For eight long years I railed against the Bush administration and his policies. I railed against the Republican controlled congress. I’m guilty. I sent e-mails and forwarded e-mails with the best of them. I laughed, joked and sent cartoons of Bush, Cheney and the rest. I’m guilty. What I did was to help divide our nation into US vs. THEM. I helped create the divisive climate we have today. And now that the “shoe is on the other foot”…I do not like it very much. Yes, dear brother, I am a hypocrite. I’m beginning to understand how much it hurts this country when we show a lack of respect for our ELECTED leaders. I do not regret that I disagreed with former President Bush and his policies, but I regret the lack of respect due the office of the President and the officers that served him. I’m guilty and I was wrong.
I am on the receiving end of a lot of FORWARDED e-mails making fun of President Obama and his policies. While I felt justified in attacking Bush and Cheney, I have never seen such a malicious campaign against a sitting President as that being waged against Obama. Many of these e-mails are flat out lies and misinformation and they have been reported as such by internet sites like www.snopes.com and www.factcheck.org yet they continue to be sent out as jokes or the absolute “truth” over and over again. Eventually people come to believe their veracity even though there is nothing to back them up.
It finally dawned on me that I was a part of this ongoing and escalating campaign of hate, disrespect and mistrust. It really hit home last week with the President of the United States of America being shouted at and called a “liar” during his address to Congress. It hit home when news reports of parents keeping their children home from school and school districts not allowing the broadcast of a speech on the importance of education by the President of the United States of America. It hit home when town hall meetings to discuss national healthcare reform turned into violent shouting matches by people with other agendas. It hit home right here in Texas when our own Governor made references to Texas seceding from the Union at several “Tea Parties” around the state. I had a hand in all of this with my own lack of respect.
As some of my friends and family know by now, I started attacking these divisive and untruthful e-mails with sarcasm and humor and doing my best to debunk those using internet fact checking sites. I admit that sometimes it was fun and some of the stuff was funny, but what I see happening to the mood of the nation is no longer… funny. If we do not ALL lower our voices and find a way to cooperate and get along, despite our differences, then I fear for the country I love. I see us tearing this country apart over partisan political issues and flat out racism. The one common denominator in all the shouting, e-mails, signs and protests is…FEAR. We continue to be a nation held hostage by our fears. It’s the FEAR that divides us into US and THEM.
Recently, I sent an e-mail to my family and friends to help ME deal with the volume of hateful lies and divisive material I have been getting online. Here is what I sent:
Dear Friends and Family,
I have been getting so many forwarded e-mails that are politically partisan and or thinly veiled racism passed off as jokes, cartoons and the absolute truth. I realize I can't stop them and the more I try, the more I get. So for my own sanity, if your e-mail or forwarded e-mail falls into this category, do not be surprised to receive this reply:
Dear Sender:
The nature of this e-mail offends me. When did America become so hateful, so divisive and so disrespectful? I want to believe that America is better than the petty partisanship and / or thinly disguised racism these e-mails often reflect. Do you really want to keep this going out into the Internet? Please think about it. By continuing to send these e-mails you reflect those destructive views and values on yourself.
"A house divided cannot stand." It is time to stop tearing down our country and our elected leaders and begin to come together with respect, cooperation, dialogue, healing and get things done. We have much to do. Let us roll up our sleeves and get to work. America deserves better than this. I hope you agree.
Food for THOUGHT.
Steve Ortman
San Antonio, Texas
America DOES deserve better than this. We ARE better than this. At the same time, I do not want to shy away from honest dialogue and discussion with my friends and family and others when we have different opinions. I, personally, cannot hide my head in the sand and will not. We do not all agree on all things. That’s life. But, we must, as a nation, find a way to deal with our differences and our fears. We…I must find a way to tone down the rhetoric and search out ways to cooperate and be more civil, if we are to get anything done.
I am sick to death of the extremists on the right and the left trying to destroy and discredit each other! We have much to do and things cannot wait. We all have a choice. We can continue with fear and divisiveness or we can choose to find ways to work together…with RESPECT and heal our Nation’s wounds. Each of us has a part to play.
Will you be a healer or a divider?
Food for THOUGHT…
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Texas, Gotta Love Us!
"We’re hearing from parents and grandparents that are not very happy. They really feel like it is political indoctrination," said Stephanie Klick, Tarrant County Republican Party chairwoman. "People don’t like this. I have heard from some families that are planning to keep their kids home."
– Star-Telegram, Ft. Worth, Texas 9/2/09
There is a ruckus in Texas that has parents of school children in some north Texas school districts up in arms. What could possibly drive these parents to threaten to pull their kids out of school? Are the schools planning to pass out Chairman Mao’s Little Red Book? Are the teachers reading from the Quran and asking students to recite their favorite passages? Are they openly discussing sex? What’s all the hub bub? Why are they so hot under the collar? It must be something pretty outrageous!
Well… it is outrageous. The President of the United States of America wants to address the students of this great nation. And what does he want to talk about? He wants to talk about the importance of education and staying school. Oh, the horror of it all! The audacity! To make matters worse, he wants to do this on the Internet via live streaming video, something very familiar to today’s youth. How dare he use this modern technology to talk to students! I just have this vision of parents, teachers and school superintendents rushing out to Radio Shack and Best Buy and Office Depot trying to purchase V-chips and programs to block internet content on the school computers lest the impressionable minds of Texas students be corrupted by…the President.
According to Arne Duncan, the President’s Secretary of Education, President Obama wants to address the students of America about “a shared responsibility and commitment on the part of students, parents and educators to ensure that every child in every school receives the best education possible so they can compete in the global economy for good jobs and live rewarding and productive lives as American citizens," Plug your ears Texas students and shout as loud as you can, “I can’t hear you!” How dare the President of the United States of America attempt such a blatant indoctrination of our youth! This is Texas.
• Texas is #49 in verbal SAT scores in the nation (493) and #46 in average math SAT scores (502).
• Texas is #36 in the nation in high school graduation rates (68%).
-from Texas State Comptroller, Susan Combs at website: http://www.window.state.tx.us/comptrol/wwstand/wws0512ed/
Well, our ever popular, conservative Governor Rick Perry, who’s running for another term, is talking about Texas seceding from the Union. Yes, you heard me right.
-from Associated Press 4/15/09
So God love our ever popular Governor Perry. If he ever gets off the fence and gets his act together, we might just secede in time to stop the President from filling our students with a lot of nonsense about the importance of education in America. We can only hope.
Food for THOUGHT…
– Star-Telegram, Ft. Worth, Texas 9/2/09
There is a ruckus in Texas that has parents of school children in some north Texas school districts up in arms. What could possibly drive these parents to threaten to pull their kids out of school? Are the schools planning to pass out Chairman Mao’s Little Red Book? Are the teachers reading from the Quran and asking students to recite their favorite passages? Are they openly discussing sex? What’s all the hub bub? Why are they so hot under the collar? It must be something pretty outrageous!
Well… it is outrageous. The President of the United States of America wants to address the students of this great nation. And what does he want to talk about? He wants to talk about the importance of education and staying school. Oh, the horror of it all! The audacity! To make matters worse, he wants to do this on the Internet via live streaming video, something very familiar to today’s youth. How dare he use this modern technology to talk to students! I just have this vision of parents, teachers and school superintendents rushing out to Radio Shack and Best Buy and Office Depot trying to purchase V-chips and programs to block internet content on the school computers lest the impressionable minds of Texas students be corrupted by…the President.
According to Arne Duncan, the President’s Secretary of Education, President Obama wants to address the students of America about “a shared responsibility and commitment on the part of students, parents and educators to ensure that every child in every school receives the best education possible so they can compete in the global economy for good jobs and live rewarding and productive lives as American citizens," Plug your ears Texas students and shout as loud as you can, “I can’t hear you!” How dare the President of the United States of America attempt such a blatant indoctrination of our youth! This is Texas.
• Texas is #49 in verbal SAT scores in the nation (493) and #46 in average math SAT scores (502).
• Texas is #36 in the nation in high school graduation rates (68%).
-from Texas State Comptroller, Susan Combs at website: http://www.window.state.tx.us/comptrol/wwstand/wws0512ed/
Well, our ever popular, conservative Governor Rick Perry, who’s running for another term, is talking about Texas seceding from the Union. Yes, you heard me right.
AUSTIN, Texas -- Texas Gov. Rick Perry fired up an anti-tax "tea party" Wednesday with his stance against the federal government and for states' rights as some in his U.S. flag-waving audience shouted, "Secede!" …
Perry called his supporters patriots. Later, answering news reporters' questions, Perry suggested Texans might at some point get so fed up they would want to secede from the union, though he said he sees no reason why Texas should do that…
“But Texas is a very unique place, and we're a pretty independent lot to boot."…
-from Associated Press 4/15/09
So God love our ever popular Governor Perry. If he ever gets off the fence and gets his act together, we might just secede in time to stop the President from filling our students with a lot of nonsense about the importance of education in America. We can only hope.
Food for THOUGHT…
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Time to Get Away
It has been a long, hot summer here in south Texas. After 50 some days of over 100 degrees and very little rain, I have watched my garden dry up and my lawn become dry patches of dirt. At some point in this exceptional drought, watering was no longer an option. It was money down the hole since the subsoil was just too dry. I did my best to save our potted plants on the patio, but the rest of my yard took a direct hit. Only my cactus and native plant gardens came through the dry heat intact. What a lesson that was. I have plans to plant more native stuff in the future.
No, this summer was very stressful indeed. I had a number of medical test done from a blood work up to my heart and then to my colon. Each test brought visions of unthinkable horrors and results. I’m not much for doctors, hospitals, and procedures. I just don’t like to be put into a flimsy gown with no back and then poked and prodded, run on a treadmill, hooked to a dozen wires or scanned in a dark room all the while wondering what they are going to find. Well, thankfully the results were pretty good. I still have visits with my ophthalmologist and a dentist, but things look good so far. It just took a lot out of me.
My boss at the Alamo retired this summer and I was asked to take on some additional responsibilities for my new boss. Our Alamo director also retired this summer and several of my coworkers were let go. We finally have a new management team at work now. We have brought some new people on board. The sadness of seeing some old friends leave is tempered with the new faces, new opportunities and new ways of doing things. We seem to be coming through the transition just fine, but again it has taken its toll on me.
My wife has been very busy with her art exhibits, teaching and a commission she received for a local church this summer. She spent long, hot days in her studio and traveling to see her mother and brother in Ft. Worth. In addition, we have both worked hard on restoring her home studio this summer. That involved painting, building a work table and mounting display boards on the walls. Most of the work is finished and it looks good, but we are both exhausted at the end of the day. We miss not being able to sit out and have our glass of wine in the evening because of the heat.
This month is our 9th anniversary and we decided to take a few days and get away from it all. Lisa went online and found a nice little cabin up in the Texas Hill Country. We are going to pack some wine, some food, our CD player and some DVD’s from the library and head out. We can sit out and read all day or go hiking in the nearby state park. It sounds almost too good to be true.
Our lives get so filled with things we HAVE to do that we often forget the things we would LIKE to do. Sometimes we just have to stop and smell the roses as we take stock and count our many blessings.
Food for THOUGHT…
No, this summer was very stressful indeed. I had a number of medical test done from a blood work up to my heart and then to my colon. Each test brought visions of unthinkable horrors and results. I’m not much for doctors, hospitals, and procedures. I just don’t like to be put into a flimsy gown with no back and then poked and prodded, run on a treadmill, hooked to a dozen wires or scanned in a dark room all the while wondering what they are going to find. Well, thankfully the results were pretty good. I still have visits with my ophthalmologist and a dentist, but things look good so far. It just took a lot out of me.
My boss at the Alamo retired this summer and I was asked to take on some additional responsibilities for my new boss. Our Alamo director also retired this summer and several of my coworkers were let go. We finally have a new management team at work now. We have brought some new people on board. The sadness of seeing some old friends leave is tempered with the new faces, new opportunities and new ways of doing things. We seem to be coming through the transition just fine, but again it has taken its toll on me.
My wife has been very busy with her art exhibits, teaching and a commission she received for a local church this summer. She spent long, hot days in her studio and traveling to see her mother and brother in Ft. Worth. In addition, we have both worked hard on restoring her home studio this summer. That involved painting, building a work table and mounting display boards on the walls. Most of the work is finished and it looks good, but we are both exhausted at the end of the day. We miss not being able to sit out and have our glass of wine in the evening because of the heat.
This month is our 9th anniversary and we decided to take a few days and get away from it all. Lisa went online and found a nice little cabin up in the Texas Hill Country. We are going to pack some wine, some food, our CD player and some DVD’s from the library and head out. We can sit out and read all day or go hiking in the nearby state park. It sounds almost too good to be true.
Our lives get so filled with things we HAVE to do that we often forget the things we would LIKE to do. Sometimes we just have to stop and smell the roses as we take stock and count our many blessings.
Food for THOUGHT…
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