Graphics may take a while to load. I think you'll find them worth the wait - reduce the screen and tend to your mail; file your nails or dust the keyboard. It is a long page, as usual. Bookmark and come back later if you need an intermission.

©Martha Jones

Please help yourself to either size - cool to link back here, or central link/update page
http://www.therealmartha.com/WAR/index.htm

"The Whispering Activist" a.k.a. Martha Jones - Opinions and ideas, mine and from others, that everyone can use to get involved, make a difference and lighten the load; a little bit of this and that, used with permission and credit attached when available. Omissions or errors will be corrected a.s.a.p. after notification. Find hoax busters, media hype alerts, timely info, controversy, common sense, commiseration, empathy, household tips, easy recipes, critter stuff, variety links, and a little humor along the way.

New Reader Info

This project began for all the reasons listed in the blurb above, as a mailer. It quickly evolved into pages, much the same as my usual system for sharing news and goodies with friends and family rather than overloading mailboxes. I live on the 'net, and I'll be here for the duration. I hope you find something to make your visit worthwhile and to pass along. I don't use the tell-a-friend auto services. They exist only to generate junk mail. Please use a clearly defined subject line with comments, suggestions or submissions, even better, "screen name" sent me. Due to mail volume, if I don't recognize a name, I have to delete. Thank you for your consideration.

MarthaJones1@aol.com or MsAtte2ude@aol.com (only if MJ1 is full please)

I love that graphic, would be grooviest if somebody came up one for "Rosie writerers" (~.*) - graphic artists too.

Recently comments from two people who know me better than most best describe what's going on here, "You're like a thunderstorm, no, more like a tornado." And, "Takes me forever to read all your stuff, but it's like a car wreck, you can't help yourself, you have to look." The following were also most appreciated, exactly what keeps the ol' nag going.

Very well written w/class to the point and w/humor. Will be sending it out :)
Your pages are such a trip - a real roller coaster ride for the mind.
Thank you for NOT being politically correct!
Love your lingo ... very straight and to the point. My friends will find it a breath of fresh air.
What a wealth of info. We as Canadians also support the USA and your values of liberty and freedom.
Some (pages) make me laugh, some cry, and some even think in a different perspective.

So, now ya know what you're in for ... and by way of further introduction, no, they don't all like me. I've been going rounds with one man over posts to his own list. In a word, pacifists peace me off. One volley  set me off big time. Certainly I could quit the list. While I can't say it's my favorite, it is one of the better overall interesting info sources. And, as the same guy whose two cents also follows put it a week or so ago, after he and my esteemed antagonist were locked in their own battle, "Equal opportunity insults for all." First, the original exchange, edited for brevity. His text was green so I used for the answer to help keep the voices straight. Then he went to red, and Aol did its usual screw job on colors and fonts from my end. Fonts don't always show up as intended once transferred to pages, the view also depends on individual servers and computers. I don't want to mess with it any more than I already have - might be even harder to follow. The main points are there. Help yourself to any useful ammo for a comparable fray.

Scene: The Oval Orifice (accompanied by graphic)

Extremely NOT funny. Not appreciated. I know how you feel, you know how I feel. That was a step over the line. Real waste of talent too. Not asking for an apology and I don't care who cares to bitch about my bitch. Just won't be opening any more political stuff except Rod's. In anyone cares to send correct thinking contributions directly to me, please mark as such. One last time, should there be any confusion about my thinking: The answer to terrorism is NO. http://www.therealmartha.com/WAwelcomeintro/index.htm

If I showed disrespect to George W Bush, I'm very glad I succeeded. A few months ago in the USA it was de rigueur even for Americans to do exactly that.

Yes, it was. I'll even admit I found a few of the better jabs mildly amusing, and certainly admirably creative. However, never having felt the need to follow any current fashion, custom or otherwise so-called socially obligatory crap, I chose to exercise my freedom not to participate in circulation.

Ignorance on any level is about the only thing that truly scares me - all the time, not just war-related. Blind sheep, lemmings leaping, etc.

For my curiosity and maybe edification, can you tell me this: you support the bombing of Afghanistan, correct? Through your Internet work, in fact, you, like Rod, have been a tireless campaigner in favour of war, I think you would agree.

I've tried, but I can't rephrase the following question to get it precise, without sounding like point scoring, which it's not, though I don't resile from the criticism that I support compassion, violence-minimisation, peace etc, just as tirelessly.

I'm interested in what thought processes brought you to the conclusion this would be the best way available to stop terrorism, over and above methods that wouldn't endanger millions of lives.

I never said bombing was necessarily the best way, although I can't deny my initial reaction was blast, hard and fast. Simply put, I don't know. I have no military experience. I have to trust those who do to make the right choices. One innocent life lost is too many. That's the price of freedom - always has been, always will be.

It's about letting other people decide, then. Perhaps also about other people doing the killing, and being killed, becoming refugees, and so on. When you can't be drafted yourself, I mean. I just have to wonder, does that ever bother you? Having your gov't decide to make millions unnecessarily suffer.

It always bothers me when there's anything I can't do anything about, I'm a control freak. Back to my statement about not having any military experience, I do realize I don't actually know it all - my opinion has no value there. I don't try to tell brain surgeons or garbage collectors how to run their business either.

Hell, if it was me, I'd worry who'd be next on their list.

I have chosen not to worry. We could all be toast tomorrow. As far as me being drafted - if they want this old heap, they're welcome to me. Hell they may get around to grabbin' Bub. He's still in the reserves. I don't have kids but my sister, one brother and myriad friends all have draftables.

To be continued I'm sure, on to Rod.

 

Again I repeat that is why "Rod The Terrible" is not a leader or in charge "over here".

You have been around a little longer than I so you are a little more informed. I see the acts of cowardice against our beloved country as an opportunity to shred on some motherf**kers who can't control their passion to distort the minds of the young with bullsh*t from a book written by some dude too long ago. There are basic principles in this life. Do unto others being one of them. As I have stated before, I teach my kids that you do not hit anyone, but, if someone hits you, you tear into them with a vengeance to prevent their continual attitude that they are able to disregard your personal space without reprisal. This may not be the best approach, but, it is my approach and firm belief that my kids should not be victims of someone else's cruel nature.

This is the same situation, IN MY OPINION.

What can I do, as a single solitary voice among millions, to stop our falling bombs (he, he) from killing innocents? Do you have an answer for that question ?I don't want to hear write my congressman or riot in the streets.

Don't we need somewhere to dispose of our weapons after so many years anyway? Afghanistan - the new munitions dump. Sounds like a great National Geographic special. We also need to build new weapons and realize the world still holds danger and dangerous people. This was a wake up call that we answered.

Again regardless of your case against our actions, I really do not care what you feel or your reasons for feeling so. If I cared I would have changed my mind from the mass of information I have searched for and read on the Taliban regime. To date I have yet to read or see anything that moves me to change my mind. I have seen a few things and had tears well up, but these things were here in the USA. I do feel for their people but only in that they have suffered long at the hands of many religious fanatics and still have no hope for the future regardless of our actions.

If I lived there I probably would kill myself. I certainly would not bring children into that miserable and violent place. If I lived there when the first bombs began to fall I would have run anywhere but the areas where the Taliban reside. We should have had undercover assassins in there long ago killing their sadistic fanatical leaders and helped to install a civilized leadership.

I am not in favor of withdrawing from this conflict without inflicting MAJOR damage on many countries for their past and present aggressions. Maybe you can convince your Australian government to join the Taliban in defending their pile of rubble.

I am sure I will be shown the error of my ways by all of the "enlightened" beings here in this group. Again I do not give a rat's ass how you feel I should feel or what I should think. I live in the USA where I have the option of giving a f**k or not. I choose to believe that freedom will win over oppression every time.

Again I have no desire to view an imaginary hypothesis as to how Americans or I would feel if thus or that were the circumstances. The reality is that we are bombing, they are dying and my life is still the same. I am a realist I guess.

---

Here here Rod!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Freedom of speech and the right to discuss things rationally and live in peace not fear that some extremist will end my life tomorrow.  I choose to live today. This is what I feel we are fighting for. Keep up the fight.  Terry

I wish this email group would show respect to each other. N, you could be the leader if you chose to but I see you just want to ram your point of view in here as hard as you can.  I am sickened by your treatment of AltMartha.  So you disagree ... fine ... but do it nicely.  

I better stop now before I lose it.   

Thanks, but really, I'm a tough old thing - sticks and stones ... And after all, each to their opinion, a freedom most valuable to me. What N doesn't realize is how he's contributing which I will leave a mystery until I publish next page. N, I am not identifying you unless you say so. Do have Rod's permission to use full name (Arbogast). Thanks also Terry for your back-up comments (more right below) - using with Terry ID only unless you give me your last. B, feel free to lose it for the page too. Same invite goes to all. Thanks in advance.

And that's the end of that until next page ...

A bit crude here, damn clever though! Thanks Rod, fine form - that's the way to use graphics.

Back to that contributing I mentioned in reference to esteemed antagonist. Set off a new thought process when he introduced me to jingoism ... which I decided to use in the positive frame, and so sent the following to a few friends who are always coming up with nifties. A rhyme couldn't find me if I needed a get-out-of-jail-free card.

Jingo is a definition for one who vociferously supports his country, especially a belligerent foreign policy; an uncritical patriot - hence, Jingo Elves. If a little ditty/slogan, idea for a graphic, anything pops into your head ... let me know and thanks - by Jingo!

Jingo, jingoish, jingoism, jingoist, jingoistic - try looking it up. From Brit patriotic song supporting Disraeli's policy against Russia in 1878, "We don't want to fight, but by Jingo! if we do; We've got the ships, we've got the men and got the money too."

Used to express surprise or for emphasis, originally used in conjuring, perhaps euphemistic for by Jesus.

http://projects.ghostwheel.com/ Search regular dictionaries and technojargon

From WordNet (r) 1.6 [wn]:

jingo
n : an extreme bellicose nationalist [syn: {chauvinist}, {jingoist},
{flag-waver}, {hundred-percenter}]

http://projects.ghostwheel.com/links.html - Interesting link list

Now dammit, Martha, "jingoism" is a dirty word because it's a crummy thing. People who jump on the bandwagon behind rotten leaders doing hideous things, without taking the responsibility for the bad deeds they're doing, wind up like the Germans after WWII, going "Golly, I never meant to do the bidding of a crazy leader who was murdering 6 million people in concentration camps!" You know that a lot of the Germans weren't bad people - heck, look at all the nice German-Americans you know - but they were JINGOISTS, blindly goose-stepping behind the rah-rah, flag-waving parade.

Not by me. I'll be happy to criticize GWB when he does something stupid or wrong - he just happens to be doing something I agree with, and most of us see the point of. And while I get tired of listening to 'em, I'm glad that the critics and protesters are out there keeping him honest. It's the American way.

I don't want kids to be taught to fight for their country and salute their flag just because they're little robots programmed to salute and spout out the words "I pledge allegiance ..." either. They should learn what our country stands for and if we stay true to our national ideals, they'll love their country for damn good reasons. Aussie (her name, not address)

By attacking this land and our people
You've awakened the giant jingo.
A jingo will fight if provoked,
We won't run and hide as you hoped.
A jingo stands for all that is proud
And voices his feeling out loud.
Do not mess with American jingoes ...
You've p*ssed off a whole lot of gringos!
No ID by request

Hundreds of words have double meanings. Using language any way I like is a powerful exercise in appreciation of freedom of speech - and a tribute. Gawd, if anyone wanted to drive me batz(ier), all they'd have to do is take away my ability to pound keys. The only way I can clear the belfry for a proper spot o' hangin' is recording whatever notion happens to fly by.

After 'splainin' I was aware of the negative connotation, and thanks for the blast, good points, etc., OK to use?, "Yeah, sure ... I knew you'd know where I was comin' from ... jingo is a happy, fun sounding word, isn't it? Like Jingo Bells, Jingo Bells, Jingo all de way!" Yep - Jingo Elves - simply irresistible. Find more from Aussie below. First though, one of those pop-in analogies. Found the Twain quote later - convenient coincidence eh?

   Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear. - Mark Twain

What if you grew up being shoved around, knocked down and trampled by a huge, foul-breathed, slobbering, hairy beast? Normal day in the life if there's a St. Bernard in the family. Stephen King's Cujo scared the poop outta most - conjured happy, loving memories for me. I'm told Casey didn't mind much when I snuck a bite of his lunch. And he always attended my tea parties. While that would explain a lot, it is a different story ...

Point? Imaginary fear of course, it runs you or you run it.

Casey Jones, oaf extraordinaire

Obviously thrilled I was tying a bow on his collar - bad idea as we now know - 300 years ago, decorating the dog was a natural part of the whole Christmas package. 

As was the traditional pic - this is Miss Jennifer Jones, marshmallow #2. Hard to beat advantage when needed to play on others' fear though. No worries driving into a not-so-nice part of town occasionally to pick up my boyfriend at work. What a sight, in the back of a Volks no less! Safe as an armored tank.

Always ready to go for a ride ... yes, she is sitting on my lap. Might be a Dane peculiarity - never checked into it - we were all used to it, can't say many visitors were too pleased when she decided to take a load off though. Wasn't a whole lot anyone could do about it either - about as funny as anything gets.

Haven't had a large dog own me since, needy small ones always seemed to appear when I was in need.

Buster is simply beside himself, now famous all over the world as featured in K9WebWorld@aol.com. Tag is available blank for personalization by request. Thanks again Marisa.

If you're not a dog person, the following info won't be of much interest. Might consider sending to a friend. For all I know about cats, which is next to nothing, similar breeding results may hold.

Saints and Danes are generally known as gentle giants, or were, before everybody and their idiot brothers decided to get into backyard breeding. No wonder pit bulls have such horrible reputations - Dobies, Rotts, any of the most wanted, have all been cursed to a certain extent. "Designer" dogs, bred to achieve the "looks" in demand at any given time are prone to a sickening variety of disposition and health problems. Labs, the most popular breed in the US, suffer from bone disease, hemophilia and retinal degeneration. Collies are also subject to eye disease leading to blindness, skin conditions that cause bald spots and epilepsy. Hip dysplasia is a huge problem in German shepherds.

From a Time magazine article ('94 - quoting from Lib's archives): AKC registration is no guarantee of health. Veterinarian Michael Fox, a vice president of the Humane Society of the US, said, "The best use of pedigree papers is for housebreaking. They don't mean a damn thing. You can have an immune-deficient puppy (with all of the above) and one testicle and the AKC will register it."

The article made a great case for mutts not being predisposed to hereditary disaster, unfortunately, miscellaneous throwbacks to nobility do show up. Taking a chance on a mutt is always somewhat of a gamble, but the odds are favorably stacked. Bottom line, use caution all around. Stay away from pet stores and thoroughly question all breeders. The responsible few expect it and will have their own standards about to whom they sell, usually also offering a fair return policy.

Speaking of purebreds, this is one of my favorite shots of Lib. We always entered the friendly contests and she almost always won in the tail wagging division, best smile, etc. We were quite surprised once to find ourselves surrounded by a field of bluebloods, as in "real" show. What the hell, we had no idea what we were doing, never stopped us before. She won Best in Movement, and landed on the front page.

This would be Best Pooped Pup :)

See why: http://members.aol.com/Libbyk9/libgallery.index.html

Dog's Eye View, hosted by Miss Liberty, M.E. (Mutt Extraordinaire)
http://members.aol.com/Libbyk9/index.html

Puppies are so cute, but ... printable as flyers, please help yourself
http://www.therealmartha.com/puppiesaresocu/index.htm

Why do I use all this dog stuff here, isn't this about the war? Every life respect issue is relevant here. Spay/neuter education has been my thing for years. Once puppies and kittens are not available on every corner, people might stop throwing away the ones they have when they're not so cute after a while. Basic supply and demand reasoning there.

I consider it fortunate that dogs were always a part of the family - one of the few things I can credit my parents for doing right. My sister works like a fiend for rescue now that her kids are grown. Her tiny group in Baytown, Texas just raised more than $2,500 from a garage sale - BRAVO! I do what I can to support their efforts on here, as well as helping out wherever else I can. The 'net is the single greatest boon to animals I know, I see more and more positive results from cyber connections everyday. Let me know what you're doing. Also, watch for a long overdue, straighten-up/fly-right slap-shake to be exercised on a number of bureaucratically impaired government trees. State and federal paperwork conflicts attributable to BS established by extremely confused "peacocks" (think about it) prevented several of the best K9 Search and Rescue teams from going to New York. Facts are being documented and names verified right now. So far, I only know about the one state, Indiana. Hmmm, David Letterman in an Indy native isn't he ... think he might be interested? Anyone willing to back other complaints is welcome here: Libbyk9@aol.com 

Quickie reminder: No Halloween candy, especially chocolate (can be fatal), for the critters. Lib loved Halloween, so many munchkins to attack with monster kisses. All that activity can be frightening to ordinarily docile pets, sometimes causing destructive behavior. Keep a close watch and never leave animals unattended outside. Every sicko on the planet will be out there looking to snatch.

American Dog Trainers Network Protecting Your Pet On Halloween
http://www.inch.com/~dogs/halloween.html
Excellent, brief, all you need to know.

About the big candy scare: Peachy, what next - just what we needed to further ruin the little bit of trick or treating fun left to kids. Use common sense, and investigate plenty of alternative party ideas found below and on links at end of this page. http://www.bergen.com/crisis/candy200110221.htm FBI: Candy purchases seem legitimate

From the "I'm Not Martha" (that other one) newsletter! http://www.shagmail.com/sub/notmartha.html

Hi! I'm Lizzy! and I'm not Martha!
(slightly edited for this publication)

Children need to feel that life goes on. The simple normal Halloween pleasures of childhood must be maintained. At this time, it's almost a patriotic duty to get things back on track for our kids. Cooky writes me often. She sent this in right after the September 11th destruction.

In the last 10 or so years the number of violence-based costumes has upset me. We are feeding into the violence our children are exposed to by allowing them to become those beings by these wearing costumes. We are the adults. Ultimately it is our responsibility what the next generation is. Think before you allow your child to become some bloody thing from a movie. We allow them to become desensitized to horror and we wonder why the things that "thrilled" us seem to bore our kids.

Stop and think about putting positive images in front of our kids. Use your imagination and the veto power of your wallet and find something that will promote healing. There are plenty of American heroes to emulate.

My (this Martha) two cents: I agree with Cooky to a point. Dracula and the Mummy are still bloody good faves, and ya gotta have a little gruesome - true gore goes past innocent fun.

*A novel idea for carving Jack-O-Lanterns is to turn your pumpkin on its side and use the stem as a nose.

* Plant hangers make a great way of displaying Jack 'O' Lanterns. A wonderfully spooky display is to use several plant hangers of different lengths in a grouping. In the dark, it looks like several glowing faces floating in mid air.

* Washing the inside with a mild bleach solution will slow the process of decay.

* Coat the cut edges of the pumpkins with petroleum jelly to help them last longer. The longer the candle is left burning, the quicker the pumpkin will decompose.

* To make your creations last, put them in a plastic bag and store them in the refrigerator when not on display.

* You can re-attach and repair broken pieces with toothpicks or straight pins.

* Discourage squirrels and other critters from making a meal of your pumpkin by sprinkling it with liberally with Tabasco sauce or cayenne pepper.

* Sprinkle some pumpkin pie spice inside your Jack O' Lantern to give the air a spice aroma! A pumpkin pie aroma candle is a great choice, too.

http://www.peacebreath.com/breath.html - Go there right now - incredibly cool, backtrack to intro http://www.peacebreath.com

This is a time to be thankful that we live in a place called America. The VFW Ladies Auxiliary offers these slogans.

A - is for Advantages, we have so many more. Because we are Americans, let's give thanks therefore.
M - Is for Majority, decision by most. That's the rules we follow from coast to rugged coast.
E - is for Education, available to all. So, let every last American, stand up straight and tall.
R - is for Religion, we worship as we will. A right we will always cherish and let no evil kill.
I - is for Independence, that our Fathers once declared. Our nation rose to greatness, because these brave men dared.
C - is for Citizenship, of which we should be proud. So let's proclaim it daily and do it long and loud.
A - is for Assembly, to gather as we might. That's another privilege, another precious right.
N - is for News, a press that's always free. A sentinel on watch, to guard our liberty.
I - is for Impartial, equal justice for all. Law - the same for everyone, the great, the poor, the small.
S - is for Speech, though others disagree. You may still express yourself, because our speech is free.
M - is for our Motto, and that is why we say: "In God We Trust," to live the good American Way.

Let's stand tall as we say the Pledge of Allegiance and raise our voices in the singing of the National Anthem. Let us join together and be proud to say that we are Americans. Together we can teach the blessings of liberty, today, tomorrow and always remembering yesterday.

The Hot Dog

What can be more American that a hot dog? Just about anything can. Although Americans will consume billions of hot-dogs every year, at picnics, ballgames, fairs, and as a Saturday night date for a plate of beans, it was not invented in America nor was it always called a hot dog.

A hot dog is first and foremost a kind of sausage, and the sausage has been around at least since Homer wrote about it in The Odyssey in the 9th Century BC. By the middle ages every region in Europe had its own version of a sausage, but in Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany, in the late 17th century, a butcher named Johann Georghehner is credited with having developed what became called the frankfurter or "dachshund sausage," one that resembled the hunting dog or hound, "hund," in German. Meanwhile, in Austria, Viennese butchers had an idea for a similar sausage and it was named after their city, Vienna is "Wien" in German, and so we have wiener  sausages or "wieners," as they are even now called as a synonym for both "frankfurters" and "hot dogs."

In the 1860s German immigrants began selling "dachshund sausages" from pushcarts in New York City, and placing them in a milk bun with a serving of sauerkraut and mustard on top. In 1871 a German butcher named Charles Feltman began selling them at his Coney Island restaurant. Credit for naming the creation the "hot dog" goes to a sports cartoonist for The New York Journal, Thomas "Tad" Dorgan, who was in the press box at the NY Polo Grounds on a particularly chilly April day in 1901.  During the ballgame, no one was buying ice cream, so the concessionaire, Harry Stevens, sent out for sausages and rolls and had them touted as "red hot dachshund sausages!" and they were a big hit.  Dorgan, drawing a cartoon of barking sausages steaming in their rolls, didn't know how to spell "dachshund," so he wrote "hot dog!" and the name caught on.

The fact that hot dogs come already cooked, or smoked, and only need warming, makes them an easy choice for a picnic, a ball park or a fair and while people may call it by different names, or may cook it in different ways, boiled, fried, steamed, grilled, etc., served plain, with mustard, ketchup, onions, relish, or many other things, most people will agree on one thing, they just taste great.

---

As promised, more Aussie, from daily Out of My Mind into Yours, www.woogly.com 

Robert Schuller is full of crap

Every time I hear of an evangelist who might just be a reasonable, thinking human being, I go along and listen to him to see if he'll pan out, and sure enough, he'll slip something in, his compelling manner and voice carrying it across as if it were something we all accept and know, and utter some complete horses**t. It never fails. I saw Robert Schuller interviewed this morning, and the old buster's chugging along, sounding lucid as dammit, and then he just tosses off , "Well, All Truth is Contradiction." What the hell is that supposed to mean? Then he's talking about the positive response to the WTC disaster, and talking about the Good that he saw in the firemen and the people helping people and all that, and he says, "Secularism cannot create this type of behavior." What utter crap! Where do these people come up with this sh*t? It's like the "No atheists in foxholes" line - there's simply no evidence to support it.

Let me tell you one thing, Mr. Schuller. I am as secular an atheist as you'd like to meet, and if you're telling me that I'm not capable of heroism or kindness or sacrifice or humanity, you are totally full of sh*t. I don't suppose that I'm a hero or that I have the right stuff to be a fireman, but I have gone into a smoke-filled room to pull out an unconscious person whose bed was on fire, so I suppose I pass the test to some extent. I'm certainly morally capable of helping my fellow human beings in distress, and I don't need your God person to order me to be that way, you narrow-minded old geezer.

Come to think of it, I knew a fellow who was a fireman, old Leon, also a card-carrying communist (Trotskyite) and certainly as sound an atheist as ever walked, and he was ALWAYS ready to jump to the rescue. If he heard a woman screaming in the next apartment, he'd go bang on the door to see if she needed help, I've seen him do it. When he was in the convenience store that got held up, he went after the guy in his truck. I've even known him to protect a controversial speaker (a KKK guy) at the Public Radio station against a mob, even though he certainly disagreed with the guy totally. He had his faults, certainly - he was a cheapskate and sometimes boring about his pet topics - but when it came to courage and lending a hand to his fellow human beings, he was a paragon of virtue.

More on Terrorism

Among all the other things that annoy me in the news and commentary lately, one that's really chafing is this "Ah, but what IS 'terrorism'?" stuff. I don't really like to hear pundits talk just to hear themselves wagging their lips, and I think it's really just a lame rationale to divert one's attention from terrorists to everything else that people find fault with, politically.

To me, it's clear, same as "temper tantrum" is clear to someone in the child care business. When the child lies down on the floor in the middle of the room, kicking and screaming, or threatens to hold their breath until their face turns blue, well, you know what you've got.

And when someone pulls off a kidnapping, a hijacking, a bombing, or any other sort of outrageous and unthinkable crime, in order to make political demands or make some political message known, that's terrorism. Terrorism generally involves innocent people, because they make much more compelling victims and hostages. More splash. More terror. Easy pickin's.

And what it's not, is, it's not a valid method of getting things done. Terrorism doesn't get you anything, unless you're terrorizing someone who's already weaker than you are; and in that case, what's the point? But the idea that it's a valid last ditch effort for the powerless and disenfranchised underdog is crap. If you're a powerless underdog, you're not going to gain any power by kicking the playground bully in the crotch, or kicking the playground bully's little sister in the crotch, either. You might gain temporary ground by taking his puppy hostage, but you'll pay for it in the end.

There are ways for people to gain power. Educate. Create. Make friends. Be original. Develop something other people need. Be resourceful. Take initiative. All of this works better than whining and raising bloody hell and making those around you miserable. Being a terror may get people to appease you, temporarily, but only in order to get to the point where they can drop you like a hot brick.

I thought it was interesting that the IRA decided to disarm. According to the news, U.S. financial supporters of the IRA just stopped Sept. 11th. Just stopped. The IRA had been toying with the idea of disarming, but apparently this helped.

Back in my younger years, the IRA and the PLO were it, when it came to terrorists. I met a drunken state senator in a Boston bar who showed me an IRA ring he'd received for raising gun money - still illegal back then, of course, but he was drunk and it was Boston.

Maybe that's why it seems clear to me, because I go back to the 60's, and remember those first instances of insane crimes followed by political demands. It's not revolution, you know, no matter what the perpetrators like to think of it. It's just manipulation.

I am not a great fan of rules. I think they're highly artificial things, rules and laws. But I do believe in natural law. There are things you can do and things you can't do. When I say "can't", I really mean "can't", by natural law. Like rape, an attempt to make someone want you - it doesn't work, you can't make someone want you or love you, no matter how big your gun. You can't force someone to respect you. Look at the U.S. We have the big guns. Does anybody respect us for that? No. Those who do respect us respect us for other things, in spite of our big guns.

So let me see. Rules are fiction. Force is moot. Manipulation through inflicting pain is counterproductive. Yet people keep behaving like rules are real, force is everything, and manipulation through inflicting pain is terribly clever. Somebody needs to pull back the curtain and show the little man operating the Great and Powerful Oz, so we can get to the good part about handing out courage and brains and hearts and find our way back to Kansas.

Ran the shorter version of this last page, additions are in color, not to be missed!

Take all American women who are within five years of menopause - train us for a few weeks, outfit us with automatic weapons, grenades, gas masks, moisturizer with SPF15, Prozac, hormones, chocolate, and canned tuna - drop us (parachuted, preferably) across the landscape of Afghanistan, and let us do what comes naturally.

Think about it. Our anger quotient alone, even when doing standard stuff like grocery shopping and paying bills, is formidable enough to make even armed men in turbans tremble.

We've had our children, we would gladly suffer or die to protect them and their future. We'd like to get away from our husbands, if they haven't left already. And for those of us who are single, the prospect of finding a good man with whom to share life is about as likely as being struck by lightning. We have nothing to lose.

We've survived the water diet, the protein diet, the carbohydrate diet, and the grapefruit diet in gyms and saunas across America and never lost a pound. We can easily survive months in the hostile terrain of Afghanistan with no food at all!

We've spent years tracking down our husbands or lovers in bars, hardware stores and sporting events ... finding binny boy (that's my tag, Bubba's is salami, Helen uses sammiebe) in some cave will be no problem.

Uniting all the warring tribes of Afghanistan in a new government? Oh, please ... we've planned the seating arrangements for in-laws and extended families at Thanksgiving dinners for years ... we understand tribal warfare.

Between us, we've divorced enough husbands to know every trick there is for how they hide, launder, or cover up bank accounts and money sources. We know how to find that money and we know how to seize it ... with or without the government's help!

Let us go and fight. The Taliban hates women. Imagine their terror as we crawl like ants with hot-flashes over their godforsaken terrain. I'm going to write my Congresswoman. You should, too!

Mr. Smythe had been giving his second-grade students a short lesson on science. He had explained about magnets and showed how they would pick up nails and other bits of iron.  

Then it was question time. "Class," said he, "My name begins with the letter 'M' and I pick up things. What am I?"  

A little boy on the front row said, "You're a mother." from MommieMail@aol.com

And from a very cool dad. I love it that he calls his boys short men :)

The Philosophic Warrior, a.k.a. Lou
http://community-2.webtv.net/lveronie/ThePhilosophic/

http://community-2.webtv.net/lveronie/doc/ Philosophize Now page

The WARRIOR cowers from no issue, no matter how controversial ... truth - even brutal,  get-in-your-face honesty, is perpetually the order of the day. Leave diplomacy, politics, and so-called tact & subtlety to the great fabricators ... liberals, politicians, and the PC police.

Aggression

The word may be somewhat misleading ... self-defense or action on your part to prevent an unsavory outcome sounds more reasonable. I do NOT in any way condone violence - except as a last resort. History tells us time and again, talk - yet be at the ready. I have always been a major proponent of intellectual discourse ... nothing challenges the soul more. BUT - there are times when no amount of discussion will dissuade another from acting out their course which may be harmful to you. Would any arguments, enlightened or otherwise, have halted the Nazi war machine? Or stemmed the tide of the Imperial Japanese Empire? I THINK NOT. I chose these analogies because they are relatively vivid and recent, but I could well have included the Roman Empire, the Mongol hordes, Communism, the dark ages, despots and dictators, even the local bully down the street! The KEY is in realizing when talk is fruitless, and alternate actions are called for.

It stands to be one of the most crucial decisions one will ever make. Does this intrude into the subject matter of “Morals?”

Of course. People, groups, nations, etc. will be less apt to choose the path of aggression if they know there will be an immediate and devastating response; it IS human nature. Whether it be learning the art of self-defense in the individual, or maintaining a vigorous national defense, George Washington expressed it thusly, “The best way to PREVENT war is to be always ready to wage war.”

From a forwarded e-mail, not verifiable, I hope it did happen
Edited for this publication