American Muslim Hatred

All that is good is spawned by love.  All that his evil and destructive is spawned by hatred.  America has reached that fork in the road.  Which path will we choose to travel?

Attempts to justify Muslim hatred appears to be growing.

 Most of this paranoia is based upon a perverted belief that “ALL MUSLIMS” embrace a literal translation of the Quarn.  No evidence yet exists to support that wild-eyed accusation.  There are Muslims that vehemently deny it and then there are El Qaeda and ISIS.  If history has taught us anything, it is that they are a greater threat to one another than they are to anyone else.  Eight-hundred-thousand (800,000) refugees have entered the United States since September 11, 2001.  According to United States State Department figures, only 20 of them have been arrested on terrorism charges. 

If we are to use holy books, like the Quarn, as a basis for discriminatory thinking, then how should we view literal translations and thinking toward the Christian Bible?  

 “If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.” - Leviticus 20:13

 “Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,…”  - Exodus 21:24

 YES – The Christian bible is full of violence and hatred.  Should that discredit the entire Christian philosophy and teachings?  Do ALL Christians take these disgusting passages literally?  Or, like Muslims, are there just a certain segment of the Christian population that distorts biblical references thus making Christianity unpropitious?

 If we lived in another country would we be willing to embrace people who come from the following environment?  Would be as quick to attach the label of ALL to Christians in as we attached to Muslims?

 ALL Christian Americans are uncivilized, vicious, violent people.  They are ALL members of the Ku Klux Klan. It is NOT safe to walk the neighborhoods on the south side of Chicago; too dangerous to take a stroll through Central Park after dark.  They engage in and support spree shootings and mass killings of even children. They ALL shot and kill their police officers. While they may not behead the enemies to their society, they kill them through lethal injections. The largest population of pedophiles has been discovered in the Catholic Church. We need to be very suspicious of ALL these Christians.  After all – can Christians really make good citizens?  Just look at all the hatred and violence in their bible and the history of their awful, brutal religious wars.

 The analogy, while accurately applied to the thinking of many Americans toward Muslims, is, as demonstrated, ludicrous.  

These hatreds signal a serious lack of proper judgement that should, by now, be viewed as totally deplorable in America.  These beliefs also require ignoring that untold thousands of American Muslims have assimilated into American culture and are making substantial contributions to our nation and way of life.  This bigotry also manifests and promotes a serious danger.  – the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City is just one example.  We must be committed to challenge and stomp out any form of bigotry whenever and wherever it raises it’s hateful, ugly head.

Finally, if this anti-Muslim hatred isn’t shamed into submission, we will eventually need to determine what discriminatory policies and practices we will institute without validation for their justification.  We will then need to determine if we still hold fast to the principles that "…all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…”  We have done this in the past when instituting the Jim Crow doctrine of laws.  Are we really willing to relive that awful evil?

 “I look to a day when people will NOT be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”       ~ Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

 If we forget this, we lose our country. But what should be far more alarming is that we also lose our souls.

Remembering the "The Say Hey” Kid

“Phil Malat of Coon Rapids wrote this heart-felt tribute to Willie Mays on the occasion of Wondrous Willie's 80th birthday:”  ~  Patrick Reusse

Random Ruesse at 1500 ESPN KSTP Web Site

Published Friday, May 6th, 2011 - 5:48pm

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He was 10 and heard all the stories of a mythical center fielder who roamed Nicollet Park in Minneapolis. 

The boy knew of his long homers. He knew of his rocket arm, his blazing speed, his bushel basket catches, and had heard all the stories of his climbing the centerfield fence to snare fly balls destined for places outside the grasp of mere mortals. 

Yes, he knew that the town was heartbroken and angry when the major league team, the New York Giants, hijacked him away when he was hitting .476.

The 10-year-old was shown the letter printed in the Minneapolis newspaper, written by the owner of the major league team, apologizing to the fans for taking their hero away. The only time in major league history that was done.
By the time all this was made known to the lad, things had changed.

Nicollet Park was a distant memory. The Minneapolis Millers now played at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington. The boy now could only know of the center fielder's prowess and exploits through the newspaper, sports magazines, Life Magazine, Look Magazine and anything else he could get his hands on to read. He could only yearn and dream about what it would be like to see him play. 

But there is a God, and he watches over baseball and young boys. 

One night at the dinner table, the boy's father announced that he would be taking his sons to Met Stadium to see an exhibition game between the Millers and the Giants. The boy would no longer have to dream and yearn. The reality was at hand and the excitement was indescribable. 

On arrival at the old Met, the fans learned the major league team had decided not to play most of their starting players. Speculation was they did not want to risk injury in a meaningless contest, or perhaps they didn't want to embarrass the Millers, the Triple-A farm club. 

So the center fielder sat on the bench. 

This would not be tolerated by the fans. No one cared about the score. The stands were filled with those who wanted to see him play again. 

Beginning somewhere around the end of the third inning the fans began chanting; "WILL-EEE, WILL-EEE, WILL-EEE" and did so before every Giant at bat.

By the sixth inning, the Millers led 3-1. It was time for the Giants to hit.

"WILL-EEE, WILL-EEE, WILLIEEE." 

Two Giant runners had reached base.

"WILL-EEE, WILL-EEE, WILL-EEE." 

He emerged from the dugout and took his place in the on-deck circle. The crowd went crazy.  

The hitter bunted the runners over to second and third. 

The boy was finally going to see this legend, his hero, at bat. It took three, maybe four pitches; before a long fly ball was hit so hard it not only cleared the left field fence but traveled over the white protective fence beyond the outfield fence and into the parking lot. 

The Giants led 4-3. No Millers' fan cared. 

That was my introduction to Willie Mays. 

I would see him play on a few more occasions. Mays never disappointed. Even if he went hitless in a game (something I never witnessed), you never felt cheated. The style and grace, the effortless manner with which he played the game, watching the bushel basket catches - these things were enough to make a game with Willie Mays memorable.
Why this remembrance now? 

The "Say Hey Kid" turned 80 today. That 10-year-old boy is now in his 60s and he cannot find suitable words to express his wish to Mr. Mays for a happy birthday. 

What he can offer is the wonderful sentence that the great Jim Murray once wrote in honor of Wondrous Willie: "The first thing to establish about Willie Mays is that there really is one." 

I can still hear the crowd at Met Stadium: "WILL-EEE, WILL-EEE...''


      

Whistleblower Leaks Are Crucial

There are no medals for those who demand we know the truth.  Yet their courage is as extensive and as crucial to us as those who stormed the beach at Normandy. 

As the world’s longest standing Democratic Republic, we have learned that liberty can be fleeting.  Without a commitment to learning and knowing the truth those precious principles can be placed in serious jeopardy.  As such, whistleblowers and their leaks have, throughout our history, acted as a safeguard against abuse of power.  They have been a key element in the accuracy and truth of the information we receive.  

President Trump claims the truth we have recently learned about his now former National Security Advisor, General Michael Flynn, was the result of illegal and “criminal” leaks coming from the Justice Department and intelligence officials. He has said they should be ferreted out and sent to prison.  Based upon the president’s past assertions and allegations, there is an excellent chance he may have misspoken once again.  

There is no evidence that the information came from any classified documents.  This, as we have come to know, is a classic Trump maneuver.  He attempts to direct attention away from the bigger issue by creating outrage for a far less significant issue.  In this case, it is the illegal act of a private citizen conducting U.S. diplomacy versus leaks.  General Flynn’s very shaky memory surrounding what he discussed with Russian officials and exactly whom he talked to and when they spoke has hoisted more red flags than seen at a Chinese propaganda parade.  Yet, we are supposed to be outraged over the whistleblowers and their leaks?  Well – let’s look at that. 

“I did not have sexual relations with that woman.”  So stated President Clinton on January 26, 1998 regarding his association with Monica Lewinski.  That was followed by perjured testimony in the Paula Jones proceedings in which the president once again stated; "I have never had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky.  I've never had an affair with her.”  

Enter Linda Tripp and her secretly recorded telephone conversations with Lewinski detailing her dalliances with our Chief Executive.  That was followed by a blue Gap dress that still bore the semen stain left by the president in a February 1997 encounter. 

Clinton had lied about Gennifer Flowers, Paula Jones and now he was doing it again regarding Monica Lewinski.  Linda Tripp is responsible for reminding us that perennial liars eventually lose all concept of the truth.

Then there was Watergate. 

Whistleblower number one: Nixon administration officials believed they had quelled the controversy by burying the truth with deceit.  Only Ben Bradlee and his reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein of the Washington Post continued pursuing the story.  They knew they were being lied to, but couldn’t prove it.  They were vilified by other news outlets for their persistence and determination.  Their credibility was in acute decline.  They reached a dead end.  Then along came Mark Felt.  Felt was an Associate Director at the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  He became commonly known as “Deep Throat.”  Felt pointed the reporters in the direction they needed to go to find the facts and eventually reveal the truth.

Whistleblower number two:  The key moment surrounding the Watergate investigation came on July 16, 1973.  Senator Fred Thompson; “Mr. Butterfield (Alexander Butterfield - deputy assistant to President Richard Nixon) are you aware of the installation of any listening devices in the Oval Office of the president?"  Butterfield’s response; "I was aware of listening devices; yes sir."  From that point forward all the dominos began falling.  Butterfield could have been evasive or dishonest but rather chose to do his patriotic duty by telling the truth and blowing the whistle.

 Next up – Edward Snowden, AKA “Verax.”  Snowden was a Central Intelligence Agency employee and contractor.  He became outraged at the scope of the abuse of power employed by U.S. and other worldwide intelligence agencies.  

The National Security Agency (NSA) had very secretly exceeded its authorized directives by indiscriminately targeting private citizens and private networks worldwide.  They secured information that could be used as blackmail or coercion for potential financial or political gain. They were spying on everyone everywhere and nobody knew their privacy was being compromised and violated. 

In order to cease or temper all these illegal and unethical practices, Snowden released classified documents to establish all the abuses.  He fled America to avoid prosecution by the most powerful organizations and individuals in the country.  He was subsequently kidnapped by the Russian government and is now held captive in that country- a very dear price paid for what we all needed to know. 

Further validation rests in the horrible perversions of Enron, Penn State and Michigan State Universities.  How can we not ask; Where were the whistleblowers?  Had whistleblowers made public what they knew, how much agony would have been averted?  To believe no one was aware of these putrid pursuits is to believe professional wrestling is authentic.      

Politics demands that each and every one of these patriots be branded with the label of traitors or, at the very least, partisans.  Those exposed will allege that the whistleblowers ONLY motivation was to bring down and embarrass those they disagreed with politically or professionally.  None of those spanked by the truth, never seem to be awakened to its realities.  They have never conceded that whistleblower courage in manifesting the truth is a key component in safeguarding and securing of our liberties.

President Trump would be wise to properly correlate the differences between leaking the date and location of the allied forces landing on the coast of France during the Second World War versus the exposing of lies, deception and corruption.  One demands silence while the other demands public exposure.  Both are crucial to our national interest and any attempt to paint them as being congruent is a blatant, disgusting act of deception. 

If President Trump, future politicians and celebrities wish to avoid residing under the umbrella of disrepute all they need to do is act with honesty and integrity and avoid attempting to cloak the truth in lies and deceit.  Those who fall on their swords typically find that their immaturity, excesses, penchants toward most addictions and immorality are forgotten.  These, and ONLY THESE, behaviors should be the ONLY means by which whistleblowers and their leaks should ever become extinct.

Not Ready for Prime Time Health Care

President Trump is stymied: “Now I have to tell you, it’s an unbelievably complex subject.  Nobody knew health care could be so complicated.” 

What has obviously dawned on Donald J. Trump is the fact that it will be virtually impossible to provide yet another market-based health care system that will lower costs and at the same time provide health care coverage for all Americans.  That’s what he has been promising and now the reality of that impossibility has hit him right square in the kisser.  He is now under pressure to choose a side.  Trump is NOW keenly aware that he canNOT, under a market-based program, lower skyrocketing premiums and protect people from going broke and still prevent them from dying needlessly because they are without health care coverage and/or the financial means necessary to stay alive.

SO, let’s just forget about the whys, wherefores and thou arts and just focus on this reality.  PRIVATE HEALTH CARE SYSTEMS DO NOT WORK in America – Period!  Those systems have had every opportunity to flourish in serving the common good and general welfare of our nation and they have failed. PERIOD!

In the link below we are introduced to Doctor Ezekiel Emanuel, a key architect of “The Affordable Care Act.”  His presentation is particularly troublesome is one regard and extremely infuriating in another regard. 

What is troublesome is his unwillingness to admit how woefully inadequate “The Affordable Care Act” has been.  He will only charge that the mechanisms surrounding the act are the culprits (i.e.; the rollout program) but refuses to accept any responsibility for the awful shortcomings in the legislation itself.  To him, none exist.  With this as his basis for credibility, we now come to the real outrage in the man’s thinking and some powerful insight as to why our health care system has failed to adequately meet humane needs.  

 On a universal single payer health care program, he unequivocally states; “not gonna happen.  This is America.” “Ain’t gonna happen” “Can’t happen” “Will never happen.” He repeats it over and over again in his attempt to browbeat us into accepting his narrow-minded contention that a single payer system is impossible to achieve in America. 

 Impossible? I-M-P-O-S-S-I-B-L-E? !!!!!  Really?

 We were thirteen tiny colonies that thought we could win a war against the most powerful country in the world to gain our independence.  Guess what many believed?  YEP - “Can’t happen.”   

 We’re the country that ended slavery and dispelled the Jim Crow doctrines amid chants of; “Ain’t gonna happen.”  America won two world wars and found a cure for polio. The country that instituted Social Security, Medicare Medicaid and sent men to the moon and safely retuned them to earth among the endless drum beat of; No way - “Will never happen.” And the exact same battle cry was sounded regarding innumerable other government programs which benefit each and every American each and every day.  

For sure, it “Ain’t gonna happen” in the next four years, BUT “Will never happen.”???  With bright, energetic and creative leadership and an enlightened electorate committed to the ideals and principles of Presidents Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson it is guaranteed to happen. 

 “Some men see things as they are and say, 'Why?' I dream of things that never were and say, 'Why not?”  ~ Robert F. Kennedy 

You are correct doctor.  “This is America” and in America nothing is impossible.  We the people determine what is possible and not a narrow-minded, arrogant doctor who refuses to acknowledge that “for profit” market-based health care systems are responsible for the American failures that have caused, and are continuing to cause, needless bankruptcies, pain, and deaths.    

 Impossible for America to adopt a similar health care system that every other industrialized nation on earth has adopted? - Systems that humanly serve their populations so very admirably.  Only through ambivalence, malaise and apathy can “We the people” fail and not because it is impossible.  

 In the final analysis it is not impossible to provide far better coverage at lower costs for ALL Americans.  It just can’t be accomplished through a market-based system nor can it be accomplished with pitiful and regressive thinking of; “Not gonna happen,” “Ain’t gonna happen,” “Can’t happen,” “Will never happen.”  

http://www.mprnews.org/story/2017/02/09/mpr_news_presents