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Wounds
NMB, Florida August 29, 2001 A.H. Schectman
THINKING ALLOWED
Essays on Issues, Ideas and Reflections on the Times. Published Now and
Then. Opinions Pro or Con Are Welcome.
WOUNDS
There are two kinds of WOUNDS that I wish to present in today's essay. One
is the kind acquired by my editor, Carol. She shows her kindness and
thoughtfulness in getting out of the way of hurrying people. They push her
aside in trying to get to the head of the line. She will, in almost every
case, make way. In so doing she cannot see the pitfalls and snags that lurk
in the places into which she steps to avoid making it difficult for these
others to get ahead of her. She quickly steps in the wrong place in the
wrong way and snags the back of her hand or her arm or leg and gets one of
her long lasting bruises or bleeding under the skin.
The second WOUND is the war that has been going on between two near
relatives in the Near East. These are the Jews in Israel (Hebrews) and
Palestinian Arabs (Muslims). The Israelis have arms supplied mostly by the
U.S. The Palestinians are supplied by the surrounding Muslim nations. The
Israelis have superiority in tanks and planes. So the war goes on with
"gunmen", "Intifada" fighters, "martyr children sacrificing themselves" and
a populace that calls for the destruction of their neighbor when it protects
itself from guerilla warfare. The Israelis have taken to "assassinate" those
responsible for attacks on its civilian population.
This WOUND is a big one. It results from the superior position Israel
happens to have because it is a democracy supported by other democracies.
The non-democratic fundamentalist countries surrounding it have made the
Palestinian people into weapons in order to make the entire Near East into
one dreadful WOUND. In the midst of this the American planes patrolling
Iraq airspace are a presence that most nearby countries applaud but hate
since America has become the protector of Israel while holding down Saddam
Hussein. WOUNDING Saddam is O.K. But..
There, I have said it again and have picked at that scab. I know that my
friends who disagree with me will pick at it for other reasons that oppose
what I have just said here. So be it and so it goes.
Carol's Evaluation: 7 out of 10.
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