A friend recently commented to me that he wished the President had not made those recent comments about race relations to which I, naturally, responded, "Why?" He said that among all of the problems we as a people, society and world currently face, the Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman situation should not be monopolizing our attention. In short, like a popular song on a top 40 radio station, he was just sick and tired of hearing about it.
Like many other conversations with many people, I was quickly distracted from this one and on to other things. But later that day, after contemplating our short interchange further, I realized what I could have, should have, and hope to tell my friend upon our next encounter. And, in brief, that is: the President's remarks were spot-on. They were NOT political, they were not platitudinous or pompous blather, trite heard-it-alreadies or scolding. They were simply a from-the-heart reflection and plea for US to reflect on how we treat each other. Reflect- probably something very few of us do during our busy, self-absorbed days. He also described how it feels (and felt to him) being a young black man and some of the racist behaviors with which young black men must cope everyday. He mentioned the history of mistreatment to which black people have been subjected and alluded to the anger that results. So many things which white people know, but have somehow tucked away and choose not to think about too much. . . BUT SHOULD!
These are things that middle-aged white men such as my friend and myself do not now, nor have in the past, encountered. If we have a country, and a world, where people must live together, we must, at the very least, be empathetic to these things. This is every bit as important as the economy, the environment, budgets and spending, foreign policy, drones and (do-nothing)politicos. This is our world. It's the only one we've got. We can, and should, certainly make time to help resolve such such relevant and important issues as THE WAY WE GET ALONG!
"I think we are inviting God's judgment on our nation when we shake our
fist at him and say, 'We know better than you as to what constitutes a
marriage'" says Chick-Fil-A's Dan Cathy.
First, what God and what judgement are we talking about here? Second, where or in what direction would a fool shake his fist in order to express this silly sentiment? Third, this imaginary being to whom he is expressing this anger actually holds an opinion about what the word 'marriage' represents which holds WHAT relevance?
It's only a matter of time before opinions like Cathy's will be totally irrelevant, part of a tiny minority, no longer newsworthy, and dismissable as those of a mere crank.
. . . O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not. . .
(from http://www.newstatesman.com/north-america/2011/09/bin-laden-cia-scheuer-qaeda)
". . . (Michael)Scheuer often singles out Israel for criticism, arguing that the US's "unquestioning support" for the Jewish state's dispossession of the Palestinians has helped radicalize young men across the Muslim world, boost al-Qaeda's status and endanger US national security. He has received hate mail and death threats in response, and says: "The anger within the Jewish community in the US towards me is quite extraordinary." He argues that he was sacked from a post at the Jamestown Foundation in 2009 for his anti-Israeli remarks.
Some have claimed - the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat included - that Bin Laden had little interest in the fate of the Palestinians, and that he cynically exploited the conflict after 9/11 to garner support from ordinary Muslims in his war against the west. "That's a complete lie, sir," Scheuer counters. "If you read the first thing [Bin Laden] wrote, there are probably nine or ten different references to Israel/Palestine . . . The idea that he was a Johnny-come-lately is completely made up."
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