HeiressofBickworth
HeiressofBickworth's JournalJust my humble opinion
but I think the idea of "forgiveness" for horrible wrongs is an unreasonable expectation that somehow has been pushed on society. Must be that Christian thing about turning the other cheek. However, some things, like the things done to you, are beyond forgiveness and you need not feel bad for withholding it. Not only is it over-rated for the one expected to give it, but the one who receives it is rarely grateful.
Although my dysfunctional family was no where near as agregious as yours, it was enough to cause me to cut all ties with them about ten years ago. I've never regretted it. It is freeing. You only get one shot at life so you may as well shed the influences that cause you pain and sadness and replace them with enlightenment and courage to create a better life for yourself.
Read about the pogroms of the 14th century
in A Distant Mirror by Barbara Tuchman. There have always been actions against Jews in Europe -- and probably other places as well. It's just that the Nazis were more methodical and had greater technological capabilities to create a greater Holocaust than had ever been seen before. But the idea was nothing new.
When i lived in Germany in the mid 1960's, I went to Dachau -- I'll never forget it. I cried at each mound of ashes thinking of the vast number of unknown and uncounted human beings who were there. I believe that the idea that German people were uninformed about the death camps is highly unlikely. They were certainly aware that Jews in their neighborhoods were taken and never returned. Those who lived near the crematoriums (like Dachau) certainly would have smelled the burning hair and flesh. And there was enough publicity and speeches about a "final solution" which was a thinly veiled allusion to the total destruction of the Jewish people. No, I think that their inherent anti-semitism helped them develop a "national amnesia". This amnesia allowed them to place their humanity aside and do nothing.
I have the same objections to the draft that I had during Vietnam
It is nothing more than involuntary servitude -- slavery. Exceedingly poor wages, working conditions that the EEOC and/or OSHA would never approve and the availability of these military slaves makes war all to readily possible to carry out.
If someone wants to volunteer for military service, and the facts of military life and women's chances of rape or sexual assault don't dissuade them, then I have no objections to anyone taking that step. Unfortunately, the military is allowed to lie to potential recruits about the availability of job training and/or education, giving potential recruits the wrongful impression that the military is a solution to a crappy civilian economy and lack of jobs with upward potential. They prey on young, impressionable kids who are facing an uncertain job market. If the military was made an actual equivalent job market with safety measures, commensurate salaries, and adequate after-service health care, then people might legitimately be recruited into service.
My opinion hasn't changed since my brother applied for conscientious objector status when he was 18 during the Vietnam war. Since we were all atheists, he was denied CO status since at that time, only a couple of religions were allowed CO status. That later changed to "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, and/or religion." He and my mother and sister moved to Australia. My mother has since died but my brother and sister still live in Oz.
So I remain opposed to a draft for my grandchild as well as yours.
One of my very dear friends chose assisted suicide in 2007
She had ALS, she lost her ability to swallow, eat, talk, and was also losing the use of her hands, an awful thing for the artist she was. She lived in Holland but spent 4 or 5 months a year in the US. When she was here, we got together often. Once she was diagnosed she began to discuss suicide. We talked about it often and when she lost her ability to speak, she used a small computer-like device that talked for her while she used a finger to type into it. She first thought she would kill herself by some method. But, as another poster pointed out, there are problems with this -- miscalculations, errors, leaving one alive but in worse condition. Then there was the thought that her two sons (both adults) would likely be the ones to discover her. The end in store for her without assisted suicide was a loss of breathing muscles and strangling to death. In the end, she availed herself of the assisted suicide allowed in Holland. The law there was that she had to have two doctors certify that she was terminal and that her end was near. When she felt ready to die, she made application for the procedure. One of the doctors (who didn't know her - only met her once for the exam) decided she wasn't sick enough and denied it. A month later, she received the certification she needed. Her sons took her to a hospital where the procedure was performed -- she died a quiet death without struggle or pain. To chose assisted suicide is not easy as there are so many emotional issues surrounding death. She was more afraid of strangling to death than she was of being assisted to her end. She was a loving friend, a talented artist in several mediums, endlessly interesting and I still miss her after all these years.
I've always thought
that the basic underlying reason the US dropped atomic bombs on Japan was simply racism.
As Brigadier Gen Carter Clark is quoted in the OP, it was an experiment for the atomic bomb and as Gen George Marshall was quoted, it was aimed explicitly at non-military facilities surrounded by workers homes, and the other speculation was to impress Russia at the start of the Cold War, but ultimately, it was racism.
The Japanese were out of resources at the end of the war and were by all accounts on the brink of surrender. Germany, with its rocket experiments and heavy water experiments for bombs, was a greater threat but no atomic bombs were ever dropped on Germany. Given that we had two enemies, one on either side of Russia who would have seen the power of the bombs wherever they were detonated, the decision to drop atomic bombs on the non-white populations of Japan can be attributed to racism. I think there was a greater concern about preserving the land and culture of Europe over Japan, again, racism.
House Parties - brings back memories
1. Back in the late 1960's, I sold Tupperware. I had to sell a certain amount in order to keep my demo set -- I did that and then quit. I would have quit anyway because I started feeling guilty about trying to sell things to people who didn't want them and couldn't afford them but attended the parties as a favor to the host.
2. Some time in the late 1970's, I went to California to visit my best friend who had just moved there with her new husband. She had a friend who was giving a girls-only Fuckerware (I guarantee that was the name I was told) party for sex toys. My friend and I went, ate the food, drank the punch, laughed our asses off. The toys were displayed and the functions of each were delicately described but the guests howled in laughter anyway. Each guest was taken to a separate room to make their purchase; most came out with a plain brown bag. My friend bought something and I never knew what it was. Although I was married at the time, I didn't buy anything. What a prude!
My mother's mother
was my Gramma. We lived in the same town in Indiana until I was 10 and then we moved to the Seattle area. I saw her often before we moved. I didn't see her again until she was 92 (she died at 96) when I went back to Indiana for a visit. I was not particularly close to her. She was getting a little fuzzy around the edges when I went to visit and didn't remember me right off. When I reminded her of her childhood name for me, it all came back.
My father's mother died long before I was born. His step-mother was a very tall and elegant woman and I called her Grandmother R____. I hardly knew her at all.
Before my Granddaughter was born, my son-in-law's mother called me. She said that we had to decide, as grandmothers, what the child would call us. She was very insistent about this while I hadn't given it any thought at all. She demanded that she be called Nana -- since I didn't care, I told her she could have it and i would be something else. My granddaughter calls me Gramma or sometimes, when she is feeling flip, she calls me G-Ma.
Good Vibes to CalPeg.
I've always thought each cat has his/her own distinct personality
My old black cat (died at 18) loved me but was very unfriendly to other members of the family and would scratch if petted by one of them. Our current black cat (now 16 - an illegal immigrant from Canada) is the sweetest girl. She doesn't like to be picked up, but will reward you with a few minutes in your lap for a few pets and snuggles before taking off for other parts of the house.
As I write this, our 12-pound, 30" (nose to tip of tail) black with white markings girl is stretched out across the desk in front of the monitor. She can stay there as long as she keeps out of my line of sight. Her sister is asleep on one of the beds. The feisty one, a white with black markings, is a very assertive cat, probably with some Asian cat in her. But when the doorbell rings, she runs into the garage and gets up in the rafters before the bell stops. What a fraidy-cat! For those of you counting, yes, we have 4 cats. They have all been with us since kittenhood so I don't think the "nurture" argument fits these girls -- each one developed her own personality.
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Gender: Do not displayCurrent location: Snohomish County, WA
Member since: Wed May 18, 2011, 02:12 AM
Number of posts: 2,682
