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Jun 30, 2002, 3:22am

Note: The following is a rant. No replies are necessary, I just need to
vent. :P

I just got back from a concert/fireworks show that was put together by
the Navy. The music was great and the fireworks were spectacular, but
what struck me about the event was that it didn't seem like anyone was
paying attention to it. All around me, people were yakking and yukking
it up while the band played all these patriotic songs and speakers gave
rousing speeches (though, somehow, the audience always knew when to clap
when each segment was over). It sometimes got so bad that you could
barely hear the music. But as soon as the fireworks show started,
everyone clammed up and just ooohed and aaaahed.

And it got me to thinking, has it really come down to this? Has this
(upcoming) day, which is supposed to celebrate our nation's freedoms and
liberties, been dumbed down to a fireworks show? Should we just call it
Fireworks Day and be done with it? To me, it shows an utter disrespect
for what this country stands for and a total disregard for the prices
that had to be paid for those ideals.

So, to all those blissfully ignorant people who seem to think that
life's a silver platter, allow me to remind you just how privileged you are.

Only in America can you:

- Watch explosions in the sky, and actually derive pleasure from the
experience.
- Whine about invasion of privacy while watching voyeuristic "reality"
shows.
- Sue a company over hot coffee... and win.
- Complain about the very government you help put into power.
- Think war is just an excuse to kill people.
- Become a billionaire in the porn industry.
- Worry about getting "too fat".
- Gorge on tons of food, then puke it back up to solve the problem.
- Refuse to vote because "the system doesn't work".
- Hole yourself up in a trailer park and try to annex yourself from the
country.
- Drop out of school because you think it's "too hard".
- Proclaim the leader of your nation to be a flaming moron simply
because he flubs a few lines in a speech.
- Demand a change in the Pledge of Allegiance simply because it contains
the word "God".
- Walk through the countryside, and have your biggest worry be stepping
in a puddle.
- Shove propaganda down other people's throats just to get your point
across.
- Demand compensation for something that happened over 300 years ago...
and get it.
- Complain about "Corporate America", but buy their products anyway.
- Get back at "Corporate America" by downloading it free off the Internet.
- Complain when the free stuff gets taken away.
- Witness a national tragedy, then repress and ignore it after 3 months
because you're "sick of it".
- Spit on the very military that fights every day of their lives just so
you can hawk that loogie.

Guess what, if you tried to do *any* of those things in *any* other
country, it would either be physically impossible, or you would be:

a) Shunned from society,
b) Thrown into prison, or
c) Dead.

And in many parts of the world, Option C seems to be the most popular
method of dealing with such acts.

So next time you marvel at those explosions in the sky, try and find the
time to ponder why it is you can stare at them in awe, rather than run
from them in fear. Try and figure out why people bother playing those
patriotic songs every year and why you would have to sit through them
just to watch a bunch of sparks fly.

Some will say it's a day of remembrance, but remembrance implies that we
have forgotten. We must NEVER forget where we came from and who we are,
especially in these troubling times. Because if we do, if we allow
ourselves to fall in the trap of getting too comfortable in our own
safety, then September 11th will look just like one of those
firecrackers in the sky compared to what might be visited upon us by a
world that would rather see us dead.

So on this Independence Day, don't just "remember"...

NEVER FORGET!

--
Goober King
Red, White, and Goober
rar1 at acsu.buffalo.edu

Jun 30, 2002, 2:03pm

> Guess what, if you tried to do *any* of those things in *any* other
> country, it would either be physically impossible, or you would be:

You can do that and more in Australia ... what's more, here, you can walk
down the road at night as a woman and be 1000 times less likely to get
raped, mugged or shot than you would there :-). The only time I was ever
mugged (attempted) was by a bunch of drunk American sailors ... and even I
was able to defend myself against them :-)

You could also do all those things in many other countries ... possibly even
thanks to a little help from the US in times gone past, possibly due to
political correctness nowadays and possibly because of the desire of the
human spirit to be free ...

Sorry if I stole some limelight from your 4th of July steam ... you've got a
great country indeed ... happy 4th :-)

Glitter

Jun 30, 2002, 2:57pm

ur right, their country is full of criminals

[View Quote]

Jul 1, 2002, 1:39am

1000 times more likely? That wouldn't be blatant exaggeration would it? Do
you do that often? And this bunch of American sailors you managed to fight
off? Are you sure they weren't already running the other way? BTW-you sure
couldn't "steal the limelight" from the 4th of July celebrations of any
patriotic American that I know :-)
[View Quote]

Jul 1, 2002, 9:51am

hehe its ok I wasnt trying to steal anything ... was actually looking at a
Time magazine article the other month on crime stats ... and while 1000
times was an exaggeration, I think it was something like 830x (just didnt
want to start a stats argument by saying something precise) or very similar.
I don't know their sample group or stat definitions ... was just responding
to GK's comment that you couldnt do the same thing anywhere else in the
world ... my comment was you can and safer and freer at the same time.
American is a wonderful place for sure ... I've been there myself and run
business from there ... I was just being nationalistic like you guys are ...
its a good trait for sure :)

Oh and they weren't running away .. a girlfriend and I were walking along
the beach and they demanded sex and we told them to go away. They grabbed
her and threw her in the water and demanded we have sex over and over. I'm
second dan ogashi karate and they were drunk as a skunk ... when they
grabbed me that discussion didnt last long :-). They were collected by Shore
Patrol and we allowed the ship to handle the matter rather than press
charges. I'm sure on the ship they will get teased to death about three big
strong american warriors being beaten up by a little australian gal LOL.
Would you like any more details or a copy of the initial charge sheet
perhaps? :-)

anyhow .. have a great 4th of July :)

Glitter

[View Quote]

Jul 1, 2002, 10:29am

makes me feel all the worse that it was americans who did that to you. and
worse still that yet another american (carolann) tried to make light of it,
and in such a mean way. we're not all like that, kitty. i'm glad you got
away, and hope you weren't hurt.

ambi

~~~ my name is ambi... and i'm an awaddict.rwx ~~~

[View Quote]

Jul 1, 2002, 10:40am

hey these guys had been stuck on a ship for several months and Perth is the
first western city they came in contact with for shoreleave .. I can
understand why they were a little "boisterous" ... didnt make it right mind
you ... I often wonder what would have happened if they had done it to
someone that couldnt defend herself. I'm positive that their actions do not
reflect the behaviours of the average American (I know they dont) ... even
though they are supposed to be ambassadors of their country. I'm sure
carolann wasnt making light of it .. just being humorous like me ... at
least I hope so :-)

Australia has America to thank to some of its freedoms, and I think American
could also learn alot from us regarding true freedom ... I believe our
countries' leaders only recently declared each other "best of friends" ...
personally I can't stand either of our leaders LOL!!

Glitter

[View Quote]

Jul 1, 2002, 7:52pm

Ambivalent,
Of course I wouldn't make light of something like that, just for the record.
I was referring back to my exaggeration question about Glitter Kitty's
previous statement (1000 times, changed to 830 times more likely to be a
victim of crime in the US than Australia). GK and I have talked and I sure
don't think she would have got that kind of an impression about this US (and
AW) citizen. If any woman (or lone man for that matter) tells me she fought
off a "bunch of US Sailors" I would question whether she was serious or
making a joke.and that's all I was doing. If she really did do that, then
although the situation was serious and the "sailors" were not worthy of the
their position, (unless it was flat on their back with her foot on their
chest), I applaud her ability to fend them off, but also can't help but
smile at the picture it puts in my head. Despite the fact that it had to be
traumatic at the time, I bet she's proud of that and even maybe loves to
tell the story. I would. But on the other hand I question the US/Australia
crime statistics and did a little research of my own. Most sites I found
either stated the opposite or had very comparable stats for our two
countries. (which is what I'd always believed) But then.I guess you see what
you want to see. Here are some URLs just for info, these are about 70% of
those I found, admittedly those that are most favorable, but most didn't
differ much. I've always wanted to go to Australia because it fascinates me
but then I've only read about the parts the fascinate me. I love my country
though and have had a decent, fear-free life here but as I said, you see
what you want to see.

http://www.geoffmetcalf.com/guncontrol_20010302.html

http://www.aic.gov.au/publications/tandi/ti23.pdf

http://www.minjust.nl/b_organ/wodc/publicaties/rapporten/pubrapp/ob187.htm

http://www.internationalinsurance.org/crimeburglary.htm

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=%2Fnews%2F2001%2F02%2F23%2Fnc
rim123.xml

http://www.civitas.org.uk/data/crimeMyths.php

[View Quote]

Jul 2, 2002, 2:00am

> Despite the fact that it had to be
> traumatic at the time, I bet she's proud of that and even maybe loves to
> tell the story. I would.

I have to admit yes this is true ... would have been a different scenario
had it turned out badly.

> But then.I guess you see what
> you want to see.

I dont make it a habit of going around studying crime statistics ... I read
it in a Time magazine article... I have no idea how they worked it out but I
do give them some reason of credibility. Its very easy to find stats to
support your case (thing is I wasnt looking for it like you) ... or even
argue an interpretation of the urls you posted (which is why I wish to avoid
stats arguements ... they just dont serve any purpose). We haven't had
massive scale race riots in this country. We havent had massive scale
terrorism (yet). We've had a couple of public shootings in the past but
absolutely nothing compared to yours. The majority of people in this country
have never even seen a gun in RL. Most cops (until more recently) never even
carried guns let alone wore them! We certainly have a smaller population
(about 10% of yours?) I'm sure there are very good and bad parts of both
countries and I really dont want to have a nationalism debate (I'll lose cos
I'm so outnumbered here :). I'm just very proud my country is soooooo safe
compared to anywhere else in the world (I've been pretty much everywhere in
the world). The news in our country is so uneventful we mostly get
international news instead and sports results. You could watch the news once
a week here and still not miss anything LOL

My post was in humour and congratulations for your 4th celebrations.

Glitter

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