Act of Insanity? Act of Protest? A Wasted Act?
Tuesday, November 28, 2006 | Original Musings by
Jen
Suicide 99.9% of the time is an act of mental illness, not a political statement (one exception is the Buddhist Monk who lit himself on fire in 1963 to protest the Vietnam War).
Earlier this month, a Chicago man, Malachi Ritscher, also tried to make an anti-war statement by burning himself alive on a busy Chicago highway.
No one stopped.
It was not immediately apparent why.
People were more annoyed with the traffic-delay than the reality of the man burning alive by the road.
None of the mainstream media outlets carried the story.
His family has not been on Larry King or Bill O'Reily.
In case you hadn't seen this story, you can check it out:
The Baltimore Sun ran an article.
The Chicago Sun Times called his death as a "waste".
I prefer Yahoo's slightly different take on the incident.
I may not agree with his choice of how he decided to protest the war, but I think that the fact that it went unnoticed in the media is an indication of a bigger problem in our society.
More people vote for American Idol than the American President.
I wonder if there are more subscribers to People Magazine than the NYTimes (or name your fav national newspaper).
More people watched the finale of Dancing with the Stars than voted in the November elections.
Ritscher's suicide is one of only nine reported incidents of self-immolation performed as an act of protest in American history.
He video-taped himself, but since it was not "network worthy", is it really news? I mean, after all, TomKat might be pregnant again, Madonna wants another baby, and Brad and Angelina might also be showing "the bump". Fantasy football stats need to be updated. Dancing with the Stars was still running and Jerry Springer still in the running. Also, let's not also forget, Kid Rock and Pam Anderson are getting divorced.
With all of that going on..... we really don't have time for a story such a Rischer's, do we?
Malachi Ritscher wanted to make a statement. But what good is a statement, if no one stops to listen?
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I Thought Christmas was the Season of Peace
Unless of course you're talking about Christmas with my family..... then we put the "fun" in dysfunctional. :)
Even if you're not Christian, this season is a good time for reflection, forgiveness, and random acts of kindness (that should carried out through the year). Honestly, Christmas should be a state of mind, not a date and not presents under the tree.
With that said, this article gets under my skin:
Sun Nov 26, 11:13 PM ET
DENVER - A homeowners association in southwestern Colorado has threatened to fine a resident $25 a day until she removes a Christmas wreath with a peace sign that some say is an anti-Iraq war protest or a symbol of Satan.
Some residents who have complained have children serving in Iraq, said Bob Kearns, president of the Loma Linda Homeowners Association in Pagosa Springs. He said some residents have also believed it was a symbol of Satan. Three or four residents complained, he said."Somebody could put up signs that say drop bombs on Iraq. If you let one go up you have to let them all go up," he said in a telephone interview Sunday.
Lisa Jensen said she wasn't thinking of the war when she hung the wreath. She said, "Peace is way bigger than not being at war. This is a spiritual thing."
Jensen, a past association president, calculates the fines will cost her about $1,000, and doubts they will be able to make her pay. But she said she's not going to take it down until after Christmas."Now that it has come to this I feel I can't get bullied," she said. "What if they don't like my Santa Claus."
The association in this 200-home subdivision 270 miles southwest of Denver has sent a letter to her saying that residents were offended by the sign and the board "will not allow signs, flags etc. that can be considered divisive."
The subdivision's rules say no signs, billboards or advertising are permitted without the consent of the architectural control committee.
Kearns ordered the committee to require Jensen to remove the wreath, but members refused after concluding that it was merely a seasonal symbol that didn't say anything. Kearns fired all five committee members.
Anti-Peace Story on Yahoo
Can someone please explain to be how this peace sign is more offensive than my neighbor's $200 snow-globe that is lit up all night long and his Christmas lights display puts shame to Clark Griswalds?
Cutting down a tree and putting it in your living room? Sounds like something a drunk would do... right after saying, " Here, hold my drink, this will be cool...."
Of course, we can't forget Church lady and all her wisdom..... Santa? Satan? You decide....
Speaking of Satan.... even if the peace sign was a sign of Satan (HUH????), this is America.... we're free to worship as we please.
If they make her take it down, I would make an effort to go around the subdivision and find all the popular (and well known) pagan symbols we use for Christmas, such as the Christmas tree, Elves, Mistletoe, etc. None of that non-Christian non-sense in my subdivision and certainly no international symbols of peace!!! How dare she?????
Seriously, people need to pull that stick out of their ass and worry about things that really flippin' matter.
My Uterus Feel Safer Already
Who needs family planning? Not Bush and certainly not his latest Bush appointee Dr. Eric Keroack to oversee the Title X funding for the US.
Dr. K is the medical director for a group called A Womens Concern in Boston. AWC according to their site.... "supports sexual abstinence until marriage, opposes contraception and does not distribute information promoting birth control at its six centers in eastern Massachusetts."
So, basically, the best person in the country to deal with issues of birth control and family planning according to the President, is a person who only believes married people should have sex and only if they want to have a baby, because they can't use birth control.
Thank you Mr. President. My uterus feels safer already.
Understand that it is not healthy, responsible sexual activity that Keroack is promoting. Sex for sex's sake is unwholesome in their book. I'm certain none of them have EVER participated in pre-martial sex or had affairs. We all know conservative, religious right folk don't do that.
People such as Dr. K see sex as a hedonistic and sinful flight from what they perceive as the real purpose of sex. What is being promoted is the idea that sex ought only to exist for married couples who share in God's plan.
"God's plan"? From what I can tell from this administration (which God himself condoned according to Bush) involves procreating for the sole purpose of increasing the numbers of people just like them: anti-science, anti-evolution, anti-choice, pro-war, pro-death-penalty, pro-grammed, and "Christian".
Why did I say "Christian" in quotes? In case you missed my sarcasm, it's because Bush and I might, just might, disagree on what Christians should stand for. I consider myself a Christian, and it amazes me the damage President Bush has done to the reputation and image of Christians. I want to stand up and scream and let people see that not all Christians are so, well, damn backwards.
As a side note in case you don't want to google: What is Title X? Here is a Link to the Office of Population Affairs. In short it is :
The Title X program also supports three key functions aimed at assisting clinics in responding to clients needs: (1) training for family planning clinic personnel through general training programs; (2) information dissemination and community-based education and outreach activities; and (3) data collection and research to improve the delivery of family planning services.
The program supports a nationwide network of approximately 4,600 clinics and provides reproductive health services to approximately 5 million persons each year.
Title X funds are critical to maintaining and operating clinics which ensure the availability of family planning services to low-income and uninsured individuals in the United States.
Each year, publicly subsidized family planning services help women avoid an estimated 1.3 million unintended pregnancies. Estimates also show that every public dollar spent for contraceptive services saves an average of $3 in Medicaid costs for pregnancy-related health care and for medical care of newborns.
In Memory of Jay Walter Rushton
Jay Walter Rushton
May 21, 1942 - Nov 18, 2006
Waiting is sometimes the hardest thing.
Waiting for the line to move quicker....
Waiting for your friend to get in town....
Waiting for the plane to take off...
Waiting for it to land....
Waiting for Xmas when you're a kid....
Waiting for it to be over when you're an adult....
Waiting for things to get better....
Waiting for a better time to do things...
Waiting for time to pass....
Waiting for things to pass....
Waiting for people to pass....
Waiting for that moment where you can say all the things you didn't say before it was too late...
Waiting to be ready to let go.....
Waiting for the feeling of not wanting to let go to pass....
Announcing Fay Zelda Felten
She was 3 weeks early, but healthy and happy!
This makes niece/nephew #7 (Angie has 3, Sarah has 3, and now Chris!) and I couldn't be happier and more proud for these two!
For my own amusement, pics of the newest niece:
Becky, Chris, and Fay (though I like the name Zelda!)
That red of a face can only mean one thing.....
My sister Sarah with the proud Mommy and baby
A smiling mom!
The sleeping duo
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