Lessons From The Pit Bulls Next Door

A couple of weeks ago , my neighbours had family coming in from Georgia. What was interesting to us was that they brought three well behaved dogs with them, including one who was very pregnant and gave birth to a litter of puppies in New York. The dogs were so well behaved, the lesson from their stay seemed to be not to judge a breed by its reputation. The contagious kindness of the dog's owners seemed to impart another moral to the story, that a person can through their kindness and decency transform the world around them.
Towards the end of their stay, the dogs have taught us some sadder lessons as well. About a week into their stay, the owners went traveling upstate. We had assumed that their pets were going with them. Instead, they stayed in a kennel. When they returned, the pit bulls were high strung and irritable. Everything they had learned about boundaries in the back yard seemed to be forgotten. There was a different sound to their barking, a sound of fear and defensiveness that could easily have fueled a fierceness. Instead of distinguishing as animals often do between the young and the adults of other species, the younger dogs got angry even when my children played in our half of the back yard. Seeing a change in the dog's behavior, I moved my children to the front yard and told them not to play in the back until the dogs went home. I still talk to the pit bulls in reassuring tones as I pull my motor cycle out of the garage, but the sound of my voice does not seem to resonate with them as it did before.
The behavior of the animals seems to point to some occurence at the kennel that upset them. Perhaps it was simply the fear of abandonment that shook their sense of security. It is all but impossible to know what triggered such a change in the pit bull's behavior . Although they are expressive in a general sense, they still can't talk like humans.
Telling my children to stay away from the dogs brought back sad memories, not of animals in my past, but of people. Sometimes a child in a loving home hits a difficult stretch in their life. A neighbour or family friend develops an angry edge, maybe even starts using drugs or alcohol. With the sad wisdom of experience, I try to redirect my children, hopefully meriting enough respect that they listen to me . Sometimes it's safe to have a kid come over and play Monopoly or computer games, even if you don't want your kids going out on the town with their questionable friend.
Seeing that personality change in the pit bulls reminded me a lot of kids who get knocked over by life's challenges. Family problems, difficulties at school or even serious issues like molestation and physical abuse can make a kid feel beaten and worthless. With children and adults, those most in need of love are sometimes the hardest to love.
What got me through some of my darkest hours? The warm glow of a kind word can melt a wall of ice years later. There are conversations that replay in my mind from decades ago. My father always used to say, "Buy a book even if you aren't going to read it right away, so it will be there when you are ready for it and need it." What you say to people becomes part of the library of their mind. I remember a neighbour years ago who knew I was going through rough times that I didn't want to talk about. An empathetic look at the end of a stretch of small talk was all I needed.
Seeing the dogs next door scarred by an experience that they are not equipped to describe has helped me to look at the human suffering around me with increased compassion. Going to my back yard, trying to be friendly to my canine neighbours while at the same time protecting my family and myself is much of what goes on in life. The pit bulls next door have held a mirror to my own struggles. They remind me in their simplicity of a reproduction of a Chinese ink drawing I once had. With two lines and an ink blot, it portrayed a panda bear as unmistakably as would a photograph. Human emotions are mirrored in the animal kingdom with the austere directness of a haiku poem and well placed lines in a drawing that evokes an inner image.
The pit bulls will be going home soon. The garage next door will soon be silent.I am quite relieved at that. The dogs have taught me their lesson like a book borrowed, read and soon to be returned.

The Irish Famine and Its Lessons For Today

Irish Famine



Yesterday, a review of the New York Time's dismal history as a sleeping watch dog on my site focused on the "Holdomar " the man made famine in the former USSR in from 1932 to 1933. The generation that experienced this even as children is now dying out. It is important that this horrible chapter in the history of the former USSR be taught and passed to to new generations.
Where I grew up outside of Boston, there were many people of Irish descent. Massachusetts and America would be very different without the contribution of Irish immigrants. When I was a child, there were still older Irish people who were a living scrapbook of Irish memory. Stinging recollections of social exclusion and talk of the Irish famine were a part of their collective memory. Although none of my ancestors are Irish, the stories told to me in my youth by Irish American teachers and neighbours form a critical frame of reference for how I view history.
The Ukrainian famine was totally man made. It was not a begrudging sky or blighted earth that denied the Ukrainian people sustenance. It was people, stripped of human compassion in their allegiance to a godless ideology. The starvation was intended to batter the Ukrainian people into submission.
The mother of the Irish famine was the diseased soil in which its potato crop withered. But Ireland was an integral part of the United Kingdom. A rigid class structure formed a social framework in Ireland inwhich Irish people were held in contempt. Even before the birth of the Anglican Church under Henry the Eighth, the English looked down on the Irish. Irish were sold as slaves by the English. Even today, descendants of the deported Irish celebrate St. Patrick's day every year in the West Indian island republic of Montserrat.
Ireland continued to export food during the famine. Rather than declare a state of emergency, the English rulers and absentee landlords of Ireland continued to demand from Irish sharecroppers whatever the begrudging earth might yield. In England there was pious pontification over whether soup kitchens and relief drives might prove detrimental to Irish diligence and self reliance. According to one observer, six ships left Dublin with agricultural exports for every ship that came in with relief supplies. Over a million Irish died of starvation in Ireland. Death aboard ships in steerage was common among desperate emigrants who left Ireland with nothing but a desire to work and survive. Like the Ukraine in the following century, Ireland lost a quarter of its population. London under Queeen Victoria, like Moscow under Stalin considered the famine to be a net social and economic gain . To this day, the memory of British cruelty to the Irish is a part of the Irish historical narrative. It provided vivid proof that Irish well being would not be sought in London. The memory of Irish famine lent a visceral urgency to the struggle for Irish independence.It remains vivid for those who grew up among the Boston Irish.
Historical memory should not be a mental exercise. The study of the past should colour our vision of the present. It would be a monumental error to suppose that there is no man made component to famine today. Zimbabwe is a classic example of a country whose productive economy was destroyed for political reasons. The leftist rhetoric of Robert Mugabe deafens the world to the cries of the Zimbabwean people. His leftist enablers would far rather question the legitimacy of George Bush's electoral victory than to challenge the blatantly thuggish electoral triumph of Robert Mugabe. Khuzestan in Iran is another region where its Arab natives languish as oil revenues are shipped elsewhere. In Nigeria as well is heated debate as to how fairly oil revenues are distributed to benefit the local population.
History has been far kinder to Britain than it has been to Stalin and deservedly so. Yet countries such as Belgium and Portugal have left a legacy of strife and destruction in the wake of their parasitic rule of former colonies. We need to ask ourselves today how fairly the wealth produced today benefits workers and farmers that produce it. It is better for such questions to be asked by men of good will than by demagogues such as Lenin and Stalin who only seek to dress a new slavery in the rhetoric of their godless ideology.
History has much to teach us. The book of our mistakes can offer no wise counsel if it remains unopened.

Is There a Pro Obama Bias in The Media?

McCain Campaign Video about media bias Ukrainian famine video
John McCain is understandably upset about the New York Times rejecting his rebuttal to a column written by Barack H. Obama and published in the New York Times earlier. McCain claimed that the objections of the editor went well beyond style and were an attempt to substantially alter statements of opinion.
Those who want to read the rebuttal had to go to drudgereport.com.
McCain has every right to be angry at the New York Times for their coverage of his campaign. Mr. McCain should know, however that he is in good company. During World War Two, the New York Times buried its Holocaust Coverage inside the paper, well away from page one . Of 24,000 front page stories between 1939 and 1945, only twenty six stories dealt with the Holocaust. Of those, only six stories mentioned the focus of liquidation efforts on Jews.
Its infamous coverage of the Ukrainian famine in the early thirties went well beyond downplaying or even neglecting the story. Walter Duranty won a Pulitzer Prize for himself and undeserved prestige for the New York Times for filing glowing reports of the success of forced collectivisation in the Ukraine. As the readers of the New York Times read about joy in socialist paradise, a man made famine was sweeping across the Ukraine. Unreported were instances of people eating dogs, cats and squirrels. Actual cannibalism, documented by those with no political agenda went unreported in the New York Times.
The damage inflicted upon doomed Jews and Ukrainians by the editors of the New York Times is incalculable. Newspapers around the country and around the world look to the New York Times for guidance in prioritising their international news. A decision to shine a spotlight on a government's atrocities can save lives . Countries concerned about their image abroad sometimes respond to negative publicity. The worst thing that can happen to a group targeted with genocide is to have a major news outlet lead a coverup. This is exactly what happened to the Ukrainians. George Bernard Shaw and Walter Duranty are a few of may who because of bribery or ideological blindness denied the existence of a famine in the Ukraine. Malcolm Muggeridge and a few other brave journalists kept the world informed at great risk to themselves. In 1932-1933, millions died. Estimates range from 2.5 million souls to as many as ten million. In a country where for years it was hard to even get a telephone book, it is difficult to reconstruct details from official records. The democratic government of Ukraine has no interest in covering up this dark chapter in its history. The millions killed are finally getting their belated recognition.
The market economy in America is inflicting serious blows upon periodicals and broadcast outlets that slant and falsify the news. The New York Times as seen its circulation plummet.
Biased papers such as the New York Times are going the way of collective farms and five year plans. The internet and talk radio are viewed with fear and contempt by the ditzerati of the liberal media . McCain should not worry about being denied space in the New York Times. Its once lofty platform sinks deeper by the day into the swamp of public indifference. Their bias against him has generated far more interest in his rejected article than if they would have printed it. The public is well aware that reporters frequently bring a personal bias to news reporting. Today, the public is more skeptical than ever before. And in the age of the internet , we have choices.
Don't worry, Senator McCain. Help is on the way.
Ukrainian Genocide video

Wikipedia article on Ukrainian Genocide


New York Times Profits Drop 82%

McCain article that was rejected by the New York Times and Drudge Report commentary

The DRUDGE REPORT presents the McCain editorial in its submitted form:

In January 2007, when General David Petraeus took command in Iraq, he called the situation “hard” but not “hopeless.” Today, 18 months later, violence has fallen by up to 80% to the lowest levels in four years, and Sunni and Shiite terrorists are reeling from a string of defeats. The situation now is full of hope, but considerable hard work remains to consolidate our fragile gains.

Progress has been due primarily to an increase in the number of troops and a change in their strategy. I was an early advocate of the surge at a time when it had few supporters in Washington. Senator Barack Obama was an equally vocal opponent. "I am not persuaded that 20,000 additional troops in Iraq is going to solve the sectarian violence there,” he said on January 10, 2007. “In fact, I think it will do the reverse."

Now Senator Obama has been forced to acknowledge that “our troops have performed brilliantly in lowering the level of violence.” But he still denies that any political progress has resulted.

Perhaps he is unaware that the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad has recently certified that, as one news article put it, “Iraq has met all but three of 18 original benchmarks set by Congress last year to measure security, political and economic progress.” Even more heartening has been progress that’s not measured by the benchmarks. More than 90,000 Iraqis, many of them Sunnis who once fought against the government, have signed up as Sons of Iraq to fight against the terrorists. Nor do they measure Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki’s new-found willingness to crack down on Shiite extremists in Basra and Sadr City—actions that have done much to dispel suspicions of sectarianism.

The success of the surge has not changed Senator Obama’s determination to pull out all of our combat troops. All that has changed is his rationale. In a New York Times op-ed and a speech this week, he offered his “plan for Iraq” in advance of his first “fact finding” trip to that country in more than three years. It consisted of the same old proposal to pull all of our troops out within 16 months. In 2007 he wanted to withdraw because he thought the war was lost. If we had taken his advice, it would have been. Now he wants to withdraw because he thinks Iraqis no longer need our assistance.

To make this point, he mangles the evidence. He makes it sound as if Prime Minister Maliki has endorsed the Obama timetable, when all he has said is that he would like a plan for the eventual withdrawal of U.S. troops at some unspecified point in the future.

Senator Obama is also misleading on the Iraqi military's readiness. The Iraqi Army will be equipped and trained by the middle of next year, but this does not, as Senator Obama suggests, mean that they will then be ready to secure their country without a good deal of help. The Iraqi Air Force, for one, still lags behind, and no modern army can operate without air cover. The Iraqis are also still learning how to conduct planning, logistics, command and control, communications, and other complicated functions needed to support frontline troops.

No one favors a permanent U.S. presence, as Senator Obama charges. A partial withdrawal has already occurred with the departure of five “surge” brigades, and more withdrawals can take place as the security situation improves. As we draw down in Iraq, we can beef up our presence on other battlefields, such as Afghanistan, without fear of leaving a failed state behind. I have said that I expect to welcome home most of our troops from Iraq by the end of my first term in office, in 2013.

But I have also said that any draw-downs must be based on a realistic assessment of conditions on the ground, not on an artificial timetable crafted for domestic political reasons. This is the crux of my disagreement with Senator Obama.

Senator Obama has said that he would consult our commanders on the ground and Iraqi leaders, but he did no such thing before releasing his “plan for Iraq.” Perhaps that’s because he doesn’t want to hear what they have to say. During the course of eight visits to Iraq, I have heard many times from our troops what Major General Jeffrey Hammond, commander of coalition forces in Baghdad, recently said: that leaving based on a timetable would be “very dangerous.”

The danger is that extremists supported by Al Qaeda and Iran could stage a comeback, as they have in the past when we’ve had too few troops in Iraq. Senator Obama seems to have learned nothing from recent history. I find it ironic that he is emulating the worst mistake of the Bush administration by waving the “Mission Accomplished” banner prematurely.

I am also dismayed that he never talks about winning the war—only of ending it. But if we don’t win the war, our enemies will. A triumph for the terrorists would be a disaster for us. That is something I will not allow to happen as president. Instead I will continue implementing a proven counterinsurgency strategy not only in Iraq but also in Afghanistan with the goal of creating stable, secure, self-sustaining democratic allies.

Yet Another Bulldozer Attack In Jerusalem:My Thoughts

Jerusalem Post on Second Bulldozer Attack

For the second time, an Arab has taken a bulldozer from a construction site in Jerusalem and used it as an instrument of terrorism. The vigilance of an armed civilian and a border policeman put a quick end to the carnage. Since before the founding of the State of Israel, Arabs have been hired to do construction work. Many of the Arabs who live in Israel are descended from those who were attracted by jobs created by Jews resettling the land. In America, construction work has evolved into a solid skilled profession at which one may earn a very good living. Promoting the dignity of labour makes political, moral and economic good sense for those who want to maintain a Jewish presence in the Holy Land. As we now sadly see, it has implications for national security as well.
It is interesting to note that armed civilians as well as armed members of the military and border police were able to put a quick end to both bulldozer attacks. If not for their quick intervention, the casualties would have been much more extensive. Americans and European governments should be mindful of what Israel faces on a daily basis. Continued demands for "painful sacrifices" are nothing less than aiding and abetting Israel's sworn enemies.
The other lesson for Americans involves gun control, which should mean being able to hit one's target. Unfortunately, in many parts of America, law abiding citizens have to run a bureaucratic gauntlet to secure a legal firearm. The Virginia Tech Massacre as well as the Christian and Newsom murders are cases where armed civilians might well have put an end to tragic episodes in their early moments . In many American cities, gun control laws embolden criminals, who know that the government is protecting them from the law abiding population.
America also suffers from short sightedness in its immigration policies. Greedy employers set wages on decent and honourable labour so low that only those who are sending remittances abroad would find the remuneration to be reasonable. Even computer programming jobs are being outsourced abroad. Naturally, we are eroding our tax base as we pit American and foreign workers against each other. The thoughtful planning that could develop poorer countries and raise their standard of living without hurting American workers does not interest greedy capitalists who are only interested in a quick buck. With the exception of Mexican extremists and some Arab immigrants, most of America's illegal immigrants are here to make money, and have no political agenda.Israel is in a fight for its life . It is clear that some workers hate Israel so strongly that they will sacrifice a good job if such sacrifice will kill Jews.
It is time for Israel to respect the dignity of all honest labour. Create a job you would not be ashamed to give your best friend. America and Israel are very close friends. We have even made very similar mistakes. For the sake of peace, security and prosperity,we should correct our mistakes as well.

In Defense of Freedom of Speech : Michael Savage on Autism

article on autism
another article on autism



vos iz neias/new-york-city-remarks-on-autism-kids-by-radio-show-stirs-anger-and-protest/




Michael Savage, the famous right wing talk show host has ignited a firestorm of criticism with his comments on autistic children. On his radio program, he has reportedly dismissed 99% of children with an autism diagnosis as "brats" and "morons". Predictably, there has been a chorus of calls for his resignation, with a demonstration planned today in front of WOR radio in New York City.
In fairness to my readers, I am presenting the You Tube recordings of Michael Savage's statements. One video sounds fairly simplistic and the other recording makes a plausible case that there has been overdiagnosis of autism. Debates about the suitability and frequency of autism diagnoses have been going on in medical circles for a long time. A concrete physical complaint such as a broken arm of strep infection can be diagnosed beyond a reasonable doubt. In such cases a medical treatment is fairly straight forward.
In the case of a psychological or behavioral condition, debates about cause and cure are less conclusive. In the case of milder diagnoses such as attention deficit disorder and hyperactivity, it can be argued that drugs are prescribed far too frequently. Certain types of students are less appreciated than others. Those who have listened to Savage are familiar with his opposition to Ritalin and support for alternative medicine. He is a strong advocate of exploring diet as a possible remedy to behavioral problems now treated with pills.
Michael Savage is an entertainer and a social critic. His adeptness at infuriating some of his audience is a part of his attraction. Bob Grant, who was also no stranger to controversy once said, "I don't care what people say about me as long as they say something."
Another attraction Savage holds for his audience is his willingness to focus on issues and fears that get banished to the sidelines of public discussion. Illegal immigration, outsourcing of American jobs and anti white racism are topics that are treated dismissively in the media mainstream and given serious attention on Savage Nation.
It would easily be possible to package a Savage Nation agenda in the style of National Public Radio. I am more interested in Savage's opinions and agenda than I am his style. I would love to see him do an NPR broadcast saying what he does in their format. But Savage is a showman and an entertainer. His attraction is his continued ability to shock in a time when we blush at little. He reminds me a great deal of Lenny Bruce, who was also hounded in his day by opponents of free speech.
The medical profession is still changing its mind on basic questions. Current wisdom says that a baby should sleep on its back. In my younger years, pediatricians told us to put a sleeping baby on its stomach. It is hard not to wonder how much medical advice is the product of fashion and trends. I am sure that new facts and hypotheses will come to light concerning autism and other disorders.
I have had contact with autistic individuals and their families on a regular basis. In light of what I have seen, Savage's comments seem simplistic. I think he would probably qualify some of his more offensive statements if he met some of the people I have who suffer with and those who live with people who are diagnosed with autism.
When Media Media Matters , a liberal "media watchdog" gets involved with Savage's latest difficulties, it should be viewed in the light of their long standing opposition to Michael Savage. Before Michael Savage made his controversial remarks, Media Matters was not involved in advocacy for autistic individuals.Their mission has been to marshal public opinion against what they see as conservative misinformation. Liberal distortions of fact are not on their agenda. In fashioning the families of autistic children into another aggrieved constituency, Media Matters and other free speech opponents hope to be able to add to their ground troops in the war on Savage's first amendment rights.
Savage will probably stimulate valuable discussion about autism and other disorders. Those whose children suffer from physical or psychological maladies often develop expertise in their child's area of difficulty. New and alternative approaches are often sought out and eventually make their way sometimes into mainstream medicine. As offensive and self promoting as Savage might be , he is an advocate for questioning conventional wisdom about conventional medicine.
Questioning scientific as well as political orthodoxy is what has drives the growth of human knowledge. It would be a pity for the voice of Michael Savage to be silenced in this election year or at any other time. Freedom of speech is not the sole province of the bland and conventional. It belongs as much to those we consider obnoxious and repugnant. Silencing Savage creates a precedent that is injurious to the families of the autistic and to all of us. It is a bad idea.
Savage on Autism

Savage on autism (at greater length)