Re: Off-Topic, New Orleans Images

Ahhh, men . . . and, women.
Right on Bob
On April2006, at 1:41 PM, BOB KISS wrote:

> DEAR LIST,
> I have been following this thread since Dan's first postings.
> Dan, behold
> what ye hath wrought! I have been amazed, saddened, and shocked by
> some of
> the statements that have been posted. I know obscenities in 6
> languages so
> I found that entertaining but I was outraged by the sexism and raw
> hatred
> displayed. My delete finger has been VERY busy.
> I can remain silent no more.
> I am an American citizen living overseas. I am old enough to have
> watched
> the Nixon/Kennedy debates for my civics class in school. I have NEVER
> witnessed so much divisiveness among Americans; I see and feel it more
> intensely due to my distant and perhaps slightly more objective
> perspective.
> As I admit that I am a liberal I also find myself repeatedly
> saying, "Don't
> blame me! I voted for the other guys!" on most of my travels
> around the
> Caribbean, South America, and Europe.
> Last night I watched, for the umpteenth time, the original "TRIAL AT
> NUREMBERG" with Spencer Tracy. What I saw as the main thrust of
> that film
> was that people react very poorly to fear and any powerful
> politician knows
> this. They are willing to give up rights and do just about anything,
> however illegal, in order to have security or catch the "bad guys"
> and then
> are surprised when they can't get those rights back. The question is,
> "What is it we are trying to preserve if we give up our rights and
> indulge
> in illegal acts to catch the enemy?" Sadly, they also often
> surrender their
> reason in favor of the obvious quick fix...the scapegoat. At the
> end of the
> film, Burt Lancaster's character, a judge condemned to life
> imprisonment for
> his crimes states, "I never knew it would come to millions and
> millions".
> Spencer Tracy, who plays the chief of the tribunal who sentenced
> Lancaster's
> character says, "It came to that the first time you sentenced a man
> to death
> whom you knew to be innocent". Both good and bad things have very
> small
> beginnings. Pick up every stitch.
> I am part German. (I am also part Czech/Slovak, so you can imagine
> the
> political arguments around dinner!) Germany has given us Bach,
> Beethoven,
> Schiller (author of original poem, "Ode to Joy"), brilliant painters,
> philosophers...darn it, Einstein was German! So how did such an
> amazing
> people fall prey to Hitler? FEAR! Fear of communism. Fear of
> economic
> depression and inflation brought on partly by the horrible "war
> reparations"
> imposed in Versailles. FEAR! Played upon by an amazingly cunning
> man and
> his political associates.
> I will say no more. The parallels are obvious.
> Someone on the list said that we should give the spirits from
> Dachau the
> choice between the Nazis and Republicans in reply to someone else's
> e-mail.
> I don't think the first e-mail said Republicans...I think he was
> referring
> to the current administration and, in light of current poles, it
> appears
> that many Republicans do not agree with its policies. I want to
> state that
> some of the most wonderful and enlightening debates I have ever had
> have
> been with my Republican friends over MANY topics. They were reasoned
> debates with both sides bringing up many facts, FACTS (repeated for
> emphasis) to support their politics. Both sides have left the
> evening's
> discussions having learned something and often, at the same time,
> feeling
> more confident about their own position. What I have a hard time
> accepting
> is demagoguery and fear mongering...politics that plays on fear,
> emotion,
> and, sadly, religious differences. The issue is that NO ONE GROUP
> should
> paint ANY OTHER GROUP with a wide brush. Of all curious people to
> quote,
> Chris Rock said, "The reason the world is so *&%ed up is because so
> many
> people come from their Democratic, Republican, Liberal,
> Conservative, or
> whatever positions. Don't you call it insanity when someone makes
> up their
> mind before they hear all the facts?" I rest my case.
> CHEERS FROM BARBADOS!
> BOB
>
Received on Mon May 1 00:21:57 2006