:

Sagepaper said...
I read the PDF brochure providing information about Anti-Semitism.

My life experience has been so very different from what was discussed in the brochure that I thought I was reading something from an alien planet. Perhaps I should tell you about my campus experiences when I was in college. I attended two different private Colleges: The American University in Washington, D.C., and Thomas More College in Crestview Hills, Kentucky.

The American University, where I nearly finished a major in international Relations, was fondly nick-named Jew U., or Catholic U. Each group represented about one third of the population on campus. Anti-Semitism didn't stand a chance. Further, AU had the top-ranked School of International Service in the country. Number one! We were not taught a bunch of bunk about Israel.

I know why Israel holds the occupied territories. I view that through the cold lens of International Relations; you cannot win at the negotiating table what you have lost on the field of battle. If the Arabs wanted to keep those lands, they should not have lost a war against Israel. They should have restrained themselves, or assured their victory. I have no moral opinion about who belongs in those lands.

Cold.

I understand the unfairness and adversity Israel has faced. I appreciate its strategic value to the United States. I am well aware of our close cultural ties. English is widely spoken, and not infrequently with an American accent. I also, at one time, could list every U.N. Resolution it had violated.

Regarding my education at Thomas More, it was a small Catholic College with a rigorous Liberal Arts program. I was there on Pope John Paul II's watch. He was reaching out to other Christian sects, and then to other religions. Anti-Semitism was anti-thetical to his teachings, and was not to be found on campus among the Faculty or students.

It was a tiny school. The only prejudice problem we ran into was some uneasiness about two Iranian students after the Hostage Crisis. The priests told the students to embrace our fellow students, and to view them as individuals. We went to their dormroom and annoyed the heck out of them with our being nice. :-) They just wanted to play their electric guitars. (I learned the Arabic word for "amplifier!" it is "amplifier.")

I am unfamiliar with the details of your experience with Anti-Semitism. I can relate, however, to being a detested racial minority. The Navajo children at Fort Defiance were permitted by pre-school teachers to taunt, beat, and even stone two other White-eyes and me. (Well, okay. We were all little kids, so the stoning was scaled-down. The kids threw about one-inch pebbles, well, rocks.) They were not like the Apache.
11:39 PM

Conclave picked
"Habemus Papam!"
Benedict

Here's a new one for me. I have been called many things in my life, most of them derogatory. I have never before been labeled "Anti-Semitic." Below is a response to that accusation. I think I was a "victim" of a knee-jerk reaction. While I did refer to some stereotypical beliefs I hold, I cast them in what I thought was a positive light.

I commented on a post on Am Chazak Oseh Shalom's Blog regarding an Anti-Semitic letter written by a tribal chief in Canada. While a cursory glance might look like standard Anti-Semitic rhetoric, a closer read will reveal good will, and perhaps some mistaken ideas. Here is the offending comment:

Sagepaper said...
Okay, I forced myself to finish the letter. I too, am under the impression that Jews have risen to power in key institutions in society. I have what is perhaps a reverse racism. I attribute this success to their cultural emphasis on education, and to an historic legacy of business know-how. This know-how dates at least to the time European Christians "forced" Jews into Banking. Christians were forbidden to loan at interest, and you cannot run a bank like that. However, banks were certainly needed economically. So the Jews stepped in and *everyone* prospered. I take a "market" view of the news. In the US, we have some Jewish leadership in the media, but they are accountable to their stockholders, as with any other type of publicly-traded corporation. If there is a consistent bias in a free market, with a free press, one must look at the readers and watchers who ultimately "buy" the media.
2:14 AM

I reiterate: I do not know that these stereotypes are factually true. If they are, however, I think Jews do themselves a disservice by trying to deny their successes. They should be proud of themselves, and we should learn from them. To the extent that the stereotypes are true, Jews discredit themselves by denying them and vigorously pouncing on anyone who speaks of them.

I understand that deeply painful lessons were learned from the Holocaust. Genocide was perpetrated against them because of Anti-Semitic propaganda portraying them as the stingy owners of great wealth, and as behind-the-scenes manipulators of society. Fearful of such Anti-Semitic propaganda, I believe they go too far in trying to deny any leadership positions attained by Jews.

The accusation can be found by following the link to Am Chazak Oseh Shalom. The title of the post is Spurred by recent comments. Just follow the link in my right column.

==========

Sagepaper said...
Wow! I stepped on your toes! Please keep them out from under my feet :-) I must be the exception. My beliefs about Jewish success are actually admiring, rather than hateful.

I have no sympathy for Black racism toward Asians in this country. If Asians build businesses and develop their communities, I think that should serve as an example to Blacks, and, in fact, it does. Black leaders here have called for conserving wealth in their communities by buying from Black merchants and service providers.

I agree that "Holocaust" refers only to the "Final Solution." I knew the origin of the term. I thought it odd that the aborigines used the term. Again, I have learned from you -- I did not know that "Genocide" was a Post-World War II term.

I'm not sure I would say I care about Jewish success; at least, I don't have a sense that it affects me personally in any way. I did not say that I think Jews own and control the media. Ownership is in the hands of public shareholders. Control is in the hands of the consumers.

I don't think Jews get together and make coordinated, organized efforts at manipulating society. In fact, if it were true that "Jews own the media," that would necessarily make them rivals in a free market economy.

Finally, I wonder at the overall stereotype of Jews being wealthy. If they are so rich, why are they so poor? Historically, Jews in Europe were a bit outcast, and lagged behind economically.

Again, I think there are cultural, as opposed to racial, reasons for Jewish successes. The emphasis on education is a crucial factor. Many Christians of yesteryear, and some today, actually frown on education. They believe you should rely solely on the promptings of the Holy Spirit, and that "book-learning" makes you too proud to listen to the soft voice within.

I have a recent posting on my blog about racism. You might find some of it reassuring, as I explore the matter with a little greater depth.
12:04 PM

My father wrote:

Okay

I got in all sorts of trouble a few years back re: "Indian." Seems in
Canada, they don't like that, preferring aborigine. The person (I think on AST) was an Anglo woman married to (or, actually in a domestic partnership with) an aborigine. We eventually convinced her that US aborigines have no objection to Indian and use it themselves.

This is an altogether uncomfortable topic for me. I don't like racism, and I especially don't like it from myself. This interchange reveals a sympathetic view I have of Jews, while holding to many popular stereotypes. I am uncertain of my facts; I don't actually know what a breakdown of "key leadership positions" by race or ethnicity would reveal. I do assume that a disproportionate number of Jews would be found. I think that makes them successful, however, not evil.

There is an added racial issue here. Right now in Canada, there is a scandalous racial conflict between the Indians and the Jews. For the sake of simplicity and ease of writing, I did not say, "the American Indians living in the United States" everytime I referred to them. I at times called them "our American Indians." For those who don't know me, that is not meant to be patronizing, and certainly not proprietary.

I express below a sympathy for the Mescalero Apache. These good people had a deep, lasting, and beneficial effect on my character. I absorbed much of their culture, values, and way of thinking in a remarkably brief period of time. That's because I was a very small child, learning rapidly from my environment and the people around me.

As my family moved from place-to-place, the mismatch between my aculturation and the demands of mainstream society became evident. There are deep differences between me and other White-eyes. My race is a barrier to others understanding my life-experiences.

If you saw me, and I looked like an Apache, and told you a tale of moving from the Mescalero Reservation at a tender age, and relocating to the Navajo Reservation before being thrown into mainstream white schools, you would perhaps lend a sympathetic ear. But now, I look like a grown white woman, and referrences to an American Indian cultural heritage sound suspiciously new-age, or perhaps even delusional.
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YBM said...
Awhile ago here in Canada Jews were shocked to hear a guy by the name of Ahenakew, a man who has been awarded the Order of Canada and was the head of the Assembly of First Nations, spewing antisemitic hate speech. He is now on trial and he continues to make antisemitic Jew-hating tirades--not so surprising anymore. But what is surprising? Enter First Nations chief the 2nd:Roseau River First Nations Chief Terrance Nelson not only likes to make tirades about the, according to him, Jewish-controlled/owned media of Canada, but also of Jewish indifference and ignorance of the "holocaust" suffered by the natives. Are you kidding me? You gotta be kidding me.This antisemitic piece of garbage wrote a seriously antisemitic letter which can be seen here: http://www.rrafn.com/terryletter.htmAn article about the issue can be seen here: http://www.jewishtribune.ca/tribune/jt-050414-14.htmlPerhaps he will die soon? I can only hope.
posted by YBM at 9:14 PM on Apr 18 2005
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Sagepaper said...
How closely does the history of Canada's American Indians parallel that of ours? I have had the impression that they have been treated much better, and enjoy greater staus and rights. Of course, it would not be hard to surpass the status and rights of our American Indians. To my knowledge, the racists in our tribes have not learned to be so discerning. White-eyes are White-eyes. They really aren't interested in your pedigree.In the lands that have become the United States, we do have a BIG, protracted genocidal history. The British and the French were not alone. The Spaniards wiped out whole, sophisticated cities before the English and French arrived. Europeans were so brutal that even the war-like tribes learned from them. Scalping was first a French custom.I must admit a cultural bias in favor of the Mescalero Apache, and to a certain extent other Indians. Perhaps I have not visited in quite awhile, but I didn't see any Jews going around oppressing Indians when I was on the Reservations. In fact, a liberal bias in the media here has tried to shed light on the enormity of the sins of our forefathers.
1:29 AM
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Sagepaper said...
I must confess, I was unable to finish the letter. What I read was unimaginative and dogmatic. Worse, but reassuring, it did not seem like a great mind gone astray. It certainly was offensive, though.
1:55 AM
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Sagepaper said...
Okay, I forced myself to finish the letter. I too, am under the impression that Jews have risen to power in key institutions in society. I have what is perhaps a reverse racism. I attribute this success to their cultural emphasis on education, and to an historic legacy of business know-how. This know-how dates at least to the time European Christians "forced" Jews into Banking. Christians were forbidden to loan at interest, and you cannot run a bank like that. However, banks were certainly needed economically. So the Jews stepped in and *everyone* prospered.I take a "market" view of the news. In the US, we have some Jewish leadership in the media, but they are accountable to their stockholders, as with any other type of publicly-traded corporation. If there is a consistent bias in a free market, with a free press, one must look at the readers and watchers who ultimately "buy" the media.
2:14 AM

Here is some further correspondence. To view the essays to which I responded, click the link to Am Chazak Oseh Shalom's blog on the right.

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Sagepaper said...
I find your essays to be historically accurate. I really question whether you are correct about the term "Semite" applying only to Jews. I believe the term well predated the Third Reich. Unlike you, however, I have no credible reference to cite on the matter. While any patriot, of any nation, must maintain a sovereign will of self-defense, I think you are incorrect in assuming that only Israel can defend Israel. The truth is, Israel has only itself to 100% rely on. Hopefully, though, there will not come a day when Israel must stand alone and friendless in a hostile world. I do not believe that it is only Jews with influence in Washington who keep the US firmly rooted as an ally. Pro-Israeli sentiment enjoys a fairly broad consensus in the US.
10:27 PM
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Anonymous said...
To Sagepaper:YBM never said nething about "semite" only applying to Jews. He said that the term "antisemite" was invented as a synonym for Jew-hatred, specifically, "scientific" Jew-hatred. Also, the term was invented way before the third reich: 1870s i think.
10:40 PM
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Sagepaper said...
Thank you for clarifying!
12:52 AM

I have written so much on Am Chazak Oseh Shalom's blog, that I thought my own readers should have some of the benefit, assuming it is a benefit. :-)
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YBM said...Welcome to my blog. This is my first ever post on my first ever blog. Thus, I shall introduce myself. I am a Jewish male in my early 20s, living in Ontario, Canada. I am a full-time undergraduate student and medical researcher and I will be writing on various topics as I see fit. I hope that, over time, my readers will inform me as to what they like and what they don't like.
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Sagepaper said... Welcome! I am brand new myself. I found your blog from a common interest listed: Tourette's Syndrome. I am on disability because of that and other conditions. I am awaiting a verdict on whether I also have Multiple Sclerosis. Is Neuropsychiatry your intended career?
10:34 PM
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YBM said... I do research on TS and I am pursuing a career in clinical medicine but have not yet decided as to whether or not it will be in psychiatry. Would you like to share more about yourself? and we could use that as a springboard for discussion on TS.
11:42 PM
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YBM said... Nice Haiku. Would you like to link to my blog: http://amchazakosehshalom.blogspot.com/
I will be glad to link to yours :) 4/18/2005 11:46 PM
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Sagepaper said... Thanks for the compliment on my Haiku! I am techno-challenged. I like your blog, and want to trade links with you. Please tell me how. You are *not* limited to 150 characters. :-) (My peel-an-apple question was limited thus; it was quite challenging!)
My TS is moderate to severe. The daughter of a physician, I went undiagnosed until I was in my thirties. All those years when I would ask Dad about my symptoms, he would reassure me that it was normal, he did that, too. I suppose you see the punchline: I told *him* he had Tourette's. That's where I got it; undiagnosed himself, he had thought nothing of my symptoms. Dad's case is mild, but I recognized myself in Sack's account of the surgeon. Neither Dad nor I saw ourselves in Witty-Ticcy-Ray.
12:27 AM
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Sagepaper said... FYI: My father is a frequent poster on alt.support.tourette. He goes by Sandy L. I lurk at times, rarely posting as TaiChimp.

I have been posting to an amazing new site! Please join a thought-provoking exchange on Am Chazak Oseh Shalom. I have added a link to his blog in my right column. Feel free to disregard the much-needed technical assistance I received.

I usually use Micha-Form Haiku. The syllables for the three-line poems are three, five, then three. Considering a continuum of syllables throughout the Haiku, the odd-numbered are accented. The first and third lines rhyme.

While Micha-Form is very demanding, it helps replicate the necessary discipline for Japanese Haiku. By imposing traditional English poetic discipline on the Haiku, the strictures of this form force the poet to get to the Zen-like heart of the subject matter. I hope you will enjoy reading and composing in this style.

"I am complex-minded, but simple-hearted." -- Micha

Pontiff died
The gathered faithful
"Santo!" cried