One Week Later, The Needs of the Many Outweigh the Needs of the Few

One Week Later, The Needs of the Many Outweigh the Needs of the Few.

One Week Later, The Needs of the Many Outweigh the Needs of the Few

It has been one week since the bomb attack at the Boston Marathon and in the short 7 days the suspects have either been killed or captured.
The decision that the living suspect living will be tried as a citizen, allowing him the same constitutional rights as any other citizen.
He is communicating and has indicated he and his brother acted alone.
Two young men that grew up here in this country suddenly turned away and decided to kill and maim.
We will never know what really made them snap, and, frankly, whether we know or not will not change anything.
There is one thing I do know as a person who was force fed the story because I live in New England and so there was a real concern for a while of where or who would be next. I watched, out of legitimate necessity, the search of home after home in Watertown. No warrants, just a house to house search.
Now many have said it was a violation of fourth amendment rights and in principal it is true, but, it was out of necessity for the overall safety of many. The needs of the many outweighed the needs of the few.
This simple principle is what will allow our species to continue to thrive
Was it basically an example of the government taking away a civil right?
Yes, but it was needed to insure the safety of as many people as possible.
Oddly, when a similar situation regarding civil liberties that has the potential to save as many lives, it is considered an obscenity that should not even be uttered.
Why?
Rational people willingly gave up a constitutional protection in a moment of danger and mutual understanding of the need of the many outweigh the need of the few.
Perhaps we, as individuals, in our own thoughts, should think about why one constitutional freedom can be removed for the greater good but another amendment cannot be touched for the greater good.
This is unlikely to happen unless everyone stops following the hive mentality and makes personal decisions on a personal basis.
Nothing will prevent future Boston Marathon attacks any more than legislation will stop Sandy Hook tragedies, but, if we as a citizenry agree that we can try to make positive changes, perhaps the tragedies would be fewer and farther between.
There is a point here that should have been noted by the reader, but, in case it is missed, here it is.
If we are willing to give up a civil liberty in an emergency and dangerous situation, then isn’t it possible for us to consider small changes in another civil liberty during a situation that is also dangerous?
You and our other fellow citizens need to make this decision.
I am neither advocating nor opposing second amendment changes, I am simply saying that we need to think about these things.
Nothing that we know of could have stopped Sandy Hook or Boston, but, we can do more as citizens to accept sometimes you need to change the rules a little for benefit of the good.
At any time our constitution becomes rigid with out the abilities to bend and change, it will do what all rigid things do. Break.
Let us learn from Boston and Sandy Hook and come away with the realization that sometimes, you have to change to make things work in a new world,

The Boston Marathon and What It Means to You

 Today, as most of us all know by now, 2 bombs were detonated at the finish line at the Boston Marathon.

 I think it is incumbent on the reader to understand a few things about this before we go further. The Boston Marathon is one of the largest outdoor events held in Boston, bringing runners and onlookers from all over the globe yearly. The security is always thick, but, somehow two bombs made it through.

 The second thing is that, according to present rumors that may or may not be substantiated, there were more than two.

 Until such time that this is resolved, theories and conspiracies will fly like the dry leaves in a fall wind, but, ultimately, does it matter?

 Is it important why or who? Do the answers from those questions return the two lives lost and the hundreds injured?

 No. These answers do not help the dead and injured from the bombings in Boston and Iraq and Afghanistan and they will continue along with no end in sight.

 This type of violence is common place in the world, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan to name of a few and yet the majority of us always ask the same questions. Who and why.

 Who and why are indeed important questions, but, ultimately the answers  come after the consequences and people’s lives have been taken or destroyed and irreparable harm has come to all that surround such acts.

 The question we need to ask ourselves of good moral judgment and ethical conduct is: When do we step up and stop this?

 Governments can’t nor Armies and religions often spur these acts along, so who is left?

 You and I.

 We are what stand in the way of these acts, yet we don’t.

 Why is that I wonder? Is it cowardice? I think not. Lack of knowledge, yes a probability but ultimately believe it is because we have become a civilization of “it is not my business or concern”.

 That my fellow reader is where the change can be made, must be made. The time for idly casting a blind eye has passed and it is time for the majority of this planet to simultaneously and uniformly proclaim “NO MORE!”

 Until such time that we do this, today’s bombings in Boston and Iraq and Afghanistan will continue unabated.

 Yes, we have met the enemy, and surely it is us.

Israel,Gaza and What is not said.

On its face the conflict between Israel and Gaza appears straight forward. Israel has the right and obligation to its citizens to protect them from attacks from Hamas and other militants. That is on its face, however, the underpinnings are more often than not, either overlooked or simply not discussed.

The underpinnings of this conflict are distasteful and frankly sad.

Before I continue, I wish to make it clear that my personal opinions of the conflict and the players in it have no bearing on this blog post. In order to pen a responsible piece, individual beliefs and preferences must be put to one side in order to attempt to cast some clarity on the conflict as a whole.

The conflict is more than one religion denying the right of another to exist. It is more than one faction hell bent on the destruction of another. It, in the end is about oppression.

We as Americans are unfortunate to be caught up in our own economic woes and often, crisis in the middle east make us worry more about an increase in petroleum prices and the cost of living. What we more often do not consider are the issues that these conflicts arise from.

In 2008-2009 Israel invaded Gaza in operation “Cast Lead”. The results of this operation curtailed weapons being smuggled into Palestine by restricting border access and trade. Trade is a very important point and the one that needs the most consideration.

According to information from the IRIN Global Humanitarian News and Analysis reports that the average Palestinian survives daily on approximately 450 calories of food a day. This in comparison to 2003 when the average American caloric intake was approximately 2757 a day.

Borders in Gaza were restricted to trade as well as limiting opportunities for work in Israel. It is important also to remember that most Palestinians would like to work in Israel, attend schools there. In point of fact, most Palestinians want to live a peaceful normal existence. This is a virtually impossible goal under the current and preceding conditions.

Perhaps my point is clear but if not, in brief, you can’t expect a population to be held down and forced to live in deplorable conditions before they eventually rebel. You cannot continually kick a dog before it finally bites back.

So, let us, perhaps and with hope, consider both sides of the conflict before we condemn a population that most Americans know little about and know even less of the conditions they live in. I will end this post with a letter penned by an aid worker in Gaza. I have taken this from the Huffington Post and will re post it in its entirety in hopes that it may shed some light on the conditions the people of Gaza currently find themselves in. After reading it I also ask the reader to take a moment to consider the loss of life in Gaza as compared to Israel.

Again, I wishe not to take a side in the conflict but rather point out the difference between what you hear in our press as opposed to what is reality. The letter/post follows :

7:27 PM – 11/20/2012

A Perspective From Gaza: There Is No Safe Place To Hide

Sabah Al Barakoni, an aid worker in Gaza, writes about her experiences living through the current crisis:

We huddle here in the house away from the windows that might shatter if the bombing gets too close. We’re afraid to go out, even for some bread. The bakery is not so close. My husband is taking care of his paralyzed father and can’t leave him to go to the bakery. I’m too afraid for him to even try. We’re lucky. We have enough food to last maybe a week. We have rice and sugar, cooking oil and lentils and a few vegetables.

There is a rising feeling of fear. There is no safe place to hide. We can’t leave Gaza to find refuge elsewhere.

Before the bombings began, our electricity was already off most of the day, so we got a small generator. We keep two 16-liter containers of gas on hand to refuel it whenever the electricity goes out. The gas station is far from our house, but this usually isn’t a problem. Now, though, it is not safe to go out to fill up our containers and there’s probably no gas left in the station anyway. We may soon run out of gas. We use a lot of candles.

The hospital has called asking for supplies. They’re running short of medicines and antibiotics to treat the injured. Four years ago, we were able to get a supply of medicines and hygiene kits into Gaza pretty fast. Who knows when we will be able this time?

Voter Fraud : The Easy Answer

  It is in the news; apparently it is rampant… tainting our elections, changing outcomes and destroying the electoral process.  Hordes of people roaming the country: voting multiple times, pretending they are someone else, just to change the results of an election.  This would make for a great movie plot, but it’s false.

  Reality is that, depending on where you get your numbers, the amount of voter fraud is basically nonexistent.  In 2008, there were 169,000,000 voters registered in the U.S. (according to Wiki-Answers, 2008).  That number is arguable, but it is relevant enough to say: “a whole lot of people are registered to vote.”

  There has not been a case of any serious voter fraud recorded in the US, yet, we now have state after state enacting new and stringent voter ID laws to insure that there is no voter fraud.  In other terms, there are laws are being created to fix a problem that does not exist.

What this writer finds troubling most of all is where these voter laws are coming from, and why. Predominantly, these laws are coming from Republican controlled state legislatures and assemblies.  These laws affect predominantly the poor, minorities, and the elderly, who generally have a hard enough time getting to the polls, much less the added expense and the trouble of now of having to get a government provided ID to cast a ballot.  More troubling still, in the case of Ohio early voting rules were changed, in order to shorten the time for early voting.  Fair enough, until one discovers that it was only in the districts leaning in the Democrat Party’s favor that the early voting rules were to be changed.  In Republican held districts, life will go on as usual.

  These cases are being adjudicated in court.  So far many have been proven unconstitutional; that isn’t really the point. The point is, that some want to disenfranchise voters.

  Voting is one of the reasons this country is even here.  We have a constitution that was ratified/voted upon.  The Declaration of Independence was ratified/voted upon.  Our very system of government depends on voting, yet we have groups who want to make this basic right more difficult.

  This writer has a solution for all this.  It’s simple, easy, and painless. If there is indeed voter fraud issues, then let us all resort to dipping our finger in a jar of ink, as we have seen so many other countries do. If you have an inky finger, you voted, go home.  If not, you may vote.  Yes, the ink could be scrubbed off by some unscrupulous people who want to vote twice, and I imagine the number of people who would do that would be similar to the number of people who fraudulently vote now.

  It is a non-partisan solution, relatively economical, and will free our court systems up for more important things, like prosecuting criminals.

  The ills our country faces are many, as are rest of the worlds.  So, why then, do we need to create more?  Let the people vote, let our voices be heard.  That is the American way.

 

It Is Easy to Create Hatred

I have been wary to write about this subject, as it is such a derisive issue that has the potential to alienate so many people.  I think it is time to speak before anything gets worse.  I can only hope my words will be able to carry some weight on world views.

Barring the reader being in a state of disconnect from the world, they should be aware of the intense outrage among (predominately) Muslims, the roots of this outrage stemming from a movie showing the Prophet Mohammad’s face, as well as verbally and visually slurring the Prophet.  As a result, many have been injured, even killed over this movie.  Considerable amounts of anger and resentment has been focused towards the United States, and its citizens.

This is where the topic becomes tricky to write about.  The incensed response directed towards the United States in particular would be understandable, if in fact the U.S. had been responsible for the film.  It is my firm belief that the U.S., as a country and/or government, in reality, did not create this slanderous piece of trash somehow called a film.

Yes, this motion picture was indeed produced in the United States.  However, it was created and funded by a group of individuals whose intent, to me, is clear: to inflame religious intolerance (at the least), and create a Holy War (at its worst).

The ties to who funded and created this are easy to follow.  The reader with little or no effort should be able to follow the players involved.  More importantly, the reader should be able to see the multifaceted goals for which this “movie” was made.

Obviously there has been, and there still is a concern with Iran regarding nuclear intentions. This is a concern for every country, as much as any country having nuclear weapons poses a clear and present danger to every living creature on the planet.  Some countries, in varying degrees, have expressed interest in interfering and/or destroying Iran’s nuclear program.

Israel has stated publicly that it will attack the plant, probably before the U.S. elections, and they are willing to act unilaterally if necessary.

The above threat has caused the U.S. and Britain, among others, to make naval maneuvers in the gulf region, ratcheting up tensions further.

Let’s all take a hard look at what I have just written.  Put the puzzle pieces together, and make your own assessment.  To me this is clearly a ploy by one country in particular to create a problem that did not formerly exist, with the intention of promoting a reason to strike at a country.  This country is in many ways is considered extremist to our ways of thinking, yet, at the moment at peace with itself and the world.

The individual players will, or have been exposed to this inflammatory film already, but the long term results remain the same: violence and chaos in the Middle East, directed at the West, created by a country that has made themselves abundantly clear about what their intentions are.

None of what I have written will make a difference in the end; blood has and is being spilled and lives are being lost at the hands of a few, by the hands of many in the name of God.

If I had the power, I would gather all of the world together, set them down and lecture them in things such as peace and coexistence.

We have people starving and dying while others waste food. We have so much suffering by the hands of the few with no regard to consequences. Our wars are not based on political beliefs, but on religion and ideological differences.  It is not even our religions or our religious beliefs that always differ from each other; there are differences in ideology even within different sects of the same religions.

We have a world that is far too willing to enrage another for no other purpose than to further the goals of a few.

No, this writer and this post will have no bearing on world events (as few will even read this). For those who are reading, think of what has been written and look inward. Ask a simple but difficult question. Do I know what is right and fair and what is wrong, and am I willing to speak about the differences?

For truly as the sunsets this evening across the world, we will all sleep as one species and awake the same. That is the one commonality we all share, and that by itself should be enough. If it isn’t, we will go by way of other animals; a footnote in the history of the earth. All that will remain are the bones and artifacts of a civilization that once flourished but in the end destroyed itself over differences in beliefs and greed.

Mr. Romney… Really?

Recently, in a clandestinely taped speech, Mitt Romney stated that he does not expect 47% of people to vote for him for various reasons, unimportant to this topic. Mr. Romney has also stated that depending on the issue, there are segments of the population he is not worried about. The poor have a safety net; I’m not worried about them. Big business is doing fine; I don’t worry about them.

Mr. Romney, with all due respect, you have a fundamental misunderstanding of what being president of the United States of America is.

There is more to the job than the economy and jobs and taxes and spending. Mr. Romney your job above all else is to absolutely care about each and every living being in this country, rich or poor, white or colored, man or woman.

Everyone who resides, legally or illegally is your responsibility and it is your job as president to steward the nation in a manner that benefits all and hopefully injures none. Your responsibility is not to send our troops into harm’s way, but to avoid it! Your responsibility is not to cut a child’s educational opportunities, but to create them! In other words, work towards the public good!

This concept that you have… that you can pick and choose who you “care” about or “don’t care” about is simply ridiculous. Our country has many ills, as does the world, and no one person can resolve them; but these ills affect us all, young and old.

This is not a nation of 47, 48, or 49 % vs. all others! This is the United States of America and it equals 100%.

Personal views on your politics have no bearing on what this writer pens today, because it is not politics I write about.  I write for the deep concern I have, that anyone— much less a man who wishes to lead this country— is so willing behind closed doors to show his disdain, his utter lack of respect, for all members of our country.

Mr. Romney, if elected, will you only be concerned with the needs of the Republicans? Perhaps only the Mormons will have your concern? In an already divided country politically and a world in a state of constant political and religious strife, do you really think it wise to even contemplate such things as us and them?

No, Mr. Romney. Not in this country. Here you are very wrong, because in this country, there is no room for color or race or religion or sexuality because this country, the one YOU wish to lead has a name, and the second word is the one that escapes you: UNITED.