“America is a tune. It must be sung together.” – Gerard Stanley
Lee
Since the inception of this usually comedic blog (such is
the objective, anyway) in 2010, I’ve always considered it of utmost importance
that at least once a year it take a serious, somber tone in commemoration of
the sad and tragic events of September 11th, now 14 years ago.
We remember with reverence the innocent lives that were
lost, and honor with admiration the valiant responders who bravely, steadfastly
and at no small individual risk followed a personal call of duty to country, to
justice and to humanity. These were Sly Stone’s “everyday people,” many of whom
traveled to New York from locales all around our great country, proving
ordinary people can oftentimes be the most extraordinary. Sorrowfully, far too substantial a number of them have suffered for their courageous actions, overtaken by myriad
maladies facilitated by the unsafe and unhealthy conditions at the rescue site.
I had the opportunity to meet a few of
these true Americans and could but humbly express my appreciation for the much
needed spirit and assistance that they brought to my shaken, shocked,
heartbroken, mourning, yet determined and resolute city.
Should you have ever come upon this blog before, by happenstance
or, hopefully, by intent, it very likely didn’t require much deep reading or
circumspection to determine the entrenched New York City origins of the author. It is here where I was born and bred, and
where I fully expect to take my final breaths (perhaps with the aromas of
Sunday’s macaroni gravy and gravy meat wafting into my nostrils) and I have
stated incessantly (possibly to the point of annoyance) since 9/11,
that there is no human being on this earth that I hold more affection, loyalty
and veneration for than the New Yorker. At the worst point in our history, this
vastly diverse population became one - in sorrow, in support, in understated
understanding – a city of 8 million, turned close-knit neighborhood.
After this passage of time, and the yearly recollections,
I wonder what’s left to articulate. A sincere wish is that September 11th
never be designated a national holiday, for inevitably what will shortly follow
is the white sale, mattress extravaganza and late summer backyard barbeque.
We all thought, and we were all told, that our country
was forever changed on that day. For many families, those with friends and
relatives victimized by the heinous attacks, that was indeed the case. However, by clear and unpleasant evidence of
the manner in which this early period of the 2016 presidential campaign is
manifesting itself – the ugliness, the bitterness, the lies, the backbiting,
the partisanship, the institutionalized hatred – questions of doubt arise, has anything truly lastingly
changed in present day America? Have we learned any permanent lessons from this
unspeakable experience as a country and its people?
For a brief, dark, desperate moment we were one
nation, indivisible. Now, we are a collection of belligerent, bickering
combatants, with a growing animosity and revulsion towards each other, choosing
to concentrate on that which makes us dissimilar rather than those
commonalities which unite us.
This blog will forever reflect on
September 11th in tribute, solemnly remembering the thousands who perished –
on a field in Pennsylvania, at the Pentagon in Washington D.C. and in a pair of
skyscrapers just a few miles south of my home; those heroes who came to the aid
of a despairing and grieving city, my city, the greatest city in the world, with
an unending and unyielding appreciation, and without classification by sexual orientation,
ethnicity, religious affiliation or political beliefs; and a country that
momentarily realized the strength and beauty inherent in unity and accord. We can only urgently and sincerely hope that
it won’t require some such similarly violent and vile occurrence for us once
again to be Americans.
They’ve all come
to look for America” – Paul Simon
“He must be from
Krypton.” – Chris Matthews
"You know, it doesn't
really matter what [the media] writes as long as you've got a young and
beautiful piece of ass."
– Donald Trump
I tackle this onerous topic with
some trepidation. What Trump desires more than anything else in the world is
attention and promotion, continued and constant celebrity. Whether that camera and microphone time
results in positive or negative notoriety is irrelevant, the search for the
ceaseless spotlight is the sole objective; a pathological need fitting his
spot-on profile as a sociopath, which Trump irrefutably is.
And surely, he suffers not for lack of exposure,
frequently featured as the singular subject of uncritical conversation on Chris
Matthews’ “Hardball," viewers nightly suffer through Matthews' unrequited
affection and adoration for the Donald as seen through the twinkle in Chris’s
eyes and the girlish giggle on his lips, whenever covering his newest
heartthrob. Donald is to Chris as Davy Jones is to Marcia Brady (cue the
animated hearts around his head.) And Trump is almost as often propagandized on
the entirety of the MSNBC 24 hour schedule (by design of new management,
gradually morphing into a Fox News clone) with the possible exception of “Lock
Up.” However, should the SEC ever conduct a proper and thorough investigation
of Trump’s business dealings, that programming possibility could arise, as
well.
"When
Mexico sends its people … they are bringing drugs and they are bringing crime
and their rapists." – Donald Trump
I hesitantly join this non-stop Trump publicity
machine for although he has indeed been exposed more than a Jenner/Kardashian
posterior, Trump’s own posterior has been habitually bussed but seldom disparaged.
The, too often, under-served voter needs to see not just the tactless, boorish,
yet entertaining carnival barker, but also the genuinely egomaniacal, megalomaniacal,
monstrous and potentially dangerous demagogue
that lurks beneath the unparalled and colossal
comical comb-over.
This pathetic, self-serving, circus act of
a man in Chinese manufactured, self-labeled polyester, who speaks and acts only
in service to his own glory, a man who never met a mirror he didn’t like, who considers
the biblical passage“you shall have no other gods before me,” a
reference to himself, has been an incessant, international
embarrassment to our country, our democracy and our electoral system.
"You make me feel brand new. 'Cause God blessed me with you."
Trump had Jorge Ramos, a
highly-respected, Latino-American journalist man-handled by his security and
physically removed from a press conference, and not a single other reporter spoke
up or departed in a show of solidarity or protestation. “White Power” has rung
out at his rallies, and the most prominent neo-Nazi and White Supremacist groups
are endorsing his campaign and Presidential aspirations, for as so many of his supporters
spout, “he is one of us.”
“I have black guys counting my money. … I hate it. The only guys I want counting my money are short guys that wear yarmulkes all day.” – Donald Trump
“I don’t have a racist bone in my body.” – Donald Trump
In this ugly age of Trump,
there are few answers, but myriad, shameless questions. If he is correct about
the current character of the American citizenry, if the vociferous voices of
those who back and boost his unbearable beliefs are an accurate indication of
where we now are as a nation and of how far we’ve morally fallen as a people,
the vision and dream of our founders is truly doomed. Could it possibly be that
admiration and respect for such worthy leaders as George Washington, Thomas
Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King has been superseded by a veneration
for the likes of Donald Trump, Sarah Palin, Ted Cruz and Pat Robertson, those
of little decency, integrity or intelligence who wish to lead us down a path of
societal destruction through self-aggrandizement?
“You have to treat ‘em (women) like shit.” – Donald Trump
Are we really the intolerant,
ignorant, childish, petty, hateful, vindictive people that Donald Trump
believes us, wants us and ultimately needs and is counting on us to be? A five
time draft dodger, he demeans those who have served and suffered for it, and a
nation applauds. He refers to women as
bimbos, pigs, ugly, disgusting, whose proper place is on their knees in front
of him, and his polls rise. He blames the poor, the powerless, the
disenfranchised, those with the least, for the relatively, non-existent
problems of the wealthy, the powerful and the advantaged, and gathers praise. Although
betrothing two women from foreign lands, he ridicules the accents, manner,
traditions, behavior and customs of minority communities and recent immigrants,
labeling them as rapists (an offense for which he has been accused) and violent
criminals, and assures himself the Republican nomination. And, should he ever
move on to the comical condemnation of the physically and mentally handicapped,
the only remaining population he’s yet to scorn, will the American public still
continue its mindless and cruel affirmation of Trump’s animosities?
A Moe and a Larry in search of their Curly
"He's (John McCain) not a war hero because he was captured. I like
people that weren't captured."– Donald Trump
Are we no longer the free and
liberty-laden land of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the
Bill of Rights, the Voting Act? Are we now a nation of full rights only for the
privileged few, the country that Donald Trump envisions? If so, I would wish to
be no part of that U.S.A. Yet, as tempting as it might be to make the melodramatic
and usually empty threat of future expatriation, as was so common among the Conservative
corps surrounding both of President Obama’s successful elections, the
practicality is questionable. Rather than true Americans departing for more amenable
shores, we must use our voices, our pens, our ballots and our rights, while
they still exist, to battle this unseemly wave of Right Wing detestation, xenophobia
and chauvinism, and this preening peacock of a little man who arrogantly symbolizes
only the worst of who we are. Impeding the further advancement of Donald Trump
is not a choice, but a necessity, for the health, the legitimacy, and the very future
of the United States of America.
“… she does have a very nice figure. I’ve said if Ivanka weren’t my
daughter, perhaps I’d be dating her.” - Donald Trump
The Decline of Democracy. The Ascent of Idiocracy.
“Let us be lovers,
we’ll marry our fortunes together
I’ve got some real
estate here in my bag
So we bought a
pack of cigarettes and Mrs. Wagner’s pies
And walked off to
look for America” - Paul Simon
Any comments, questions, criticisms, candid confessions,
cash contributions? Contact me at
butchersaprons@mail.com.
Way back, in an ancient time known as 2010, Republican Iowa Representative Steve King, a man far more frightening than the prolific horror author of similar nomenclature, was pushing the controversial concept of anchor babies. So extreme and so ludicrous was this nutty notion that he was laughed at like a million purposefully set-up crotch clouts on America's Funniest Home Videos.
Now, it is 2015, like the Flintstones, a modern prehistoric era, when the Grand Old Party has reversed the clock and the calendar to lead us into a period of prejudice, intolerance, ignorance, hatred of all not-white, not-Christian, not-wealthy, and fear of both the female and those who promote history, facts and scientific belief.
Spearheading this deadly devolution of our great but clearly deteriorating nation is the current head of the Republican party - a spoiled, malevolent, philistine with a coyote pup on his head, a yellow stripe down his back, and a song of sociopathic, vainglorious enmity in his heart - Donald Trump. He, of little thought, tact, talent or ability, as worthless a human being as fiction could fabricate, has revived the nefarious notion of anchor babies. And, in current days, when what was once the extreme has become the Conservative norm, his intolerant cry has been seconded by all the other lemming-like losers who seek the nomination of the pachyderm party.
Here, before you, I re-present a blog post on this sorrowful subject from 2010. Usually, l would happily brag of my prescience. Today, I wish it weren't so.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 19, 2010
Baby Ka-Boom: The Rise of the Terror Baby
“They’re coming to get you, Barbara” - Night of the Living Dead
Modern day Republicans spread lies like Elvis spread bacon fat on fried banana sandwiches – with enthusiasm, gusto and pride. And, as with Elvis, while they might enjoy some short term gain, in the long run, there’s bound to be undesirable consequences. They’ve lied to you about the grand malevolence of gay marriage, for instance. Regarding the recent ruling in the Golden State, disgraced and forced to resign former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich, had this to say -
“Judge Walker's ruling overturning Prop 8 is an outrageous disrespect for our Constitution and for the majority of people of the United States who believe marriage is the union of husband and wife.”
This is a topic of some expertise for Newt, as this thrice married, serial philanderer does know a thing or two about destroying marriages. But, unless a straight couple and a gay couple are trying to book the same Saturday in June, or are fighting over the last Lennox gravy boat in stock at Macy’s needed to complete their settings, I just don’t see the problem.
Then there’s Death Panels - a concept that came to Sarah Palin when she nodded off one night, mukluks in place after one too many hot toddies, during a Cinemax showing of Logan’s Run.
But, of course, the vast majority of right-wing political “truth-stretching” involves the legitimately, legally elected, Barack Obama whom, they have taught us, is a Kenyan born, Marxist, Nazi, Islamic terrorist trying to brainwash American school children and traveling the world to espouse the evils of the country he has set out to destroy - the United States. To delve into such a disparate and desperate level of prevarication there is obviously something about him that the right is just not O-KKK with. I wish I could put my finger on it.
And now, there’s the latest bit of fear-mongering from the GOP, and by far my personal favorite, scary babies! Apparently, thinking that there’s no bridge too far for the Snuggie buying, American public they want you to fear babies - Evil Death Babies! Now, the Evil Death Babies (patent pending - heretofore to be referred to as EDBs) come in two categories depending on which constituency your representative is pandering to at the time. For people who distrust Jimmy Smits, the EDBs are called Anchor Babies. If, instead, you’re suspicious of Christiane Amanpour, then the EDB’s are called Terror Babies - a much more colorful and dramatic moniker. I’m not precisely sure how the Terror Baby plan is supposed to work, as I’m not clinically insane, but I do know that it involves terrorist moms coming here, giving birth to new American citizen EDB’s (curse that 14th Amendment) taking them back home to Terrorkistan, where they then spend the next 30 years teaching them to hate the New York Yankees, TGI-Fridays and relaxed fit jeans with built-in-comfort, elastic waist bands
However, while universally recognized as a crafty, very dangerous and thoroughly fictional foe, there are ways to defend against and disarm the Terror Baby. They can, for example, be easily distracted for long periods of time by the mere jangling of shiny keys in front of their cherubic, yet vile, faces. If you wish to momentarily win over a TB (Terror Baby) it is believed that they utterly enjoy the company of a doggy, particularly a “Mommy, look a big doggy,“ doggy. So be sure to stay well stocked, canine-wise, at all times. But, the most valuable and lethal of all the weapons at your disposal is, of course, the binky. Nothing is more effective than the well-timed placement of a binky into the depraved, little, foul mouth of your cunning adversary. Once lulled by the comforting sensations of said binky, the baby can then be apprehended and brought to justice where the little demon will eventually be placed, without benefit of trial or hearing, in the Terror Baby Wing of Gitmo - Elmo.
If only the far-right weren’t so reckless, mean-spirited and poisonous - and such a danger to our nation, its people and its future - they would be so amusing.
Welcome to the thrilling, chilling and never-ending saga of the 2016 Republican Presidential carnival, fun house and freak show. You’ve waited all week. You’ve been at the edge of your Barcalounger. What little slumber you’ve managed has been fitful and excruciatingly unsatisfying. You’ve suffered our shared national indignation in the non-stop, 24 hour press coverage of every Donald Trump utterance, act and bodily function. MSNBC, once the sole television voice of Progressive America has degraded itself in its transformation into “All Donald, All the Time” and the once proud U.S. of A. stoops humbled and humiliated, a Dogpatchian Hooterville in the eyes and estimation of the international community. Ancient, cave-dwelling, hidden civilizations, lacking in language or alphabet, gape, wide-eyed and slack-jawed in astonishment at a culture so enthralled and enchanted by the obvious and oblivious, malicious-minded missing link who prowls the gaudy, gold-plated halls of Trump Tower and other such bejeweled and bedazzled brothels, as they consider us with justified attitudes of deserved superiority, and wretched sympathy.
But, as surely as there is a God in Heaven (whoops, regular readers will recall my avowed atheism) this I swear to you, sanity and sensibility will once again regain a foothold and reign supreme, and our long national nightmare will reach its blessed conclusion, for, finally, “… and several butcher’s aprons” proudly presents its heralded and highly anticipated presentation of part 2 of “Signs of the Apocalypse – GOP Presidential Campaign Posters” (a bit too much of a build-up?) When last we met, the lampooning of the GOP herd commenced with the ten participants who debated in the evening hours. This week hence, we close with suggested slogans for the lesser polling seven who contended while the sun still shone and we worker bees yet toiled.
For those interested in the earlier installment, please follow this link. For those utterly apathetic about it, feel free to do the same, but don’t restrain your resentment.
If you’re
like me, (well, I’m genuinely sorry, I understand there are very effective
medications that can be of some help now) the start of the debate season officially
kicking off the 2016 Presidential Campaign is your Christmas Eve, your
honeymoon, your opportunity to finally order this year’s Girl Scout Cookies
from that pushy and obnoxious co-worker, who has yet to produce any substantial
evidence of actually having a daughter.
MSNBC is our Playboy Channel and the voting booth, our peep show.
If you
viewed the GOP debates earlier this week, the prime time varsity game and the
early bird special JV scrimmage (again, my most sincere sympathies) you were
witness to the unfortunate fact that, much like the arousal-challenged older
gentlemen in the television Cialis ads, these twelve dozen or so fumbling, flailing
and flaccid participants could benefit from some earnestly intended outside
assistance and support in successfully launching their election erections, and
maintaining even the slimmest of hopes in challenging the inevitable (just ask
her) Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in the vote tally tournament that will
determine the next four year occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Being the loving,
caring, sympathetic and charitable sorts that we are here at “… and several
butcher’s aprons,” (the Oprah’s of annoying attitudinal blogs) please allow us
to rush swiftly, if not even fool-heartedly, into the breach, with this
presentation of new Republican campaign posters, a unique one for each of the
365 declared candidates.
Due to the
unusually large number of constitutional combatants this time around, this
edition will be divided into two separate postings. Today, we begin with the
lucky ten who topped the polling and so advanced into the 9 pm evening finals.
In half a fortnight (for those of you not an 18th century fop, a week), you will find the follow up, featuring the set of seven
who competed while we all commuted home from our places of employment (or were
watching Judge Mathis, instead.)
Enjoy. Share
with friends. Share with the candidates. Share the love. Each meme can be
enlarged for easier reading with a mere click of the mouse.
As the legendary, tempting Temptations so eloquently and alarmingly expressed
it, “Great googamooga, can't you hear me talking to you? It’s a ball of
confusion.”
Any comments, questions, criticisms, candid confessions, cash
contributions? Contact me at butchersaprons@mail.com.
Let’s begin this sad and
salacious story as if it were a fairy tale for, once read, you will wish it
fantasy rather than the repugnant reality that follows.
Once upon a time (now see, that’s
nice) it crossed my exceptionally left-leaning mind (such as it is) that there
might be a blog post in comparing and contrasting the conceivably compatible
canons of the Grand Old Party and the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. But, as
promptly as a Palin casts aside a condom or the Donald trumps dignity and human
decency, nycityman negated the notion as being too implausible and preposterous
a possibility for even the most prejudicially progressive opiner. Then, one lazy afternoon, a pint or two of
Blue Point loosening up the more cautious concerns of commentary and political
punditry, I did the research and despondently discovered that my initial
assessment was accurate, with no need for either exaggeration or embellishment.
The overarching philosophical
beliefs in common are quite obvious – they both exist solely for the
advancement of white, male Christians and neither is reticent to cause harm to
others outside of that narrow demographic to achieve their allied aims. While, for the most part, the tenor of
language spoken is unalike (although under the current tutelage and leadership
of openly intolerant frontrunner Donald Trump that hate-speak gap has significantly
narrowed) and the techniques practiced differ (the Klan block African-Americans
from voting with violence and physical intimidation, Republicans do so by
passing legislation) the results are the same.
What’s very frightening, however,
is that exploration into beliefs and behaviors reveal worrisome similarities
and shared specificities between the two organizations, both whose agendas are
primarily driven by bigotry and hatred.
Parallel Lines - The Platforms of the
American Knights of the Ku Klux Klan and Republican National Committee
GAY RIGHTS
“The Klan will take away all the
special rights and privileges granted to homosexuals by the liberal
dictatorship over the last few years. Homosexuals will no longer be permitted
to adopt children or marry each other.” - KKK
“We support a Constitutional
amendment defining marriage as the union between one man and one woman... we
affirm that homosexuality is incompatible with military service.” - GOP
"If
the Supreme Court says that you have the right to consensual [gay] sex within
your home, then you have the right to bigamy, you have the right to polygamy,
you have the right to incest, you have the right to adultery. You have the
right to anything … man on child, man on dog, or whatever the case may be. It
is one thing… this is not about gay marriage, it is about changing what is
right and wrong" – Rick Santorum
A WOMAN’S RIGHT TO CHOOSE
“The American Knights will outlaw
this barbaric, satanic practice and punish the sadistic doctors who are guilty
of these crimes against humanity.”- KKK
“We support a human life
amendment to the Constitution outlawing abortion altogether, with no exceptions
for the life and health of the mother, incest or rape. We will not fund or subsidize
health care which includes abortion coverage.” - GOP
GUN CONTROL
“The so-called gun control bills
enacted by the government are nothing but anti-self defense laws designed to
disarm law abiding White citizens.” – KKK
“We oppose
legislation limiting the capacity of clips or magazines. We oppose federal licensing of
law-abiding gun owners & national gun registration. We applaud those
seeking to stop frivolous lawsuits against firearms manufacturers.” – GOP
FOREIGN POLICY
“The Klan favors a strong foreign
policy that closely guards American interests around the world. All aid to
worthless third World nations will be cut off. The foreign policy of the Klan
led United States will be: AMERICA FIRST, LAST AND ALWAYS!” – KKK
“As a party we should stand by
the Bush doctrine of pre-emption. In a time when the greatest threat to our
country is chemical or biological weapons in the hands of Islamic extremists
who want to bring an end to the Western way of life; the percentage of
Republicans endorsing diplomacy in preference to military action is minimal…
2/3 of Republicans believe that use of overwhelming force is best.” – GOP
IMMIGRATION
“Millions of Third World bandits
enter our country illegally every year. The Republicans and Democrats do nothing
to halt this massive invasion. America is being transformed into a new Mexico.
We shall halt all immigration from non-White nations and use the U.S. Army to
restore integrity to our borders.” – KKK
“Many areas of the border are wide open, resulting in a
steady flow of illegal immigrants, criminals, smugglers and cartel members
heading north. The party strongly believes that providing amnesty to illegal immigrants
only further encourages illegal immigration, and supports efforts to deport
illegal aliens without the process of allowing the illegal alien to have a
hearing before an immigration judge.” - GOP
"When Mexico sends its
people, they're not sending the best. They're not sending you, they're sending
people that have lots of problems and they're bringing those problems. They're
bringing drugs, they're bringing crime. They're rapists.” – Donald Trump
EDUCATION
“America's public schools,
colleges and universities have been turned into political indoctrination
centers run by depraved liberals, communist and Jews in our public. Forced
bussing will be outlawed. Prayer will be returned to our schools.”- KKK
“We support the public display of
the Ten Commandments as a reflection of our history and of our country's
Judeo-Christian heritage, and we affirm the right of students to engage in
prayer in public schools. The party is in favor of presenting alternative
theories of biological or physical origins to evolution, leveling the playing field as it allows a
teacher to bring forward the biblical creation story of humankind.” - GOP
"Colleges are indoctrination
mills that harm the country... taught by some liberal college professor trying
to indoctrinate them"- Rick Santorum
CHRISTIAN VALUES
“Homosexuality, bisexuality,
transsexuals, sado-masochism, and every other type of vile perversion is
applauded by the scum that control our country. The American Knights demand a
return to sanity. We call for a restoration of Christian values to all walks of
life.” – KKK
"... reverence for God, support
for the family unit." - GOP
“… and that's what we need to do
— to amend the Constitution so it's in God's standards.” - Mike Huckabee
“I
pledge that I never will tie myself to parties who want to destroy Christianity ... We want to fill our culture again with
the Christian spirit ... We want to burn out all the recent immoral
developments in literature, in the theater, and in the press - in short, we
want to burn out the poison of immoralitywhich
has entered into our whole life and culture as a result ofliberal excessduring the past ... (few) years.” – Adolph Hitler (Fear not, fellow rational thinkers, I'm not falling into that Fox-like trap of ludicrously comparing anyone to the Fuhrer, but the quote sheds some light on how far right Republican rhetoric has gone, in that it would be perfectly believable if those words were credited to any one of the 758 GOP Presidential candidates.)
If you are a Republican, well,
you’re not reading this. But if,
perchance, a stray GOPer has happened upon this page while in search of Ann
Coulter erotica, Bush/Cheney prison escape plans or AK-47 white sales, please
reconsider the party to which you give your allegiance. When you pull that
lever or punch that chad under the illustration of the red, white and blue
pachyderm, you are voting the values, or more accurately, lack thereof, of the
Ku Klux Klan.
“Like peas in a pod and birds of a feather
Alone or together you’ll find
That we are two of a kind” – Darin/Mercer
To wrap up this joyful
dissertation, a gem of a song performed and written by Bobby Darin and Johnny
Mercer, chosen to reflect the new chummy relationship between the post-Tea
Party, 19th Century-centric GOP and the Ku Klux Klan, the twains
have met – “Two of a Kind.”
Any
comments, questions, criticisms, candid confessions, cash contributions? Contact me at butchersaprons@mail.com.
“Southern man, better keep your head Don't forget what your good book said Southern change's gonna come at last Now your crosses are burning fast” – Neil Young
On
relatively rare occasion, although I wish it more frequent, “… and several
butcher’s aprons” is turned over to a guest blogger for the opportunity to
experience a point of view from a new and fresh voice and perspective.
Since the blog's inception, I have maintained
anonymity in the guise of nycityman so as to feel absolute freedom to share any
and all thoughts and opinions without insecurity or timidity, or fear of retribution, or for that matter, the likelihood of friend and family embarrassment leading to needless self-censorship, and that policy will remain unchanged. The
sole revelation to identity is that today’s contributor is an older brother, and
so will be similarly designated by geography as newjerseyman .
Famously,
the Confederate flag has been removed and furled from atop the South Carolina
State House. And while those who maintain tearful and heartfelt nostalgia for
an era when they could own, beat and kill other human beings will now have to
express those longings in a more sotto voce fashion, the fact remains that the
times are such that two weeks of unrelenting and ever-increasing vile and ugly
racist rhetoric by Donald Trump has vaulted him to the number one position among
GOP presidential wannabes. Friends, intolerance
and bigotry may very well be on the rise.
Killings in South
Carolina
by newjerseyman
I don't know what words to use to describe the
assassination of nine innocent people at the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston.
To say it was horrific is a gross understatement. To say that it was sad just
doesn't mean enough. How the families of those murdered innocents must feel
can't be comprehended. Racism, again, has invaded the places where people
should be and feel most safe.
If it has not been
recognized or realized yet; we do not live in a "post racial"
society. Racism is alive and, unfortunately, well. And if we all don't begin to
do something about it, and certainly to at least admit it, then nothing
significant will happen to lessen racism. I'm realistic enough to understand
that it, sadly, cannot be completely ended.
All parents with young children
should work hard to instill in them the proper thinking and feelings. Children
should be taught that all people need to be not only treated as having equal
worth but thought of in that way as well. And it's not enough for our leaders,
particularly political, to condemn such acts as this but to acknowledge that
racism does exist in the U.S. and needs to be addressed. In fact, I would
suggest to you that any 2016 presidential candidate who does not recognize
racism to be as endemic and insidious as it is in our nation should be taken
off your list for consideration as our next president.
Please think of nine
innocent people praying in their beloved church and how racist feelings built
up over the short 21 years of the killer's life snuffed them out forever,
removing them from their loved ones and causing so much grief and heartache.
