The Conservative Reader

Art Smith July 1st, 2008

It took me a few days to figure out I could talk about this story without referring to the AP article… fortunately, a local newspaper (The Hartford Courant) web site covered the story along with the video. I’ve had several people mention this story to me via email.

So, two cars are racing around and a gentleman gets hit by one of them. Pretty routine, happens all the time. What was unusual was the lack of any helpful response by the crowd.

So, what’s happening here? Why would a crowd of people just circle around or walk by someone clearly in need without coming close enough to even convey a sense of belonging to the same race?

Those in the community of Hartford, Connecticut are expressing regret and shame over this, and I’m glad they are bothered by it. But fundamentally, this is another reflection of the state of decline our society is in. Not so much because people are “bad” as much as people are just not accustomed to direct contact with strangers in general let alone getting close enough to actually aid someone in distress.

We are becoming more accustomed to teaching our children, and as a result ourselves, to stay far away from strangers. We are fearful of any stranger that is bleeding for any reason because we may become infected by some unknown disease. Knowing full well the types of situations people can find themselves in, we lack good “civilian” training in first aid, which was once considered essential.

And we’ve become more and more subtly accustomed to minding our own business. Because perhaps we’ll get sued for doing something wrong. Perhaps someone will retaliate against us for doing something to help their enemy.

Good Samaritan laws, according to the TortsProf Blog, provide some protection. In some areas, such laws actually require assistance be provided (from the Ex Post Blog):

…the type that exists in many countries (most notably, Canada) and that are becoming more prominent in the US today. Good Samaritan laws describe a legal requirement for citizens to assist people in distress, unless doing so would put them in harm’s way. Good Samaritan laws, in certain parts of the nation, actually refer to laws that require citizens to assist individuals who need help (think Massachusetts, a la Seinfeld series finale.)

It’s sad to think that we need laws that force people to behave in a manner that many yet (including myself) simply expect of others, and at one time was considered “normal”.

But normal is gone. Proper, essential, appropriate behaviors are no longer considered the default response for a growing segment of society.

I think the general uproar is good, the response in Hartford is appropriate, but what can we do to stem the tide? I fear little, but the point we must always see is that we cannot give up. Keep doing what is right.

I believe that Isaac Asimov was sort of a social prophet. If you’ve read his science fiction, you’ll find that he immersed himself in theories of social order, which he proposed in varying degrees in his Foundation Series, and others. Most relevant here would be his Robot Series, about a future where people on Earth live indoors, and colonists have seeded many worlds in space.

And one of those worlds, in the book “The Naked Sun‘, was a planet called Solaria where everyone is tended by robots, and no one has personal contact with any other human beings. Not physically. They do talk via holographic communications, but never in person. The society decayed severely (as depicted in a later work titled “Foundation and Earth“) over time and the Solarians eventually altered themselves genetically to become hermaphrodites (providing the ability to self-reproduce).

I’m just saying.

Tags: Always do good, Canada, Connecticut, Ex Post Blog, Foundation and Earth, Foundation Series, Good Samaritan Laws, Hartford Courant, Helping others, Hermaphrodites, Hit and Run, Isaac Asimov, Massachusetts, Robot Series, Solaria, The Naked Sun, TortsProf

• Featured , Humanity , society
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Art Smith May 27th, 2008

It’s interesting that Obama would pick a Nazi death camp upon which to error in either the retelling or fabricating of a story to try to make a point that is oddly detached from the actual story line. And then unleashes a bad case of irony as well.

What Obama said:

I had a uncle who was one of the, who was part of the first American troops to go into Auschwitz and liberate the concentration camps and the story in our family is that when he came home, he just went up into the attic and he didn’t leave the house for six months, right. Now obviously something had really affected him deeply but at that time there just weren’t the kinds of facilities to help somebody work through that kind of pain.

I can easily let any American off on not knowing Auschwitz was liberated by the Soviets. And regardless of whether Obama’s uncle showed up at any death camp, or even existed, is not terribly important to me today because ultimately Obama’s point would be that anyone who has had to experience PNDCD (Post Nazi Death Camp Disorder) should be given some consideration for relief and assistance.

Oh, wait. Are there more Nazi’s out there running death camps?

No, but evidently Obama is tying this into a current discussion around improving support for detecting and treating PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), which has more to do with the stresses of combat and the lingering effects that can have on some soldiers.

But that’s a different concern than soldiers (or anyone else for that matter) who are affected by the inhumanity of someone like Adolf Hitler. Anyone, even today, who sees what was done is going to be affected, in different ways, by the overwhelming pain of these atrocities. They’re both bad, and both can have a profound impact on people, but they’re not the same thing. It’s like telling a story about a family member who died when not using a seatbelt use to explain why we need helmet laws. Not quite the same thing.

Obama was incredibly clumsy on this one. Gets the facts wrong, then ties together the need to better address combat-related psych disorders with the pain of seeing the results of mass murders. I sympathize with where he’s going with this, but he’s bungling this.

Which leads me to an interesting piece of irony. To me.

The good senator has been battered a bit about comments related to entering into diplomatic talks with leaders of states that support terrorism, such as Iran, “without conditions”. It sounds like he would have nice conversations with people like Ahmadinejad in hopes they might back down from clearly aggressive activities intended to provoke, test, or simply proceed unabashedly on an agenda of violence and conquest. The argument that Obama represents a policy of appeasement is not only apt, it is generally consistent with the liberal mind-set of avoiding military confrontation at all costs. Unbelievable as it may seem, this is a bit of history that may well repeat itself some day. I pray it does not.

Here’s the irony: that so closely on the heals of vocal concerns about the potential of a faulty diplomatic policy toward terrorists(appeasement) , Obama invokes the name of a place that, more than any, rings the memory and demonstrates the length and depth of the pit of human depravity that can be unleashed as a result of such a careless, no, such a lazy and useless policy.

Auschwitz was the site of the murder of at least 1,500,000 people from all over Europe, mostly Jews. Millions more were murdered at other sites, but Auschwitz was the largest and was a key destination for prisoners from points throughout Europe.

I visited there a few years ago. I have not been the same since.

I didn’t spend six months in the attic. But the sight of thousands of children’s toys, people’s luggage, clothing, shoes and pots and pans, haunts me to this day. Mostly the toys. Confiscated from new arrivals and often sent to German families, these that remained were on display in the museum, along with thousands of other artifacts, including documents recording orders, lists, etc., retained as evidence of the horrific crimes committed during that awful time.

Instead of casually calling down the name of that place in Poland for political reasons, Obama should do what I think most people with means ought to do. Go there. Spend a day there. Read the evidence. See the artifacts. Listen to the voices of the past. Not to blame people like Arthur Neville Chamberlain, but to warn any that think they can negotiate with one like Hitler… to warn all of us for generations to come… that we would never forget what humans are capable of.

Auschwitz is actually 3 facilities, and Birkenau (aka Auschwitz II) was the largest and was the site where the large group exterminations were performed. At the back of the Birkenau camp, by the rubble of the crematoriums and gas chambers destroyed by the Germans as the Soviets marched on the camp, is an oddly shaped statue (picture below) and memorial plate and, as I recall, 17 other plates translated in the languages of all the people who were prisoners there. Innocent voices silenced shout loudly the message we must hear over and over again:

For ever let this place be a cry of despair and a warning to humanity, where the Nazis murdered about one and a half million men, women, and children, mainly Jews from various countries of Europe.

Auschwitz - Birkenau

1940 - 1945

Never again.

Iraqi Kurds.

Never again.

Darfur.

Never again.

Rwanda.

Never again.

Srebrenica (Bosnia).

Never again.

Where next?

Never again.

Tags: Appeasement, Arthur Neville Chamberlain, Auschwitz, Barack Obama, Birkenau, Bosnia, Darfur, Iraqi Kurds, Nazi Death Camp, Never again, Poland, PTSD, Rwanda, Srebrenica, WWII

• 2008 Presidential Election , Appeasement , Barack Obama , Humanity , Terrorism
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Thomas Laryea May 13th, 2008

As if the recent cyclone disaster in Myanmar wasn’t bad enough, now comes word of a 7.9 magnitute earthquake in China that has killed more than eight thousand people including many schoolchildren still buried under rubble over the weekend. This earthquake was even stronger than the Tangshan earthquake of 1976, which killed more than 240,000 people died and it is feared that the death toll could go far higher. The tremors from this quake shook buildings throughout China and were felt as far away as Thailand and Vietnam, according to interviews and reports in China’s state media.

Here in the United States, crews are searching for storm survivors from violent storms that have killed twenty-three people (at last count) in Missouri, Oklahoma and Georgia over the weekend.  In a statement issued Sunday as he left his ranch in Crawford, Tex., President Bush said the federal government would offer assistance to the states hit by the tornadoes.

“We send our prayers to those who lost their lives, the families of those who lost their lives,” Mr. Bush said. “And the federal government will be moving hard to help.”

In times like these, it is natural to feel helpless but I would urge you not to. Rather, I would suggest that you contact your local Red Cross or United Way to offer any help that you are able to. Remember, your “little” help, when combined with those of others like you, will go a long way inproviding relief for those that might need a hand up in their challenging moments. My thanks to you in advance for being charitable.

Update (Art):  Strong echo of Thomas’ comments.  It’s interesting to see while Myanmar has tried to keep the country closed in the aftermath of the disaster, China (historically fearful of outside interference) has been surprisingly candid and responsive to their needs and accepting of outside help.  Although Myanmar is starting to allow some into the country, I suspect it will be a slow trickle.  All of the situations Thomas mentioned are sad, and our hearts and prayers go out to those that have lost family and friends.  Links to help:

The American Red Cross

World Vision

Feed The Children

Evangelical Free Church Of America Myanmar Relief

Tags: China, Disasters, Evengelical Free Church of America, Feed The Children, Myanmar, Red Cross, World Vision

• Disasters , Humanity
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Art Smith May 1st, 2008

Mallory Holtman and Liz Wallace.  Two names I want to honor today.

Saturday created what became a special moment for me today.   I only heard this story today, and every time I’ve discussed it, it has touched my heart.

There’s nothing particularly smart about what was done.  Nothing particularly successful.

But it was powerful.  At least to me.  And successful in positively impacting many.

In a women’s college softball game, Sara Tucholsky of Western Oregon University (Div II), hit a beautiful over the fence 3-run homer (her first in high school or college play) against Central Washington.  At first base, Sara injured her knee so severely that (according to some reports) she could not even crawl.

The umpires ruled (evidently incorrectly) that if a pinch runner were put in, they would be safe at first… no home run.

So then, the first baseman (is that politically correct?) Mallory Holtman and Short Stop Liz Wallace (the opponents mind you) proceeded to carry Sara around the bases, stopping to lower her good leg to each base, and allowing her to get the home run.

Sara’s team went on to win the game 4-2 and Central Washington was eliminated from post-season play.

(Gulp)

There’s some amount of odd reaction to this, criticizing the Central Washington players for their actions as if they were traitors to their team and to everything our country stands for.

I believe in fighting to win and teaching our children to be competitive instead of teaching them that mediocre equals success.

But that’s not what this is about.

This is about embracing our humanity and recognizing that when one person hurts, we all (should) hurt.  When you hear the snap of a bone breaking, or see a mangled limb sitting at the wrong angle, I hope you feel a little bit of the pain that causes.  When you hear the anquished cry of a child in need, I hope your heart skips a beat.

I’m reminded of the stories of the front lines when enemy combatants in World War II exchanged brief kindness over Christmas, and even in contemporary fighting when there are brief ceasefires to allow families to take and bury their dead.  And negotiators who look for opportunities to give a little, and perhaps find a mutually successful plan.  And couples embroiled in stressful times during their marriage who when in opposition can put aside their need to be right for the sake of the other.  And parents who are overwhelmed with life but still have time to hug their child when they are sad or confused.

I love baseball, and yes, injuries happen and are part of the game.   And we should accept that.

But these young ladies put aside the competition and drive for victory which we cherish.  For just a few minutes.

And decided to make the needs of another a priority that day.

I’m glad they did.

Tags: Central Washington, Humanity, Knee Injury, Liz Wallace, Mallory Holtman, Sara Tucholsky, Softbase, Western Oregon University, WOU

• Feel Good , Humanity
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