Another . . .

. . . perspective . . .

(from https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/dec/02/george-hw-bush-family?CMP=share_btn_fb&fbclid=IwAR1F4d30ZTepn8KBtjm3HCwmjVZKH_6lcTlVVzpH7PjwJV_Dzk4x2HBz3qQ)

". . . Suddenly, the former president lifted his right arm into the air, his fingers extended backward, snapping them without, however, deigning to look at the man behind him. The officer reacted with celerity, producing, seemingly out of nowhere, a tube that he deposited in his master’s hand. It turned out to be a sun tan lotion, as George Senior, without losing his stride and definitely without thanking the aide, began to lavishly apply it to his exposed forearms and neck. . . That night, pondering the experience . . . from the man who once held the fate of humanity in his hands. I was disturbed by the unintentional message he had sent me. Without the slightest notion that I was witnessing his cavalcade from my smug and far too self-satisfied position on a beautiful balcony, he had given me the finger, offered a lesson about what matters in the grand scheme of history. . ."

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We Could . . .

(from https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/02/the-nras-plan-to-harden-schools-is-terrifying/)

". . . harden . . . (our) schools.” . . . Before schools start lining up to take advantage of (NRA CEO Wayne) LaPierre’s generosity, it’s worth revisiting exactly what the NRA means when it calls for measures to “harden” a school.

. . . A big fence. . . that “clearly demonstrates territorial ownership,” as the “first physical and psychological barrier that a violent individual must overcome.” . . . like. . .(a) prison yard-style fence

. . . No trees . . . trees and bushes on school grounds should instead be viewed as major security threats. . . too many opportunities for a shooter to stash weapons and hide from surveillance cameras. . . (instead) the NRA recommends very kid-friendly “thorn-bearing and sharp-leaved plant species to create natural physical barriers to deter aggressors.” The report does urge school leaders to keep in mind that such prickly barriers might also prevent people from escaping a mad shooter. . . 

. . . No parking lots . . . vehicles can provide potential attackers with a means of concealing and transporting weapons, can be used as a tool in overpowering physical security infrastructure, and can even serve as weapons in and of themselves,” 

. . . Entrapment areas. . . the task force recommends that school front offices be protected with two sets of automatically locking doors, preferably constructed with “ballistic protective glass” like the neighborhood liquor store. Such a set up will allow the front office staff to safely trap a potential shooter like a bug in a window screen until help arrives. The report recommends reinforcing the front desk and side wall with “ballistic steel plating” that employees could hide behind should the shooter get past the entrapment area.

. . . No windows. . . 1970s-era post-riots urban architecture. Windows, if allowed at all, should be designed solely with surveillance in mind. . . 

Not mentioning making teachers train with and carry guns and essentially serve as armed forces.

OR

We could exercise some form of GUN CONTROL!

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Lesson . . .

. . . for the teacher . . .


(from https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/hurricane-harvey/joel-osteen-says-social-media-created-false-narrative-about-lakewood-n797341)
". . . Celebrity televangelist Joel Osteen said Wednesday that social media created a "false narrative" over the apparent decision to not open the doors of his megachurch to Hurricane Harvey victims. . . Osteen said that as floodwaters hit the Houston area, Lakewood Church was not initially asked by the city to open as a shelter. . . but the main thing is the city didn't ask us to become a shelter then," Osteen said. . ."



Well "Pastor",  it appears that you have FAILED. . .

(from Proverbs 27:23)
"Know well the condition of your flocks, and give attention to your herds"

(Leviticus 25:35)
"If your brother becomes poor and cannot maintain himself with you, you shall support him as though he were a stranger and a sojourner, and he shall live with you."

(James 1:23-25)
"But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts,he will be blessed in his doing."

(James 2:18)
"But someone will say, 'You have faith and I have works.' Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works."

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Glitter . . .

. . . Many and new contemporaries and adults were introduced into my life with the addition of formal education to my daily routine. These new experiences did not so much teach me that everything and everyone on this earth were not always good, honest and sincere people, but it did confirm that. But I still managed to retain a certain optimism, in spite of it. Deep down, bullies who punched me in the stomach and ran (brave, huh?), nasty classmates who whispered and giggled to each other in my presence, the abrasive girl on the schoolbus that made fun of me, the guys that would never choose me to be on their team (I was NOT athletic) and the teachers who scolded the entire class for something obviously perpetrated by one misguided soul - could not dissuade me from the notion that the world was still a good place and that most people within it were still very much good. I firmly believed that.


All That Glitters
©2017 Raymond M. Jozwiak

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History . . .

. . . well, what else can you call it.

It's my history anyway.


I have this ability, which in my view really isn't THAT special, to recognize people from my past.  And since as I get older that period of time continues to grow larger, that number likewise continues to grow, quite possibly making it increasingly difficult to maintain this ability.

But anyway, I had an opportunity to practice this (mostly) wonderful talent recently when I encountered my tenth-grade biology teacher in the grocery store.  And although we had a most pleasant conversation, there are some things, as happens in many conversations, that I did not say at the time but which occurred to me later making me wish that I had said them at the time.  So I thought I would say them here.

This particular teacher was a breath of fresh air in some otherwise unspectacular high school years.  She was young, not unattractive, energetic, enthusiastic, articulate, funny and unmistakably dedicated.  I was an impressionable, un-academic, socially awkward, decidedly uncool, dweebie, acne-faced adolescent young male biding my time in a school that offered me very little in the way of intellectual stimulation or social opportunities.  She taught biology, one of the few subjects that held some appeal for me, being a lover of reptiles and amphibians. But she taught biology, as I'm sure she could have any other course, with pizazz and finesse resulting in one early-morning class to which I actually looked forward favorably.

One component of this biology class, which now upon reflection I realize, was instrumental in shaping my academic future and later life.  It was a  project we undertook of a multi-media presentation within the topic which required team work, writing, selection of visual material and accompanying narration and audio.  I, with the encouragement of this teacher, was selected to be the narrator, which in truth was mostly because I was one of a small few who could read more than one sentence without stumbling.  But this distinction helped shape the direction I soon decided to take toward a career (or at least the pursuit of such a career) in media.  This decision (which by the way I have never regretted due to the many pleasant years and good friends which resulted) at which I arrived was the result of the (rare for me, at the time) confidence I felt because of this science project and with the help of this wonderful teacher. 

So not only is this petite, unassuming figure not difficult for me to discern in a crowd because of her smiling, wise and pleasant face, she is one of a select few persons from my past who helped instill something in me that I have never lost and which has become an integral part of my makeup as a happy, responsible, functioning adult.  Thank you Miss Wells.

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Unbelievably . . .

. . . sad

(from http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/19751-drone-strike-victims-tell-their-story-but-is-america-listening by Rania Khalek)
". . . Pakistani school teacher Rafiq ur Rehman traveled over 7,000 miles with his children - 13-year-old Zubair and 9-year-old Nabila - from a small, remote village in North Waziristan to tell lawmakers about the US drone strike that killed his 67-year-old mother, Mamana Bibi. It was a harrowing tale that brought many in the room to tears, including Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.), who was responsible for inviting the family to Capitol Hill for the briefing.

In the end, only five members of the US House of  Representatives bothered to attend. Grayson was joined by Reps. Jan Schakowsky (D- Ill.), Rush Holt (D-NJ), John Conyers (D-Mich.) and Rick Nolan (D-Minn.).

Meanwhile, President Obama, according to his October 29 schedule, was meeting with the CEOs of Lockheed Martin and Northrup Grumman, both of which manufacture drones. More importantly, Lockheed Martin manufactures hellfire missiles, the very weapon fired from the drone that killed Mamana Bibi.

Though Obama did not publicly acknowledge the briefing, his actions the next day suggest he was either unmoved or did not tune in. . ."

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