I'm fascinated by the fact that some of my most dedicated readers are from Denmark. Today (for the first time) they outnumbered my American readers. Of course, I could probably fit all my daily readers into a good-sized college classroom. I would like to think people find this blog has an interesting perspective on things (and not simply mistyping a URL or someone nominating me to the "most boring American blog" contest, not to mention some people are fascinated by watching car crashes...)
Mosque Near Ground Zero
CNN is reporting tonight that President Obama has decided to publicly support the construction of the controversial mosque near Ground Zero; I predict media conservative Sean Hannity, whom has made the mosque issue one of his typically monotonous repetitive viewpoints, will go ballistic; Fox News, in fact, has made its position quite clear by finding an American Muslim woman whom conveniently empathizes with the feelings of its critics, and I've seen the same clip replayed 4 or 5 times during light watching this week. The next thing you know, they'll start saying things like "Some of my best friends are Muslim"...
I made my support clear in a critical Palin post earlier this month. No one needs to lecture me about the massacres by religious fanatics on 9/11. But these criminals were not among millions of domestic law-abiding, patriotic Muslims. I'm also a Catholic whom was quite offended when some leaders in the hierarchy mishandled allegations of sexual misconduct by rogue priests. But I never generalized from the sins of the few to the many. It would be very easy for me to be a populist, to play on the fears and resentment of 9/11 surviving family members. But exploiting the understandable mixed emotions from victims' families is little more than a cynical decoy to distract from the real issue, which is honoring religious tolerance in actions, not just words.
As for the President, I think, if anything, his decision to go public on the issue is counterproductive. I still remember last year's address to Muslims when he basically renounced American exceptionalism, exaggerated the historical impact of Muslims in our nation's development, and unnecessarily conceded legitimacy of certain polemical complaints by Islamic ideologues regarding the West. I don't think anyone ever doubted Obama's support for the mosque, and I don't think his views are particularly influential at this point.
I Remember My Dad Coming Home From Southeast Asia
This is one of the hottest videos on Facebook and Youtube. You should never underestimate the effects of separation of our GI's in national service (in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere) and their loved ones. I remember being the oldest of 7, not even a teenager; we (along with other service families) went down to a Wichita studio to do a little 8MM film for our Dad. I said something about making good grades, the rest of the kids had something to say, and it ended with my baby sister taking unsteady steps towards the camera. My baby brother I think converted the film to other media years later. Of course, technology has improved since then.
I can tell you those casualty reports on television never have the kind of impact as when your Dad is shipping off into a war zone. I wasn't ready to be the man of the house. I know people whom have broken down emotionally with a spouse on an isolated tour. I went to visit one of my brothers in Virginia for Christmas, but I wanted him to invite our sister, whose husband was serving in Desert Storm, and their 3 beautiful little girls. On the car trip picking them up over the holidays, I sat next to my 2-year-old niece and goddaughter whom was inconsolable, missing her daddy. This plays out not in just the few cases I've cited from my family's own experiences, but hundreds of thousands of times.
So when you watch this collage homecoming video, make no mistake--the emotions being captured on film are very real, not contrived. I think one of the greatest ways to pay tribute to our fighting men and women is to honor and support their loved ones left behind.
Most people including myself, wonder about the song playing in the background. According to templejazz:
The song is called Praan, by Garry Schyman...it features vocals by Palbasha Siddique, who was 17 at the time she sang this. The vocals are actually words from a Bengali poem by Rabindranath Tigore called Gitanjali, which means 'Stream of Life'. The song was commissioned by Matt Harding, of the 'Where the Hell is Matt' internet videos.Here's an English translation of the lyrics from mondenkind:
The same stream of life that runs through my veins night and day runs through the world and dances in rhythmic measures. It is the same life that shoots in joy through the dust of the earth in numberless blades of grass and breaks into tumultuous waves of leaves and flowers. It is the same life that is rocked in the ocean-cradle of birth and of death, in ebb and in flow. I feel my limbs are made glorious by the touch of this world of life. And my pride is from the life-throb of ages dancing in my blood this moment.
Political Humor
A couple of these are dated, but funny:
"According to a poll, only 24 percent of Americans strongly approve of the job President Obama is doing. In fact, you know where President Obama was when he got these poll numbers. He was on Air Force One. As soon as he got the numbers, he cursed out the voters, grabbed a few beers, and slid down the slide. 'I'm outta here!'" —Jay Leno
[But not before he instructed all passengers to turn off Fox News Channel--I mean, their electrical devices.]
''Sarah Palin's speaking contract rider requires two first-class tickets from Alaska or a private jet from Alaska, nothing smaller than a Lear 60, and it has to have a window she can shoot out of. She has to have three hotel rooms, a wooden podium, not plexiglass, two bottles of water, and best of all, a supply of bendable straws. This is a complicated woman. On one hand, you know, she'll blow a moose's head off at 300 yards, but on the other, bendy straws.'' —Jimmy Kimmel
[But, Jimmy, she doesn't require only red M&M's (just picking out all the blue ones) Of course, she likes the purple ones, but they don't agree with her... Of course, she likes bendy straws--she's got Iowa's straw poll coming up, and she used to believe in federal government earmarks...]
''President Obama just held his first monthly bipartisan meeting and said that working together on jobs would be a good place to start. You know where else would have been a good place to start? A year ago.'' —Jimmy Fallon
[Jimmy, I like the idea of bipartisan job sharing. When do Mitch McConnell or John Boehner get to use the Oval Office?]
'How many watched the Obama speech on Tuesday night? If you didn't see it, I'll give you the short version. We're completely broke, and deeply in debt, but we're going to do a bank rescue, universal healthcare, give everybody a college education, have a bigger war in Afghanistan, cut the deficit in half, and cure cancer. We were this close to universal blow jobs.'' —Bill Maher
[No wonder the push for gay "marriage"!]
'President Obama should get a big refund this year because he has a lot of dependents. AIG, Citibank, Morgan Stanley -- all dependents.'' —Jay Leno
[And Government Motors, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, California, New York,...]
Quote of the Day
Treasure the love you have received above all. It will survive long after your gold and good health have vanished.
Og Mandino
Musical Interlude: The American Songbook Series
Doris Day, "Sentimental Journey"
