Greetings from
The Publisher . . .
Stop the Slander of Mother Theresa,
Absurd Politics and Good ParentingIt was really a lot of fun taking in the “20 Years Later” event with Jeanne and Karl Anthony. I attended their Seaside event and really enjoyed his music and the fun they bring to the stage. There were many great songs and the way they flowed I couldn't help but entertain myself too—allowing my mind to take his lyrics on my own path. A mind is a terrible thing to waste.
I've been thinking lately about Iran-Iraq-Mother Theresa and Mahatma Gandhi. Several times recently in The Light Connection ( TLC ) people have mentioned Mother Theresa. Plus The Secret , which is getting a lot of attention, mentions her too.
I've heard a number of times that Mother Theresa said that she would never join an anti-war rally, but would join in a pro-peace rally. I wonder about that.
But first, how does that apply. For me it's a lot of fun to take principles we read in Science of Mind or see in The Secret and apply them where there is seemingly little room for principles—or even common sense—to politics and government.
Yes politics can have life and death consequences, but even so laughter is one of the ways human beings cope and relieve pressure, isn't it? We do that. This isn't about taking things lightly as much as seeing how we react and determining what is worth reacting to.
Isn't it'amusing to hear politicians describe themselves as fiscal conservatives while spending hundreds of billions of dollars?
Look at State's rights and government encroachment in our lives. For 50 years Republicans have embraced State's rights and want government out of our personal lives and bedrooms.
But there is no doubt the Patriot Act allows them to watch over us more closely and they seem also to have decided that bedrooms are much more interesting since gays have been discovered there.
How we operate on the world stage is even more inconsistent and mind-boggling. Remember years ago that we supplied rebels in Afghanistan with rockets that blew Russian helicopters out of the air? Most observers believe that those rocket launchers turned the tide against the Soviets and gave them their Vietnam. I wonder why the Soviets didn't talk about attacking us?
Isn't there a principle here somewhere? Do unto others or ‘don't be surprised when what goes around comes around' or something like that. It's okay for us, but not them, is wanting it both ways, isn't it?
Can our memories be so short, now that we accuse Iran of supplying terrorists with weapons? That's actually fairly'unbelievable, since Iran and the government we support in Iraq are both Shi'a Muslims. Sadham was Sunni and so are 90% of Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Syria. The Sunni surround Iran. Why would Iran destroy a potential ally—Iraq's new Shi'a-led government—when they won't even go on the Sunni side of the street?
Some say it's actually Iran's Ayatollah—not the Iranian government—who is giving weapons to—anyone who wants to use them against the US. Much is unclear.
One view is that accepting Iran into the world-trade community would require them to reform their society much more than we could reform it if we imposed changes forcefully. But the Administration appears to be building a case, and seems to think in terms of force and control even though Iran is much bigger than Iraq. We all know how things are going there.
I've read the so-called worst-case scenarios about what might happen and they're pretty arrogant. They warn of more chaos and lost lives, and stop there. They never consider the rest of the world's thoughts.
When the British lost their place as one of the world's top powers'they were a debtor nation still trying to impose its will on the world (in the Suez Canal). They weren't financially independent enough to have their way, any more, and their economy and people suffered for years after.
The debtor nation imposing its will now is the US. We may be cavalier and say we don't care what the world thinks, but imagine if the US came up with it's own proof (again) about what the bad guys are doing (again) without any outside verification (again) and took unilateral action this time against Iran.
What if the world said, “Wait, one mess is enough! Stop creating chaos!”—and then imposed trade sanctions against us/US?
Imagine a Wal-Mart with nothing from China to sell. That would soon affect all of us—dramatically—and it is a possible scenario. Right now, however, the Administration and the media are not even looking at what the world might think or do. We could be surprised.
Little by little most of the nations comprising the coalition supporting the US have brought their troops home. The British people want their troops home. The rumor is the Marx Bros. regime will soon recall all Freedonians.
We could go from having the whole world behind us and willing to support almost any thing we do (after 9/11), to discovering what ‘almost' includes.
So where does Karl Anthony and Mother Theresa fit into all this? Thank you for your patience. The purpose of mentioning the above is to suggest that this is a very important time with potentially huge consequences for all of us. How do we react, especially if we hold up Mother Theresa as a model to follow?
While I mention Karl's concert, I'm not implying he agrees with me. We haven't discussed it. His lyrics gave me some ideas and led my thoughts to Mother T. and war-protests.
His song One Prayer really says it. It goes, “If I had one prayer, I'd pray for people who hate. Maybe I'm out of my mind, or deep in my faith.”
[A video will be online soon. See”www.karlanthony.com]
So it's time to tell the truth about Mother Theresa. I think she's getting a bad rap these days for being a bliss-miss. She was fearless and an absolute bulldog. She'd get on the phone and call up businessmen and ask them for money—and like a bulldog, not let go. “Can you do better than that?” she'd ask. “You don't want to let the children down, do you?” Grown men would tremble when they heard she was calling.
She was tough and single-minded with a passion for those she served. She didn't have time for anti-war demonstrations. People needed help and she was clear about how she defined her purpose. Would she really have gone to a peace rally? I wonder. Remember that some people put flowers in gun barrels and told National Guardsman in riot gear that they loved them. Peacefully. Imagine that for a moment. What guts. What commitment. Mother T. wasn't there. She was following her passion, which was incredible.
And don't you suppose more than a few Brits thought of Gandhi's PROtests as ANTI-British?
Mother Theresa was a very confrontational person with a clear purpose—with love in her heart—and “deep in her faith” as One Prayer puts it.
Isn't that the difference? Where we come from? Yes! Pray for those who hate.
We get angry from time to time; maybe we should look at why—what the anger is telling us—rather that think we shouldn't be. We have emotions, better than them having us, right?
We are physical beings with bodies that need care.
We live on a planet where we are altering the environment enough to make it unlive-able.
We live in a society with a system of government that requires attention and participation.
We have spirits, however defined, that need to soar from time to time to express who we truly are.
We have a government that likes to leak ideas to see how people react. Invade Iran? Let's see what people say first.
And if we don't say anything, guess what's coming?
Is it possible to correct and direct—even scold—your children with love in your heart? People do every day. I think that's how Mother T. and Gandhi operated.
The point is, We have a representative form of government, which means We are the parents. If We don't step up now and correct the kids, they won't think they have any boundaries.
Have a great month,
Steve
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