Did you cry; didn't you cry when you heard that 20 children died of bullet wounds in Newtown, Connecticut? You didn't have to cry tears or weep, but something inside you was struck and a pain emerged from a place you didn't know you had inside there. I know.
It's a recurring theme, but this one is different. A gunman; a crazy person has acquired a gun; not just any gun - a gun of the most lethal, killing kind. We give them names; it's our way of making sense of it. We call them assault weapons and semi-automatic and Ak this and that.
The question you and I must ask is, -can any heart; any mind understand such a tragedy - now or ever? Are we to let this pass into our memories; a safer place tucked away from our daily thoughts. NO, you and I are fools, because none of these thoughts melt away far enough into those recesses to be benign- no, they eat at our souls; even at the souls of the least tender among of us.
I'm asking you I'M ASKING YOU if you own a gun, isn't this the time to; isn't this the excuse to; isn't this the excuse you need to put aside any argument you harbor, hold and adhere to; now put it away and join a crusade to stop STOP KILLING OURSELVES in senseless senseless defense of a Constitutional paragraph that frankly our founding fathers would just assume abolish if they saw the carnage CARNAGE OF CHILDREN we are being faced with here. Haven't you cried enough?
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Warriors, Our Newest Social Elites
All the buzz today about General David Petraeus and General John Allen have the media spinning around what "she" said "he" did and what the "other" shouldn't have ... - and with all of this going on they haven't uncovered the true story.
Here is the truth and you may be surprised to find that it's not a story about the transgressions of a few men (& women). It's the story about America evolving into a nation more and more militaristic. It's a story about a growing emphasis on military pride and admiration, about celebrating patriotism with military regalia, parade anthems, awesome weaponry, brass medals and bravado. America is intoxicated with pride and blind to the impact of a growing military elite.
The current situation is fallout of a social culture at the military's highest levels, one where high level military personnel are afforded large paychecks and "country club" perks that could make a modest corporate executive blush. Why should Americans care what lifestyle their General Commanders lead? Listen a little closer the next time you hear the latest update on Jill Kelley's involvement. She's been coined a "Tampa Socialite" which is a far cry different than a "Long Island Lolita" of a bygone era news story. A socialite, as she's been called, is someone living the high life among other high society elites. Americans are largely unaware of the affluence, lavish parties and country club atmosphere surrounding the military elite. Maybe it's time Americans awaken from the "patriotic" cloud; set the euphoria aside and ask where they want active military commanders spending time and energy when the troops are in the fight? I could go on and on about how wrong it is for military leaders to get ultra special treatment while the troops and their families are suffering a world away from the General's Party Pad.
Here is the truth and you may be surprised to find that it's not a story about the transgressions of a few men (& women). It's the story about America evolving into a nation more and more militaristic. It's a story about a growing emphasis on military pride and admiration, about celebrating patriotism with military regalia, parade anthems, awesome weaponry, brass medals and bravado. America is intoxicated with pride and blind to the impact of a growing military elite.
The current situation is fallout of a social culture at the military's highest levels, one where high level military personnel are afforded large paychecks and "country club" perks that could make a modest corporate executive blush. Why should Americans care what lifestyle their General Commanders lead? Listen a little closer the next time you hear the latest update on Jill Kelley's involvement. She's been coined a "Tampa Socialite" which is a far cry different than a "Long Island Lolita" of a bygone era news story. A socialite, as she's been called, is someone living the high life among other high society elites. Americans are largely unaware of the affluence, lavish parties and country club atmosphere surrounding the military elite. Maybe it's time Americans awaken from the "patriotic" cloud; set the euphoria aside and ask where they want active military commanders spending time and energy when the troops are in the fight? I could go on and on about how wrong it is for military leaders to get ultra special treatment while the troops and their families are suffering a world away from the General's Party Pad.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Restoring Dignity After War
Many bad things happen in war - it's just the destructive nature of war. For civilians it's not the nature of war that is important, it's the nature of the human beings caught up in war.
There's a science to waging war that civilians know very little about. There are schools with professors, venerable war colleges, well-educated alumni and elite thinkers on how to wage better wars.
It seems strange to say better wars. Better is a funny word to use when describing wars. Better wars are less expensive, kill less civilians, cause less physical damage, but by nature war is still destructive and chaotic - a combination of the controlled and uncontrolled circumstances. And we hear about the mistakes that happen in war, but as we say, that's war.
The affects of war on civilians begins in the time well before; in the time leading up to war. Preparing a nation for war is a systematic process in which we're introduced to the opponent; in which we're taught to marginalize and dehumanize them. This process is necessary because at the deepest level we feel empathy for others and find it difficult to inflict suffering, but we're trained with an onslaught of press releases and media coverage about the evil nature of the opponent. All of this effort leading up to war is designed to desensitize us and override our natural tendencies not to fight.
In the mental preparation leading up to war material is circulated to educate us about who is good and who is evil. We're taught that the opponent is not good, that their policies are not good, that their lifestyle, their manner of speaking, dress, color of skin, culture, religion and just about anything else that is different - is not good. This process leads us down a path to dismiss our opponent's humanity, something we need to do as humans in order to accept killing other humans.
After the battle, or war, this mindset is not easily altered back. We continue to view the opponent as less human. We may engage in systematically stripping our opponent of their cultural identity in an attempt to replace what was theirs with what is ours - an attempt to replace the old with the new.
It's not clear whether the recent incident in Bagram Afghanistan where American troop burned the Muslim holy book was an act of aggression, but it is quite likely that this was a result of a great deal of disregard for the old. Although the burning may not have been carried out with malicious intent and it was probably the result of carelessness, it was nevertheless likely related to a decade of disregard toward the opposing culture.
The trouble we face now is that there's no effective means to change such long term ingrained attitudes within ourselves. After waging war for a decade it's become natural to disregard the enemy. In this incident, yet another in a string of embarrassing incidents, America may finally realize it's been engaged in war for too long and that the resultant disregard for others is not and should not be characteristically American. Simply put, the wars have gone on for too long, put too many American troop at risk and presented too many opportunities for mistakes. Now more than ever it seems right to say, "America, it's time to put wars behind and put to work to restoring dignity."
There's a science to waging war that civilians know very little about. There are schools with professors, venerable war colleges, well-educated alumni and elite thinkers on how to wage better wars.
It seems strange to say better wars. Better is a funny word to use when describing wars. Better wars are less expensive, kill less civilians, cause less physical damage, but by nature war is still destructive and chaotic - a combination of the controlled and uncontrolled circumstances. And we hear about the mistakes that happen in war, but as we say, that's war.
The affects of war on civilians begins in the time well before; in the time leading up to war. Preparing a nation for war is a systematic process in which we're introduced to the opponent; in which we're taught to marginalize and dehumanize them. This process is necessary because at the deepest level we feel empathy for others and find it difficult to inflict suffering, but we're trained with an onslaught of press releases and media coverage about the evil nature of the opponent. All of this effort leading up to war is designed to desensitize us and override our natural tendencies not to fight.
In the mental preparation leading up to war material is circulated to educate us about who is good and who is evil. We're taught that the opponent is not good, that their policies are not good, that their lifestyle, their manner of speaking, dress, color of skin, culture, religion and just about anything else that is different - is not good. This process leads us down a path to dismiss our opponent's humanity, something we need to do as humans in order to accept killing other humans.
After the battle, or war, this mindset is not easily altered back. We continue to view the opponent as less human. We may engage in systematically stripping our opponent of their cultural identity in an attempt to replace what was theirs with what is ours - an attempt to replace the old with the new.
It's not clear whether the recent incident in Bagram Afghanistan where American troop burned the Muslim holy book was an act of aggression, but it is quite likely that this was a result of a great deal of disregard for the old. Although the burning may not have been carried out with malicious intent and it was probably the result of carelessness, it was nevertheless likely related to a decade of disregard toward the opposing culture.
The trouble we face now is that there's no effective means to change such long term ingrained attitudes within ourselves. After waging war for a decade it's become natural to disregard the enemy. In this incident, yet another in a string of embarrassing incidents, America may finally realize it's been engaged in war for too long and that the resultant disregard for others is not and should not be characteristically American. Simply put, the wars have gone on for too long, put too many American troop at risk and presented too many opportunities for mistakes. Now more than ever it seems right to say, "America, it's time to put wars behind and put to work to restoring dignity."
Friday, February 17, 2012
A Sad Story Plays Again, Again, Again,...
A story breaks across the news boards. In a California Federal officers; agents trained and duly authorized to carry weapons and then something goes tragically wrong.
It's a sad story and these were Federal employees required, authorized and trained to carry weapons , but here we will go again with another round of discussion about guns and how wonderful it is to carry one. The bottom-line is that guns are deadly weapons and humans, whether professionals, average citizens or criminals, are fallible - that part of human nature is very well documented.
Put a gun in the hands of a human being and you've got a bigger risk - a much bigger risk, of a deadly outcome than if there was no gun. This is really simple stuff, but we keep going back to our right to bear arms as if that makes any difference to those who've suffered at the wrong end of the trigger. Guns have purpose, but most people shouldn't have one because their purpose is not compelling enough to outweigh the risk that they'll suffer a momentary bout of depression, anger or miscalculation.
A bullet travels with purpose to its target and it can't be taken back - it is the final solution - it can't be taken back. And that's really a critical point, because so much of our human interaction is flawed and we so often find ourselves apologizing for something we'd said or done at a weaker moment, but with the bullet there's no going back unless you believe in a second chance in the life hereafter.
For Constitutionalists a better effort would be to defend life.
It's a sad story and these were Federal employees required, authorized and trained to carry weapons , but here we will go again with another round of discussion about guns and how wonderful it is to carry one. The bottom-line is that guns are deadly weapons and humans, whether professionals, average citizens or criminals, are fallible - that part of human nature is very well documented.
Put a gun in the hands of a human being and you've got a bigger risk - a much bigger risk, of a deadly outcome than if there was no gun. This is really simple stuff, but we keep going back to our right to bear arms as if that makes any difference to those who've suffered at the wrong end of the trigger. Guns have purpose, but most people shouldn't have one because their purpose is not compelling enough to outweigh the risk that they'll suffer a momentary bout of depression, anger or miscalculation.
A bullet travels with purpose to its target and it can't be taken back - it is the final solution - it can't be taken back. And that's really a critical point, because so much of our human interaction is flawed and we so often find ourselves apologizing for something we'd said or done at a weaker moment, but with the bullet there's no going back unless you believe in a second chance in the life hereafter.
For Constitutionalists a better effort would be to defend life.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
MLK In Our Hearts
There's a special place in our hearts for the man, Martin Luther King, Jr. The man who gave so much of himself to us.
MLK, as he has come to be known, was a man with big ideas. He spoke of mountain tops and valleys evoking messages of biblical proportions. His words rang through our souls.
There it is. Martin Luther King, Jr spoke words to enlighten humanity. He spoke of a timeless and tireless dream - words of inspiration.
On the grounds of the Nation's Capital rests a monument among many monuments to commemorate MLK, not so much to a man, but to the words. We shouldn't forget the words are more powerful than any man. Nearby is a similar monument to FDR. There again, a monument to the words.
The question is what makes the words and what brings forth such words from some one? Where did the words come from? Was it divine intervention?
As in MLK's time, there's a new day dawning around the globe. There is unrest and there are protests around the globe responding to imbalances of power and wealth. It's too bad MLK isn't here today to share his wisdom, to console the masses, to counsel in the doctrine of peace and resistance to tyranny and to help us find our way forward to become a better society.
It's sad that MLK is gone; that he had to go. Was it his destiny? Was it really his time to go? And why does he remain in our hearts with such splendor? Is it the man that we love and cherish, or the words?
The legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr lives today and forever not only because he was a great man, but because of the power of his words - words that will never grow stale, because the establishment never seems to learn the lessons of history - that money and power and greed are on the wrong side of history - that you can kill, but the words will live on forever.
Celebrate the words of MLK today and forever.
MLK, as he has come to be known, was a man with big ideas. He spoke of mountain tops and valleys evoking messages of biblical proportions. His words rang through our souls.
There it is. Martin Luther King, Jr spoke words to enlighten humanity. He spoke of a timeless and tireless dream - words of inspiration.
On the grounds of the Nation's Capital rests a monument among many monuments to commemorate MLK, not so much to a man, but to the words. We shouldn't forget the words are more powerful than any man. Nearby is a similar monument to FDR. There again, a monument to the words.
The question is what makes the words and what brings forth such words from some one? Where did the words come from? Was it divine intervention?
As in MLK's time, there's a new day dawning around the globe. There is unrest and there are protests around the globe responding to imbalances of power and wealth. It's too bad MLK isn't here today to share his wisdom, to console the masses, to counsel in the doctrine of peace and resistance to tyranny and to help us find our way forward to become a better society.
It's sad that MLK is gone; that he had to go. Was it his destiny? Was it really his time to go? And why does he remain in our hearts with such splendor? Is it the man that we love and cherish, or the words?
The legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr lives today and forever not only because he was a great man, but because of the power of his words - words that will never grow stale, because the establishment never seems to learn the lessons of history - that money and power and greed are on the wrong side of history - that you can kill, but the words will live on forever.
Celebrate the words of MLK today and forever.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Occupy Movement: The Riddle
Occupy is a necessary political process and Anonymous is a brilliant means of pushing back on the forces of tyranny, but is there a riddle in its connection to Vendetta? Is there a hint of anarchism or even violence?
The Occupy movement began as a quiver of energy spun off from uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East. It's an important political process, but dangerous. As with any movement it runs along the margins of societal tolerance. By nature the establishment will only tolerate so much change and the movement will press on for more. The greatest risk is that the movement presses even when the wheels of progress are beginning to turn in their favor. When that happens the movement is actually in the way, acting merely to make a name for the itself and running the risk of loosing sight of its cause -- the cause to progress society.
There have been brilliant moments in the Occupy movement. Moments when protesters have pushed back intelligently almost as if a high-level consciousness had taken over. Whenever that happens the result is that the protesters appear more civilized and more intelligent than those who confront them.
It's undeniable that what's been done within Occupy is powerful and draws our attention to the brilliant ways of Ghandi, King and Mandella. We should be reminded that there's no connection between any of these brilliant movements and anarchism.
The Occupy movement began as a quiver of energy spun off from uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East. It's an important political process, but dangerous. As with any movement it runs along the margins of societal tolerance. By nature the establishment will only tolerate so much change and the movement will press on for more. The greatest risk is that the movement presses even when the wheels of progress are beginning to turn in their favor. When that happens the movement is actually in the way, acting merely to make a name for the itself and running the risk of loosing sight of its cause -- the cause to progress society.
There have been brilliant moments in the Occupy movement. Moments when protesters have pushed back intelligently almost as if a high-level consciousness had taken over. Whenever that happens the result is that the protesters appear more civilized and more intelligent than those who confront them.
It's undeniable that what's been done within Occupy is powerful and draws our attention to the brilliant ways of Ghandi, King and Mandella. We should be reminded that there's no connection between any of these brilliant movements and anarchism.
Warriors and Humanity: A Struggle With Evil
Are we surprised by the recent video of U.S. Military Personnel pissing on corpses? Surprised by pictures of Abu Ghraib prison guards playfully abusing prisoners? Should we venture to guess what fun and games were played out behind closed doors during water boarding sessions?
There's a story unfolding here and the U.S. Military doesn't want to talk about it. In reality it's a fallacy to call it rouge behavior, because the troop behavior really is the result of a mindset being passed down through the ranks - that the enemy are not human. After so many years of floating these sentiments all throughout the rank and file you can expect to see this kind of behavior. Let's face it the U.S. troop are tired and frustrated by a mission obviously gone on too long and going nowhere. They've seen or heard of comrades wounded or killed and they really no longer believe in the mission.
Part of the problem is circumstantial and the other part is poor leadership from the top command. The result is a mean-spirited armed forces and any notion that these were the actions of warriors in the "heat of the battle" overrun by a blitz of emotions is just bunk. No, these were actions perpetrated in times of relative calm, for fun and with nothing but evil intentions. Evil intentions and evil outcomes.
There's a story unfolding here and the U.S. Military doesn't want to talk about it. In reality it's a fallacy to call it rouge behavior, because the troop behavior really is the result of a mindset being passed down through the ranks - that the enemy are not human. After so many years of floating these sentiments all throughout the rank and file you can expect to see this kind of behavior. Let's face it the U.S. troop are tired and frustrated by a mission obviously gone on too long and going nowhere. They've seen or heard of comrades wounded or killed and they really no longer believe in the mission.
Part of the problem is circumstantial and the other part is poor leadership from the top command. The result is a mean-spirited armed forces and any notion that these were the actions of warriors in the "heat of the battle" overrun by a blitz of emotions is just bunk. No, these were actions perpetrated in times of relative calm, for fun and with nothing but evil intentions. Evil intentions and evil outcomes.
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