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Sunday, November 29, 2009

Heroes


The World needs more Heroes

I listened to a thought-provoking presentation from a colleague at Toastmasters International on the subject of “Heroes” that in essence called for more heroes to help the world get through these awful times. You apparently don’t have to have x-ray vision, nor do you need to fly in any other manner than conventional, but the world needs heroes. He ended with the question: “Would you like to be a hero?”

This topic has stayed with me and caused me much thought. For instance, who or what is a hero? To my mind such a person would turn bad into good, and would epitomize fairness. However, a hero is a very subjective subject. To my horror I saw that the Libyan Lockerbie bomber was received on his arrival home as a hero. The 9/11 hijackers are revered as heroes by some, and so are those people who go out into crowds to blow themselves up, taking as many complete strangers with them as they can.

How can this be? It’s all in the eye of the beholder. It’s all in the faith of the believer.
CNN have been conducting their annual “Hero of the Year Award”. To this end they requested entries from around the world and received more than nine thousand responses. That must have been a very mixed bag indeed that had to be short-listed. They ultimately worked with a list of the top ten, and on America’s Thanksgiving Day the winner was chosen.

We have been seeing the profiles of some of the top ten, and the question that occurs to me is, how was it possible to discard any of the names. The one thing that stands out is that all of the contestants are doing wholesome and good work to aid humanity. The problem in selecting a winner is in the depth of their efforts and the impact that their work is having. However, not one of those nominated wanted the nomination for themselves.

No one can say that he is a hero and actually be authentic. It takes someone else to come to that conclusion. So, I add to the question “Would you like to be a hero?” a follow-on with the question “Do you think that you may be a hero to someone?” I would like to think that my wife might think of me as her hero for something I have done. I hope that my children think of me as their hero for something I may have done to make them proud. In saying that I am also saying that I hope I have lived my life to deserve such respect, and I imagine they may think in similar terms of their own lives.

I turned to the CNN Heroes programme midway through it in time to hear the stories of Brad Blauser, a man who has donated more than 700 wheelchairs to Iraqi children; and of Andrea Ivory, a breast cancer survivor with a smile as bright as the sun who is determined to save the lives of women by having knocked on more than 18,000 doors to get women to have a mammogram.

Then the winner, who was chosen by worldwide voting was announced as Efren Peñaflorida, a young 28-year old man from the Philipines. Efren’s work is with children from the slums who he offers an alternative to gang membership. He started when he was 16 by having survived a confrontation with a gang lord because he didn’t want to join the gang. Now, working with very little money but an army of 10,000 volunteers who have been rescued, they are teaching slum kids basic reading and writing skills from a pushcart classroom.

He doesn’t consider himself a hero but he admits he’s completely dedicated. His work is certainly the stuff of heroism. All we have to do is read the stories of gratitude from those whom his group have rescued and the picture becomes very clear indeed. Congratulations Efren! Keep up the good work!

Copyright © 2009 Eugene Carmichael

Sunday, November 15, 2009

The Enemy Within


Two Important Events in America

On Thursday 5th November, 2009, US Army Maj Nidal Malik Hasan suddenly went on a shooting spree, killing 13 of his own soldiers, and wounding another 30.

On Tuesday, 10th November, 2009, John Allen Mohammed was put to death through lethal injection for having committed ten killings by sniper fire, and having injured another three people.

These are two important events in America because they have some critical points in common. Both men evidently have Moslem connections; both were killers of several people who were random targets; and both used the gun friendly environment of the United States to horrifying result.

There has been much shock and horror that has generated a great deal of discussion, but so far I have not heard anyone, except one lone man express the fact that he now “gets the message.” When asked whether he is in favour of gun control, he replied “I am now!”

President Obama has declared that America is not at war with Islam, and never will be. However, perhaps the question should be whether Islam is at war with America and the West.

First, let us consider Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan. He was born in Arlington, Virginia, 39 years ago of parents who are Palestinian-Americans. He evidently loved America and was a good and loyal citizen. He joined the army and worked his way up the ladder to become a Major. In that capacity he was a psychiatrist who counselled army personnel and soldiers.

However, his very being was a conflict to other soldiers, because they were going off to war theatres to fight and kill, or be killed by Moslems, albeit by the names of Al Qaeda or The Taliban, but nonetheless they were Moslems. Consequently, Maj. Hasan found himself denigrated, discriminated against, and made very uncomfortable. He wanted out of the army. Instead, he was ordered to go overseas to Afghanistan where he would continue his services as counsellor to soldiers who were troubled as a result of their fighting activities.

On the 5th of November he seems to have calmly turned on his perceived tormentors and in a few horrifying seconds he killed 13 and seriously injured 30, some of whom may not survive. Fortunately he did survive when he was in turn shot. Hopefully he will be able to help the army with some urgent thinking that it must do.

Apparently the army was not sensitive to his personal problems and proceeded roughshod to disregard his pleas to be let out. Now the question has to be considered whether there should be any serving Moslem soldiers in the U.S. military. America is in an undeclared war against Moslem extremists while at the same time giving sanctuary and security to its own Moslem citizens. Perhaps it is too much of a conflict to place people of the Islamist faith in. A good hard look is required at this question, and it has to be done quickly.




John Allen Mohammed:

Born John Allen Williams on December 31, 1960, in New Orleans, Louisiana, he later changed his surname to Mohammed in 1987 when he joined the Nation of Islam. He was an excellent soldier who attained the distinction of Expert Rifleman. He served in the first Gulf War as a fighting soldier, and in that capacity he almost certainly killed fellow Moslems.

He was discharged honourably from the army in 1994 having the rank of Sergeant. He then started getting into trouble with the law over petty crimes. He was twice divorced, and his ex-second wife was granted a restraining order against him. He moved to Antigua where he met Lee Boyd Malvo, a young Jamaican, who was to later become his partner in the killings. It was suggested that one goal of his was to ultimately kill his second ex-wife in order to regain custody of his children.

Their rampage killed ten people for whom they are directly responsible, as well as injuring three persons. However, another ten victims are indirectly linked to them. It should be noted that their modus operandi was simply that of anyone who was caught in their cross-hairs was shot. Be it man, woman, black, white, Christian, Jew or Moslem, or child, in their opinion they were engaged in a Jihad, (a struggle in the way of God, or Holy War) and their targets were all presumed to be Americans.

To me, these two examples are very disturbing on their own, but we have to add to that the news of today, November 12th, 2009 from London that there Moslems are on the march declaring their intention to take-over Britain, and ultimately the world, and to turn Buckingham Palace into a Mosque. When asked what would become of the Queen they answered that she could convert and become a Moslem, or leave the country.

Both The United States and Britain have substantial communities of Moslems living among the general population. Both countries have experienced death and destruction at the hands of young extremists. The former Bush Administration asked the question: would you prefer that we fought the aggressors on our streets, or theirs? The answer was always, “On theirs!”
It would appear to me that a movement is under way, whereby the aggressor is determined that America and Britain will fight that war on home soil. It would be an act of supreme optimism not to expect more, much, much more violence in the very near future.

Copyright © 2009 Eugene Carmichael

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Life in a Wheelchair


Life in a Wheelchair-It's another World

When you see a person in a wheelchair does anything register in your mind at all? Probably not, because it is a common enough sight. If anything, you might think that if not for the Grace of God, that could be you.

I came to think of people in wheelchairs from the angle of noticing when able-bodied people trampled upon the rights of the handicapped. Drivers here in Spain take some extraordinary liberties among themselves, and some of the things that they do would simply end in somebody being shot to death in certain parts of the United States. For instance, there, you would not double-park your car resulting in a blockage for someone else. If you did it without thinking and walked away, you would have second thoughts about going back to your car. Here, we do it all the time and we do not expect the other person to be angry when we have inconvenienced them to such a degree.

I have noticed how common it is for people to park in spaces reserved for the handicapped. They even park across pedestrian crossings, so the handicapped have no chance. Things came to a head on the day that I noticed a couple with a “Wales” sticker drive into the parking area of a Mercadona Supermarket and park at an angle across two parking spaces. That was bad enough, but add to that the fact that both spaces were reserved for the handicapped. That must surely take the prize for “Coldest Bastard in the Universe.”

So, I wrote a blog, the gist of which was that we should be careful to protect the rights of the handicapped before we need those same rights ourselves. I published that blog on the 11th October. On the 14th October I found myself in a wheelchair with a broken leg. I can only assume that I am to highlight the experience of life from a wheelchair, since I opened the subject. This will be the follow-through. (Ain’t life strange?)

There are a series of one-word descriptions that very accurately sum up life lived in this manner, and all but one are bad words. Such as: Boring, horrible, frustrating, demanding, challenging, depressing, sucks, and suicidal. The one word that could be considered acceptable is “utilitarian.” It does allow for you to have some sort of life on the move, but that is very small comfort.

I am not the perfect subject to speak of life in this way because my time in a wheelchair is limited to my full recovery until I can once again walk when my leg has healed. In the meantime I can get up and change to crutches. In other words, I cheat. I am a fraud. To hear from the real wheelchair bound people simply log on to “Wheelchair blogs” and you will enter a whole new world.

Frankly, I opened these pages and I became emotionally charged. It gave me pause to realize that in parallel with the “normal” world there is a society of disabled people who have to function, sometimes without the cooperation of the able-bodied to cope with everyday life.

Of course, you will find angry blogs, because they have a lot to be angry about. So many cities completely forget the handicapped in their designs. You will also find some incredibly positive thoughts, and a lot of very ordinary viewpoints. For instance, there are handicapped beauty pageants, and why not? There are also campaigns against what is called “Apartheid by Design, or lack of design.” And of course, there are the Para-Olympics.

There is also humour. In Bermuda I had a meeting with the Handicapped Association to discuss raising funds for them. I arrived at their workshop to realise I was the only person without a seat. It seems I had failed to bring my seat with me, a fact that caused great peels of laughter.

A friend of mine suggested that it is rare to see people in wheelchairs in Spain. Is that their fault, or the fault of everybody else? If the city or town makes it impossible to navigate a wheelchair, why would we expect to see someone out on their own trying to shop?

Just imagine trying to get from one end of a street to the other, or from one side of the street to the other without someone having deliberately paved the way. Sometimes, the thing that such a person needs is just within a stone’s throw and no big deal if you are able to walk. But, for the disabled it might just as well be another world away.

I honestly don’t know how a person is supposed to adjust to life in a wheelchair. I’m certain that one thing is needed to do this, and that thing is emotional strength. Handicapped people must be some of the strongest people in the world.

I want to ask you to bear in mind the next time you encounter a handicapped person on their own that that person may well have once been as able-bodied as you are. Consequently, you could find yourself in the same position in the twinkling of an eye. So, instead of passing them as though they were invisible, or just a normal person, at least say Hello! Ask whether there is anything you can do for them, and take the time to be of assistance.

If this idea spreads far and wide you might one day be grateful for it, and happy that you helped to promote it.

Copyright © 2009 Eugene Carmichael

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Flying Naked




“Getting There is Half the Fun?”

That was the catch phrase of a travel company many years ago. They have given that up now because travelling is no fun. Instead travelling is all about “hurry up and wait.” I am trying to remember when it all changed. What I can remember are the days when we actually dressed up to look our very best to board an airplane.

In those days there was absolute respect for the crew and we were all on our very best behaviour. Then we noticed that students travelling during spring break started wearing jeans and tee-shirts, and behaviour suffered along with that. The standard had dropped. A new age had dawned.

Then came hijackings, mainly to Cuba from the U.S. Following that period aircraft were taken with a full load of passengers and used for negotiations and blackmail. I recall the first time I saw an airplane blown up, thankfully without people on board. I found it hard to believe such deliberate destruction of such a valuable object was possible.

The eleventh of September, 2001 changed everything forever. The hijacking of four planes with passengers and coldly flown into buildings told the world that there are people who will go to any length to make a point. The traveller’s world was impacted in ways that we are only beginning to understand. The advice of The White House was that we should continue on with our lives on a normal basis. Not to do so would be to admit that the terrorists had won.

The problem with that is that life is no longer normal, and the terrorists have won because we are even terrorizing ourselves. I passed into the security zone at Heathrow recently and was given the most thorough examination in the open space as other travellers looked on. I was ordered to remove my hat, my belt, my glasses, my shoes and a light jacket. A man placed his hands over every centimetre of my body, especially around my scrotum.

When he grasped my penis and my testicles and gave a squeeze I told him that I had a licence to carry that equipment. He never even broke a smile. When he finished I thanked him and asked how much did I owe him? He was puzzled, but I explained that never before in my life had I had such a good massage.

During all that it would have been particularly inappropriate to complain about the violation of my privacy. Had I reacted with righteous indignation that would have simply given them steam to go even further than they did.Such invasive searching is supposed to be in my interest, so I am supposed to simply walk away with a whimper.

With all that in mind we might have foreseen that the day would not be far off when we would all be electronically stripped of our dignity through the invasion of our privacy. It has now been announced that technology in the form of a scanner is undergoing testing at Manchester Airport’s Terminal 2, as well, it has been tested at Heathrow Airport. The traveller would have to agree to be scanned by stepping out of line to stand before the scanner backdrop. X-ray beams will outline the person for the officer who is at a remote location who will be presented with a picture that will show whether you are carrying anything of a suspicious nature anywhere on or within your body. In fact you are virtually naked. We are assured that none of these images can be stored or downloaded, and only one officer sees them.

We are further assured that the images are not pornographic or erotic. What a shame. However, they do show you in your birthday suit, so it’s a good thing that for the time being we at least do have a choice.

My parting comment to the security officer that I referred to above, was that in order to help him in his work I thought that perhaps we should all fly naked. He said that they would still have to find the contraband. That sounded awfully painful to me, so I think I had better quit while I’m ahead.

Copyright © Eugene Carmichael