A Long Overdue Update

I work in Houston, Texas now, and live in the surrounding area. I work at a law firm here, and commute in to work every day. The commute would be far worse had I stayed in Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia. We are looking to buy a house. No profound and moving thoughts to share.

I've thought a lot about whether I am living the right kind of life: whether I've made some mistake by getting a job that takes so many hours, that is focused on high wages over social value. I look to the value that I create in all aspects of my life and seek to weigh it against what I could do with other choices. This is a frequent reassessment, but one I feel compelled to make.

Overall, I feel I am doing the right thing. I am married, I have a son, I work to keep a roof over their heads and to keep us all living comfortably. My wife works in a position that gives back greatly to the community, and my job helps facilitate that. We both have a large loan debt we need to pay off before going out and saving the world. I suppose that I could have avoided this life and landed a job somewhere that would allow me to travel the world and be in the thick of purportedly important events. I don't know but that I would be profoundly miserable.

Curious that after all of my wandering, all of my forced and self-imposed travels, I have found that what I desire the most is peace, stability, and the prospect of a home that does not move or change, even as we continue to grow. A part of me still seeks to travel and save the world, and a later chapter in my life may provide for that. I feel, however, that the work I do now and the roles I fill in my life at present do not preclude that from later happening. And if I were to stay here... well, I want to stay here... now, today, tomorrow, and for the near to foreseeable future. That is OK, it is good, and it may actually be the best thing I can ever do.

OK, so much for passing on the sharing of my thoughts...

Just Some Thoughts on Racism

Thank you, [], for sharing your personal thoughts with me on this issue and for letting me read your blog. I sincerely appreciate the goodwill and good faith you extend by taking me at my word and believing that I am open minded to the opinions of others. I hope that I will always be worthy of that trust.

Having spent a third of my life outside of my own country, and having lived in places such as Japan, Belgium, France, Hawaii, Texas, Alabama, etc., I have always prided myself (perhaps too much) on the idea that I am not insulated from the issues of the world. Having lived in and been immersed in other cultures, I have always tried to recognize the humanity in all people and not to be chained to my subjective view of the world. I have failed, no doubt, more times than I have succeeded, but I continue to try.

When I read your story, I find myself both happily able to relate and tragically at a loss. I relate because as a human, as an American, and as your friend, I feel pain for the struggles you faced and triumph in your ability to overcome your challenges. I am at a loss, because I will never live your story like you did, and I will never know the struggles inherent in being the exact make up of person you are.

I want to say a couple random things before I get to the meat of my response, just because I hope they further cement how much I appreciate your comments. I agree that no where in the world are people more integrated than in the United States military, and no group of people has tried harder. I've also read King Leopold's Ghost and books on the Rwandan genocide which conclude as you do that there is no genetic difference between Tutsis and Hutus. I have family that currently lives in Kinshasa in the DROC (Democratic Republic of the Congo), and they see first-hand the results of failed-state colonization and the subsequent corruption of African leaders. Finally, I have recoiled my entire life at some people's interpretations of the Bible and that the "Curse of Cain" or the "Curse of Ham" is black skin or that God is somehow a respecter of persons.

But I want to add the following comments, because, like you, I want to share different perspectives that hopefully will help us understand each other.

[], you have to understand and appreciate (as I imagine you might) that there are millions of people who simply do not want to see things as race-based. They acknowledge the past, recognize the problems that continue today, but because those problems don't touch their lives from day to day, or do so only tangentially, they say to themselves, "Look, I've never persecuted someone based on their race. I've never sought advantage based on my race. I hate that our collective ancestors in the past may have been racist, but a lot them weren't! In fact, if it weren't for the majority of Americans fighting against slavery and racism, there would be no struggle for equality today! And no one ever gives them credit for that!!! So why don't the . . . [insert the racial group here] . . . just get over it! We're all human and we're all struggling to make it here! Quit thinking you're special!"

I realize the potential naivete of these statements, how they may come across as callous, silly and ignorant to those who continue to experience racism and are compelled to see things every day along racial lines, and I realize how these statements truly fail to grasp the ongoing problems we face both in America and around the world. But this is nonetheless their view, and it is not a view taken in ill-will, anger, or even blissful ignorance. It is their attempt at making sense of the world and playing the cards they have been dealt.

And I also imagine there are millions of other people that are stuck with the dichotomy of being compelled through various factors (history, present culture, continued racism, even convenience) of seeing themselves both as a product of their race and the basic human need to be seen as an individual. "You think it's over?" they shout to the other people. "You can't just TURN OFF the problems of 500 years of oppression. You can't just wake up one morning and pretend none of that happened! You can't just say one day that suddenly the rules have all changed and that I am no longer supposed to see myself as [race] but as just another human being. YOU made me and my ancestors see ourselves as a product of our race. And, whether you like it or not, YOU still do. So deal with it!"

These people, too, are of good will, and they too are just trying to play the hand they are dealt. But they too fail to see how this is a hard dichotomy for others outside of that race to accept, and it leaves other people of good will at a loss on how to treat them. Meanwhile the first group of people fail to see how insulated they truly are from the continuing racial problems of the day, and how their perspective may indeed be perpetuating some of the problem.

Neither side in this argument is fully justified in their position, and neither side is fully wrong either. What both sides need, I think, is a healthy dose of "calm-the-fuck-down" and a sincere attempt at seeing the world through another's eyes. I don't know if that would solve all the problems, but I think it would help. (I also realize that, like in all discussions, these are generalizations, and that there are other perspectives on this issue that I don't fully appreciate).

And then of course, there are the bastards, the assholes, the race baiters and the fools, those who live off the conflict and perpetuate it for self gain. I won't waste any more time writing about them because my response here is about overcoming and understanding, not making the problem worse. I will only say about these latter people that there is a cold place in hell for them because of the continuing problems they cause.

In conclusion, my hope is to understand. My hope is to overcome the problems of the past and look to solutions for the future. Your perspective has truly helped me with that, and I thank you. My vision, like so many others, is that one day, a person's race will be as inconsequential to the way we view each other as the color of their chest hair, or the shape of our earlobes (though I recognize in some cultures, this is a sign of beauty ;-) ). In other words, I hope as MLK said that we can all learn to truly judge people based on the content of their character rather than the color of their skin. Such a day is probably further away than even I'm willing to admit, but that's my hope.

Thank you again for sharing, []. You tha man

Selling Out, Cashing In, and Committing

I realized in my late teens that everyone "sells out" to something, and that "selling out," while in some cases means cashing in your dreams for expedient self-gratification, can also just be a pejorative condemnation of committing wholeheartedly to the right cause.

I have realized recently that it takes real courage to commit to the right cause; that while there was surface-level sex appeal to being a rebel and a loner, the truly admirable and aspirational life involves conforming one's behavior to truth, right, justice and honor; that it takes real sacrifice to sacrifice for others; "that true rebellion meant rebelling against vacant rebellion[;]" (Thank you Greg Gutfield; and that the great people of the world are not the lone self-centered wanderers who live "by their own code" (fakespeak for "whatever feels good at the moment"), but the tired, struggling, kind-hearted, gentle-handed husbands and fathers of the world who have given up some of those egotistical dreams and turned their energies to raising up the next generation.

In some ways its easy these days, because I have such a rebellious streak, and now being a good person is essentially a rebellion. Adhering to just and righteous principles is noncomformity. Conservatism and family values are on the fringe, and the despearate cause we all desperately seek so is living the just life with a righteous heart.

So it all comes together in the end.

Darn it!

Just read about a dozen reviews on Terminator Salvation.

And they are all bad...

I've been looking forward to this film for years. Years...

I remember Terminator 2 coming out and not being able to see it. Having to wait, reading the magazines, etc.

Why do I find the whole Terminator universe so interesting? That's for another post. This post is just to say, "Here's hoping all the critics are wrong and the sequels (for there will be sequels) kick tail!"

Places I've Travelled To

World


visited 13 states (5.77%)
Create your own visited map of The World or try another Douwe Osinga project

U.S.


visited 42 states (84%)
Create your own visited map of The United States or try another Douwe Osinga project

The Words of An Officer and a Gentleman

[taken from a private communication that was sent to me by a dear friend of mine]

I have worn the uniform of the United States Air Force for nearly thirty years now. I have on my blue blouse--the blouse that I wear on special occasions--eagles that were worn by my father-in-law during WWII. He also served for thirty years, retiring in 1959. Whenever I wear them, I am reminded seriously that I have to be better than ordinary men in all actions in my professional and personal life. Why? Because I represent him, other airmen, soldiers, sailors and marines who have served before and my compatriots who serve now. I cannot let him down. I cannot let down those who have given their lives and spilt their blood for this country and for liberty everywhere. To me, it is that simple, that clear, that fundamental an obligation. Truth is not complex, my friends. It is so simple and common that to declare it usually brings only yawns and derision from the intellectual effete and from the weak and pampered who would rather consume liberty than defend it.

These eagles have been around the world, to sixty countries at last count. I have seen oppression, hunger, complete suppression of basic liberties, people whose only apparent sins were to have been born in Rwanda, China, Iraq, Egypt, Afghanistan and other sink holes of liberty around the world. I have worked with people whose cultures, religions, and experiences have told them that pragmatism and survival instinct are the ultimate virtues. I have seen individual liberty as an exalting concept, as a human condition worth struggle and sacrifice, be extinguished after generations of oppression.

I have visited the empty churches in Western Europe, discussed with the lapsed Christians their hand-wringing yet apparent lack of real concern for the rise of militant Islam in their lands. I have visited the mosques of the Middle East and felt the life, however harsh, and I have seen the difference between the hollow, brittle, dessicated life of the Christian West and the virulent, hard, dedicated Islamic wave in Europe and elsewhere. The hollow West is borne of selfish living in a protected environment--under an umbrella that the U.S. built with the dedication and sacrifice of several generations of military posted in far-flung lands. Burgeoning Islam is borne of oppression, hardship for the people, and a persecution complex that drives them beyond what happy people would ever do. The vanguard of the movement is hardened and willing to sacrifice. There is life--compelling life--, however misguided, in the Islamic and the militant Islamic movements. There also is a culture of intolerance and oppression imbuing the movement with strength. Such intolerance gives the fighters, and their less-than-apologetic leaders, an easy excuse to commit and condone horrible acts. Whoever wins the conflict of civilizations--because that is indeed what this is--will do so with commitment and hard-nosed focus. I regret that I see little such hard-nosed focus in so many who ask for our votes and loyalty.

I have worked with people in other cultures whose virulent racism toward all other peoples cannot be described in any polite, western terms. We only think we have racist views and action in the U.S. We are ashamed amateurs in the racist game--thank goodness for that. I have worked in countries where the worth of a life is determined by race, culture, family, and personal survival--never by any other principle. Unspeakable deprivation of personal rights and liberties, as well as the easy killing of thousands of people by power mongers whose only focus is on retaining power, is the norm. The people understand the conditions, and they adjust personally. The result is death of the individual spirit and the subjugation of minorities and people of good will on a level unthinkable in the West.

I have met people who understand power in the world. They understand it and would kill me without hesitation if they thought it would further their cause even an iota--all the while eating a sandwich for lunch. These men and women were on every continent I have visited. Dead, cold eyes revealing dead, cold, souls. Men and women whose lives are sold to power--the acquisition and retention thereof. I have worked with officers from scores of countries who admit that power is expressed in its most telestial form from the end of a gun and most advantageously used against the weak and oppressed. These officers also admit, however grudgingly, that AMERICA is the only hope for peace and stability in the world. They know, in their sad and hollow hearts, that their countries will only follow such a righteous movement if compelled to do so. No praise will ever come from their lips for our sacrifice, only silence when our soldiers faithfully fall in defense of their liberties.

I also have met people who know that families in war-torn countries would huddle in their cellars, behind false walls, praying for the AMERICANS to come and save them. I know of people who know that AMERICA, and HER AMERICAN SERVICEMEMBERS are truly the saviors of the world--or, at least, their small corner of it. They hug us and praise us. The sun rises [in] their faces, no matter the color of their skin, when they think of those who have saved them. Alas, they still cannot rid their lands of the corruption that required our intervention and sacrifice. They weep when we leave. They want to follow us to AMERICA. They all want to follow us to AMERICA.

I have tried to work with Americans who don't understand that the only force that keeps the world from sinkiing into a dark abyss of chaos, oppression, and death is our--AMERICA'S--selfless willingness to not only protect our interests throughout the world, but to protect others' freedoms as well. As I have told so many foreign officers over the years: Natural man dictates that there is struggle until a major power creates stability and peace. What power do you want that to be? Russia? China? France? Japan? India? Islam in any of its intolerant renditions in the world? No. They all are silent in response. They all have known that the U.S.--AMERICA--is the only power the world has ever known that cares less about land than it does about principle.

The ground where AMERICAN servicemen have fallen in their altuistic charge is indeed sacred. The ground where they are buried throughout the world and in the small towns of AMERICA is sacred. Therefore, those who try to wish away the realities of the world should never lead this country. Those who think that AMERICA should apologize for its power or for its dedication to principles of individual freedom and individual accomplishment and cultural inclusiveness by adoption of our principles should never be voted into positions where they would most assuredly desecrate the holy ground where their protectors lie. So many in our society think that the truth, and its expression, is trite and cliched. But, I defy them in all I do and represent. With all my heart and soul, with all the experience in my adult life throughout the world, I declare to all who will listen: FREEDOM ISN'T FREE!!

I am most honored to stand with those who have paid for that freedom--generations in the past and those today. I am most honored that it has been my obligation to go where ordered and to defend freedom and AMERICA. Along with my belief in God and my love for my family, this has given me life. Only the fulfillment of such obligations is life-giving. Just look at the dead, hollow culture around us--in the world and in our towns--to see that.

Sorry for the rantings. An old airmen sometimes gets carried away.

A Clear Analogy

If a politician in the 19th century took a position on slavery analogous to that of Obama and Biden on abortion, his claim would go something like this: “I do not endorse slavery. I wouldn’t own slaves. I think people should be free not to own slaves, if they wish. But I am pro-choice. I have been a consistent champion of the right to own slaves for the last ten years. And I will make defense of that right a priority in my presidency. Of course, I hope fewer people will feel the need to resort to that choice, and so as president I will put into place economic policies that will reduce the need for slave labor in agriculture and in factories. But, to ensure that slavery remains an option for white men who should, after all, be free to decide how to manage their own affairs, I am in favor of providing subsidies for the purchase of slaves by whites whose farms and factories are at risk because of the high cost of wage labor.”

-- Patrick Lee in the National Review

You may argue that slavery is different from abortion, and you would be right. Abortion is worse. While slavery takes away your physical freedoms once you are born, you at least have life, and the potential for a change in circumstances resulting in your freedom. Abortion destroys any chance at life, liberty, or happiness, before the very chance for them begins.

But relax... if you are reading this, at least one person chose life... your mother.

Too bad for all those who didn't, right?