MorningBird

NOW OR LATER

When I was growing up, my parents moved a few times.  Four elementary schools, two junior highs (middle school), and two years in a boarding school gave me opportunities to make new friends--and to be tested. There is a bully everywhere you go, and they always pick on the new kid.  I had a lot of fights, but I never started one.

It is human nature to avoid conflict, and that was my first tactic--always.  First I tried to appease them--you know, attempt to make friends, but that invariably failed.  And sometimes I tried to bribe them--"You want to ride my bike?"  But that stuff never worked for long; they kept coming back until I stood my ground.  Their weapon was fear.  Once I penetrated that flimsy veil, it was all over.  But to do that, I had to clean their clock.

I learned a lesson from that--you can fight them now, or you can fight them later.

Is it any different with the terrorists?

GOODBYE MRS. ROBINSON

I have never known a religious Jew, but I knew a Jewish girl that could take you to heaven with a kiss. Her name was Nikki Polychron and she operated in a high school social set apart from mine. She was beautiful and I was afraid of her, but I got up the nerve to approach her at the Senior Prom. I have never forgotten that kiss.

Jewish women are a mystery to me. On the one hand, they have a reputation for being domineering and whiny. On the other hand, for me anyway, they ooze sexuality. I picture all Jewish women with thick, long, black hair and a ribald sense of humor—like Mrs. Robinson.

I always thought Anne Bancroft played herself in "The Graduate"—strong, sassy, sexy and funny. Who else could spend a lifetime with Mel Brooks?

IT'S TOO QUIET

This week the world will focus on burying a Pope.  And after that, the election of his successor.  That will keep us preoccupied for most of April.

Meanwhile, the Israeli’s and Palestinians are playing kissy-face.

Syria is making plans to march out of Lebanon.

From Kabul, that Democratic corral surrounded by Afghanistan, we hear nothing.

Iraq is actually forming a government.

The crazy man in North Korea is nowhere to be seen.

The Chinese are too busy emulating Taiwan to attack Taiwan.

Egypt had elections?

Be alert.  It’s too quiet.

Karol Wojtyla

I was invited to submit my thoughts about Pope John Paul for a memorial section to be published in the Philadelphia Inquirer.  I didn’t have to think twice; I responded immediately. The words raced from my head onto the screen and I was surprised at the ease and the speed at which they came.

I mentioned that my connection to him has nothing to do with his church or his imperial position.  John Paul transcends religion; his appeal reaches beyond the pomp and pageantry of the Catholic Church (I’m sure that causes problems for him inside the ponderous Vatican bureaucracy), and I guess that is why I relate to the man; he is an outsider in his own church. 

Enlightened Catholics clamor for this and that in their attempts to shoehorn their religious beliefs into a secular world, but the Pope does not waver.  He takes not the path of least resistance, but walks a principled course; the man is a rock.   

If Karol Wojtyla had chosen a career in sports, he would have been a Vince Lombardi.  If in politics, an Abraham Lincoln.

REASONABLE DOUBT

We are a nation of laws, not of men.  Every citizen has the right to be judged by his peers. The accused is assumed to be innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Do you believe Michael Schiavo could convince a jury of his peers, beyond a reasonable doubt, that his wife, Terry, executed a verbal, but unwritten living will? 

Apparently most Americans do, because the polls support Mr. Schiavo’s death wish for his wife. (Don’t bet the ranch on polls; ask Mr. Kerry.)

The press is eating it up.  They can barely hide their glee as they smugly opine about, “the price to be paid in the next election”.  They assume the religious right (read Republican’s) will pay that price.

I don’t deny the shameless Republican grandstanding going on in Congress, and led by some who might do better to put their own house in order before they meet their maker.  Those do-gooders won’t even make it to Purgatory; they have express tickets for the hot ride.

But what about the congressmen and women who stood silently on the sidelines, and allowed Terry Schiavo’s parents to be shoved aside by a verbal statement heard only by a man with a new life and a soon-to-be new wife? 

I agree; there will be a price to pay.  But I’m not so sure who will pay it.

Donate Terry Schiavo to the S.P.C.A.

Should Terri Schiavo be kept alive or be allowed to die? I admit to not being up-to-date on this case; I am not a student of death and think about it as little as I can, but the latest media blitz got my attention.

This struggle seems to be not about Terry Schiavo, but about her legal guardians and the people who love her—not to be confused as one in the same. Her husband, Michael Schiavo, wants her verbalized, but undocumented living will executed ASAP. He has a new life and a new woman and Terry's persistent breathing prevents him from making the new lady an honest woman.

On the other hand Terry’s parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, want Terry to be allowed to live (what a novel idea), and as far as I know, they are not asking Mr. Schiavo to contribute one dime to her support.

It’s too bad, the Schindler’s couldn’t have foreseen this mess before Terry was born; her mother could have aborted the poor soul and none of this would have happened—and no one would have complained; after all, in that nether world of uncertainty on the backside of the birth canal, the carrier’s rights trump the cargo’s rights.

Now it’s a mess and the courts, the Congress, the newspapers, the bloggers and the cable channels are in an uproar.

About what? Answer: Legal control over an unconscious, and if you believe the doctors, brain-dead person. Like the woman who woke up last week, after twenty years in a coma?

We treat animals better than this.

They should turn Terry over to the S.P.C.A. At least the animal shelter would wait a reasonable period of time to allow someone to adopt her. But in the event that no one wanted her, the shelter would not starve her to death, but mercifully put her to sleep with a painless injection.

What has happened to us?

A Tsunami of Money

A tsunami of money is headed for Southeast Asia. The largest natural disaster in our time created the largest outpouring of generosity in modern history. Government pledges are pouring in and charities and individuals around the globe are writing checks in record amounts. One group has more than it can spend; "No Mas," pleaded Doctors without Borders.

Satellites and fibre optics transmitted the horror to our living rooms, pubs, and places of work. It was the first calamity for HDTV and we watched spellbound as the death scenes filled the screen, each event seemingly more destructive than the one before.

The killer has no name only the generic term "tsunami." Perhaps that is fitting; it would be frivilous to hang a cutsey moniker on it like we do for hurricanes.

In Sri Lanka a soldier and a Tamil Tiger rebel worked side by side as they administered medical aid to victims. In another place a young boy wearing an Osama T-shirt was treated by a U.S. Marine. Nationality, politics, language and color, matter not; in this we are one world.

But our compassion is limited to the moment. Meanwhile in Iraq, Gaza, the West Bank, and Sudan, the killing goes on. We, the intelligent species, kill our brothers and neighbors, but we send aid halfway around the world to heip people we do not know.

Where Will We Make A Stand?

Every person, group, organization—whatever—has a built-in code of conduct. It may be codified, as laws and religions are; or it may be dotted line, as family rules are. Regardless, however structured a community may be, its members tolerate minor infractions and they cut some slack for those who wander outside the boundaries of accepted behavior - to a point. For example: in our country, a teenager who violates curfew might be scolded by the family instead of grounded; in a civil matter, a police officer might issue a warning instead of a speeding ticket, and in a criminal situation, a judge might suspend a jail sentence in return for community service.

What happens when authority breaks down? Fortunately, there are backstops for that. In the family, members on the periphery might fill in, as grandparents often do. When a law is broken, communities rely on the police and the courts to handle the problem; there are avenues for help; civilized societies have resources for dealing with misbehavior.

But what happens when the community is broken? Iraq is shattered, its authority structure is in shambles. The war and its aftermath dismantled the police, suspended the courts, gutted the schools and dismembered families. Where are the backstops? The religious sects remain intact, but early on those communities appeared to contribute more to the chaos than to a solution; however in the Muslim world there is no way out without their participation; their concurrence.

Meanwhile the indiscriminate killing goes on. Oh yea, I know; the Americans and their lackeys are the targets, but bombs are not precise instruments; they kill everyone within range—targets and innocents; adults and children—no one is spared.

Yet in spite of the civil war raging around them, every day 25,000,000 Iraqi’s go about their business and presumably conduct their lives within acceptable norms—at least within the norms they were accustomed to under Saddam’s rule. See for yourself. Go to Chrenkoff and click on the “Good news from Iraq.” Mr. Andrew Chrenkoff, the weblog author, grew up in Communist Poland and now lives in Australia.

Why do Iraqi’s tolerate the killing?

One reason they might tolerate the killing is because the violence is concentrated in the Sunni triangle, and presumably, Iraqi’s who live outside that killing zone are not affected. Nevertheless in recent days, the violence has spread; what will happen if it encompasses the entire country?

Another reason they might tolerate the killing is that after twenty-five years of iron-fisted rule with no tolerance for dissent, Iraqi’s do not know how to resist. You cannot change attitude overnight. Yet, that does not explain the violent behavior of the Bathhist’s and their contemporaries. The bullies know how to fight, and are apparently well financed. Do they recruit the bombers with only money?

How long will Iraqi’s tolerate the slaughter of their brethren? That is the question, for only the citizens of Iraq can end the violent anarchy raging inside their country.

What is “the country?” Religion, blood, and tribal allegiances take precedence over the community drawn in the sand by the British, and divide Iraq. We may be witnessing the beginning-of-the-end of that British map. If so, will not other sand kingdoms be far behind?

If we abandon the Iraqi’s, where will we make a stand?

What is a terrorist?

9/11 ushered in America's 21st Century and brought violence from afar to match the violence we inflict on ourselves. We discovered new things to be afraid of and new words to describe them. Osama and the Taliban became part of our vocabulary; anthrax, dirty bombs and homeland security became household words; duct tape and bottled water became household needs.

Along the way government workers discovered a new career path, airport security. Congress acted with unusual clarity and rolled a dozen or so government agencies into one. It demonstrated what we could do when aroused, but the citizenry, confused and perplexed by the rainbow color-coded warning system, clamored for more.

Others clamored for less. For them, the prisoner-of-war diets in Guantanamo Bay, or the presumed racial profiling of young Arab men at airport security check-points were more important than the safety of American citizens. That is the strength of a democratic society; the ability to disagree without killing each other.

On 9/11/2001 3,074 people perished from terrorist acts in the United States, all but three of them in New York City, Washington, DC, and Shanksville, PA. On that same day the Center for Disease Control reported that 6,623 Americans perished from other causes:1

Non-Terrorist Related Deaths on 9/11/2001
Accidents 267
Murders 54
Suicides 81
Heart Disease 1,917
Other health related causes 3,186
Other Causes 1,118

Total 6,623

On 9/11/2001 the United States of America had a population of approximately 286 million people, 221 million automobiles, 192 million firearms, and 55 million dogs with teeth; and yet only 402 people died that day from accidental causes not related to the terrorist events. In fact we murder ourselves at a higher rate than we kill our neighbors (81 vs. 54).

On that same day 5,100 people died from health related causes; more than felled by the terrorists, and twelve (12) times the number who died from gunshot wounds, automobile accidents, dog bites and other unnatural causes. 1,900 died from heart disease alone. And the next day, 1,900 more...who noticed?

What should we conclude from those statistics? I leave that to the experts, but one thing seems obvious; we, not suicide bombers, are the most deadly threat to ourselves. According to the CDC report, fatal heart disease led the death pack in 2001. Smoking, eating, drinking and lack of exercise are the leading perpetrators of heart disease, the leading cause of natural death, and all deaths that year.

Violence wears different hats. It may arrive in the mail in the form of white powder, or it may be concealed in the shoe of a fundamentalist bomber, but the double cheeseburger or the pack-a-day habit that robs a child of her father is no less a terrorist event for her.

We can't train enough doctors and nurses, build enough hospitals, or invent enough drugs to change that.

There has not been a single terrorist-caused death on American soil in two years, but we have held 1,387,000 heart related funerals since 9/11/2001. Today, there will be 1,900 more. How many must die before we wake up?

The American Family Is Headed Where?

Pre-nups, divorce, abortion; we live in a disposable world. Serial marriage is the norm . The pre-nuptial predicts a temporary union and greases the slide to divorce. Her kids, his kids, their kids; you need a scorecard to keep track.

The traditional American family is being assaulted from all sides and at every generational level. Start with money. The average couple believes it cannot provide the necessities of life unless both partners’ work, and the two-earner household is now the American standard. Day-care, nannies, TV, the Internet, the mall and other after school diversions have replaced the stay-at-home mom.

Parents are on a treadmill. Most spouses work full time, some more than one job. Lengthy commutes are the norm. Schedules are hectic and juggled to accommodate the needs of family and work. The family dinner table is history; too many meals are brought home from the fast-food lane and consumed in front of the TV.

Kids can't be kids anymore. The pressure to excel starts before they enter school. Everything is organized—and competitive. Soccer and hockey are as serious as math and history. The players need a PDA to keep up with their schedule and a chauffer to get there. Where is the time to hang out and do nothing; or simply play a pick-up game in the neighborhood?

Technology doesn't help. Mobile phones, e-mail, and instant messaging are marvelous communications tools, but their personal nature promotes isolation. Wireless talk has replaced face-to-face dialogue.

The government plays an important role in the disintegration of the family. I'll give you two examples:

1) Regardless of economic status, every student in the New York Public School system is entitled to a free breakfast—every day. They can't teach, but they can feed? A noble cause, but another family intrusion if you ask me. My prediction? Next they will deliver the meal to the kid’s house. Meals-on-wheels for the junior generation. That will create delivery jobs for the uneducated and unemployable students that previously passed through the school system on social merit, but without learning anything. And it will give the government-paid delivery boy an opportunity to observe the recipient's living conditions. You think I'm crazy? Hide and watch.

2) Have you heard about the movement underway to weigh school kids? Yep, the principal will tell you when your kid is too fat and the school will prescribe a diet for you to administer. Presumably someone will follow-up to weigh the kid, chart his progress and check-up on your performance as the calorie counter. Never occurred to them to put gym back in the curriculum.

The Department of Education—a $40 billion federal bureaucracy that didn't exist before Jimmy Carter—dangles ever-increasing subsidies in front of public school administrators; all of them accompanied by golden handcuffs that dictate what will be taught and how it will be measured. Even so, test scores are falling as steadily as pupil costs are rising. Parents, especially those poor souls trapped in the inner cities, are shackled to inferior schools while the politicians, who are beholden to teacher's union campaign contributions, deny access to vouchers that would allow students to transfer to better schools. Meanwhile, the same politicians send their children to elite private academies.

$40 billion this year, $40 billion next year. For what? If they shut down The Department of Education, it would pay for Iraq in three years, and after that we would save $40 billion a year. Every year. You ever met a government program that had an end to it?

What are they teaching our kids? Calculators and computers have replaced simple math skills. Across the land, school boards have censured Huckleberry Finn. Anything that offends anyone is given the boot. The homogenization of education is underway.

And what do they do with those rambunctious young boys who can't sit still in class? Or, heaven forbid, who want to play physical boy-type games at recess? Answer: Ritalin.

Teacher's unions—more about the teacher than the student—cater to the very lowest common denominator; mediocrity is the standard. The unions deserve large credit for the decline in test scores. Competent teachers are retiring in droves. (It's always the best that leave; the slugs stick around for the paycheck.)

The schools are not alone. Everywhere you look, public institutions are running from traditional values:

The American Flag? Wear it, burn it, wipe with it, but don't salute it.
The Pledge of Allegiance? OK if you must, but take out the reference to God.
The Ten Commandments? OUTTA HERE! Not in the people's palace.
English Language? Still in first place, but rapidly losing ground to Spanish and the 70+ other languages that we print election ballots in now.

One subject the schools have been slow to adopt is sex. Lot's of reasons for that, not the least one being uptight parents. But sex is in our face; it can't be avoided. You'll find condoms on TV, in magazines and next to the aspirin in the supermarket. Condoms are fashion statements, produced in an array of colors and shapes, reservoirs and other appendages to tickle your fancy. Culinary hits too; they come in a myriad of flavors. I guess we should thank President Clinton for that. Remember, he assured America's school children that oral sex was not sex.

We should not be surprised by the epidemic in out-of-wedlock births; the mainstream merchandising of condoms to teenagers carries an implied acceptance that sex is OK. (It is harder for them to buy cigarettes.)

So, how do our children get pregnant? Good question. Could it be that the kids who are birthing more kids are desperately searching for love, and ignore birth control? Maybe, but if the teen-age mother changes her mind and decides to abort the child, she can do it without her parent's consent—and without the father's permission. In our land the decision to give birth or to abort is none of their business; it's a matter only for the pregnant child and her doctor. We teach children to murder before they learn to give life.

Meanwhile their grandparents are shuffled off to nursing homes, and today, bookend generations that historically shared the same house, don't live in the same community. The window on our heritage is closing.

I don't know where we are headed, but I sense that parents are losing control. We run about in a frenzy trying to keep up with the Jones's. Meanwhile our kids drive better cars than their teachers, and they buy their drugs in the parking lot. Well-meaning government agencies monitor and measure their behavior and our behavior, and when permitted, they ease in and substitute programs for parenting. The bureaucrats think they know best and the government has an agenda for almost any social activity you can think of. They are not evil people; they probably have the same behavioral conditions in their own families, but they aren't paid to look there.

America is losing the family. Can the country be far behind?