http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0740710028/102-8436753-6048150?v=glance&n=283155
Posted on 03/13/2006 8:32:50 AM PST by Mikey
I know, I know. We're supposed to be a civilized society. But I'm beginning to wonder.
When did we get stupid?
Somehow the advice to turn the other cheek (when attacked or insulted) has been subverted to turning your back on such assaults.
But puts you in just the right position to be knifed in the back. Whether literally or in the sense of being betrayed, the result is the same: a successful attack that can literally or figuratively kill.
Do we have a death wish?
When did we get stupid?
We're at war. We have enemies all around us. Sometimes we know where they are – sometimes we don't. But one thing is certain, they have a plan for us and it isn't good.
Boldly, they threaten to kill us and destroy our civilization. They kidnap innocents, torture and kill them with relish, taunting us with explicit pictures of their suffering. Christian peace activist Tom Fox is the latest victim, kidnapped in Iraq, tortured and murdered.
This war occurs on several levels. The most obvious is military action. Our men and women in uniform face the enemy every day – their lives are always at stake. They do it willingly, understanding what's at stake.
Everything's at stake.
Yet we have elected politicians, former presidents and vice-presidents, media figures, journalists, show business individuals, professors, teachers, religious and almost anyone you can think of, who have no compunction about spouting lies, half-truths, exaggerations, slander, accusations, ridicule and anything else they can think of – right up to the edges of sedition and treason – to undermine not only the military, but the intent of those attempting to keep this country safe from those enemies who are very explicit in their plans to destroy us and what we have.
We hear what they say and see what they do, yet we make excuses for their treasonous excesses. It's another phase of the war.
When did we get stupid?
They keep their media spotlight, keep their jobs, keep their salaries and keep their academic positions to teach lies to our children.
We pay them, through taxes for public education and through outrageous college tuition to give them enormous power over our young.
We buy newspapers and magazines and CDs, and pay cable fees and movie admissions, and video and DVD rentals and purchases, and concert admissions. Those millions enable the lies to continue. We pay for it – it will ultimately kill us.
When did we get stupid?
There's a man at Yale University – an elite and very expensive place to go to school ... you can get in, if you can afford it. This man got in. He's not a citizen and he's got a past. We're told he had a 4th-grade education, but was smart and had an important job in the prior government of his country. He's the former ambassador-at-large for his government.
Sayed Rahmatullah Hashemi told the New York Times that, "In some ways, I'm the luckiest person in the world. I could have ended up in Guantanamo Bay. Instead, I ended up at Yale."
Just so.
The government he worked for and gave speeches across our country defending was the Taliban of Afghanistan, the regime that ruled with terror against its own people, especially women. It's the same regime that destroyed the 2,000-year-old statues of Buddha, because they were "idols of infidels and repugnant to Islam."
Ah yes, the same government that provided cover for al-Qaida, for the 9-11 terrorists, and which our military routed out in efforts to find Osama bin Laden and destroy his terrorist organization.
This 27-year-old worked for and defended the Taliban, and Yale made a big effort to recruit him. In fact, Richard Shaw, undergraduate dean, said they "had another foreigner of Rahmatullah's caliber apply for special student status." He added, "We lost him to Harvard ... I didn't want that to happen again."
Now who's stupid?
When did the efforts at diversity, tolerance and multiculturalism get out of control where one of the enemy is recruited to go to school with our children? What is supposed rub off on them? And this on a campus that forbids ROTC and military recruiters.
When did we get stupid?
At the University of North Carolina, a 22-year-old man, who graduated in December with a degree in psychology and philosophy, rented a Jeep Grand Cherokee because it had a powerful four-wheel drive and he could "run things over and keep going." He deliberately drove it through a campus gathering spot, injuring 9 people. He then called 911, saying what he did and why and where he'd be waiting for police. Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar, a native of Iran, was asked on the 911 tape why he did it: "to punish the government of the United States for their actions around the world." He told investigators he wanted to "avenge the deaths or murders of Muslims around the world."
He's charged with nine counts of first-degree attempted murder and nine counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill. He's held at the state's maximum-security prison. His bail is set at $5.5 million.
Police say he'd thought about a vengeance attack for two years and planned this assault, "an eye for an eye," for two months. The investigator's affidavit said he "repeatedly said that the United States government had been killing his people across the sea and that he decided to attack."
At the time of his arrest, he was carrying two cans of pepper spray and a 5-inch folding knife, which he intended to use if needed.
In court, he said he didn't need an attorney because "Allah would judge him." He said he was "thankful for the opportunity to spread the will of Allah." Assigned a public defender, he ignored the lawyer's advice.
The FBI is investigating, but no federal charges yet filed.
Was it terrorism?
Chancellor James Moeser: "I agree, this could feel like terrorism, especially if you're standing in front of a jeep that's heading toward you trying to kill you."
He said he generally concludes, "This was an individual acting alone in a criminal act."
And then the classic: "He was a good student. He also was very much a loner."
When did we get stupid?
A rally on campus organized by the College Republicans, said it was terrorism and that the students wouldn't stand for that at their school and where they live.
Opposition from Muslim students said the driver wasn't linked to any group. Khurram Bilal Tariq said, "When you think of terms of a global context, this was an isolated incident."
Someone should tell him that each car bomb and each suicide bomber is an "isolated incident." But each is terrorism.
When did we get stupid?
The real question is: When will we stop?
Barbara Simpson, "The Babe in the Bunker," as she's known to her KSFO 560 radio talk-show audience in San Francisco, has a 20-year radio, TV and newspaper career in the Bay Area and Los Angeles.
Was it when;
Or was it when the the government was no longer the servant and the people allowed it to become the MASTER?
"3). When a child could pick up a phone and call the dept of socialism social services and have his / her parents arrested for abuse because they yelled at him / her?"
Completely outrageous.
good post!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0740710028/102-8436753-6048150?v=glance&n=283155
The real question is: When will we stop?
My husband and I were in a store the other day. A kid was screaming and yelling at his dad. I came around a corner and saw a couple. The lady said to the man that was with her, "That dad can not do anything to that brat without being charged with something". I thought to myself that that was so true.
My son's American History class (Junior in High School) spent 3 days on WW2, and most of the class consists of watching clips of movies that have some kind of history theme.
It is a total joke, and most parents I know have no clue, and don't give a rats ass if they do.
Of course we're stupid, we raise 'em stupid.
sad thing is, if he had smacked the kid (as would have done him a power of good), some "good citizen" would probably have taken down his license plate number and called it in to the authorities.
"Its for the Children" don't ya know.
Sure he could. Toss the food in the trash and go home. They don't get dinner that day.
June 25, 1962.
had my teenage son swear at me once, and i smacked him across his face. he went into the house and called 911. then he hung up. about 5 minutes later, two of the biggest cops i ever came across showed up at my door. he asked who called, and i told him my son. he asked to speak to my son. my son told him i slapped him across the face. he asked my son why i did that. he told the cop he swore at me. the cop then said " if you were my kid, and swore at me, i would slap you too!!". He then asked me if i wanted my son removed from the house. I told him i wanted him to stay home. the cop then said to my son " if i get a call, or see you on the street today or tonite, i will arrest you and put you in jail". He then informed my son and myself that in michigan, a parent has the right to use corporal punishment, and swearing at your parents will get you slapped. i am not afraid of the courts, or anyone else who tries to interfere with the way i raise my children.
That's about right.
When the people start to realize that living in a gilded cage is still a cage.
"The average age of the world's greatest civilizations has been two hundred years. These nations have progressed through this sequence:
I'd say most of the people today are extremely complacent heading into apathy.
Part of the problem is that schools and society indoctrinate kids that ANY form of discipline can be considered abuse (in the same way simply looking at a woman and making her uncomfortable can be defined as sexual abuse...)
My nephew, when he was 10 years old, said to his mother when she yelled at him that it was "child abuse".
When my mom (his grandmother) heard about that, she grabbed his arm and hissed at him "You ever pull a stunt like that again, and I'll show you what REAL child abuse is!"
When the voters failed to insist that Teddy Kennedy be kicked out of the Senate for failing to be a human being in the death of Mary Jo Kopechne.
Wow... was there an awkward moment after that with the boy?
he did not mouth off, misbehave, or give me any grief for months after that..........
My 9 year old nephew called me a couple of weeks ago, and asked me if he could borrow my "Band of Brothers" DVD set. I gave it to him in a heartbeat. He is a good kid with a learning disability, and just recently began to read on his own. As Wilem Dafoe's character in Platoon said "The worm has most definitely turned for you..." so it is with my nephew. We live in New England, and he has been facinated with history, a great area to live in if that is your thing.
Point is, there are some things worth watching that can impart an accurate historical flavor. I regard "Band of Brothers" in that group.
My other nephew, who saw "Saving Private Ryan at the age of 12, said, after watching the Normandy beach scene, "That never really happened." I gently told him, yes...it did...and much worse than they could ever show on a movie screen.
Of course, this same kid wears a Che Guevara t-shirt, and had no idea who he was. When I explained what his function was in the Cuban Revolution, pulling people out of their homes in the night, often whole familes, and having them shot, he just shrugged his shoulders. He just thought it was a cool looking t-shirt.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.