Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Possibly the Worst...

...bumper sticker i have ever seen.

It said, "All I Ever Needed to Know About Islam I Learned on 9/11."

It made me angry and made me want to cry at the same time.

The answer is not to tar everyone of a certain group with the same brush, nor is it to answer hate with hate.

Will we ever learn better?  Somehow, i have to hope so, or i will give up in despair.

Meanwhile, there is Aseem Trivedi, and the firestorm around him, to give me some of that hope.

He is a cartoonist in India, and is known to be openly critical of the corruption he sees in Indian politics.  He as been arrested and charged with sedition for criticizing the government there.

The government is saying they aren't trying to stop free speech, but that he has gone too far by insulting national symbols.

The rally behind the cartoonist is growing, with people upset with what they see as the government's latest attempt to silence the growing anti-corruption movement.

Mr. Trivedi has refused to ask for bail, saying that if pointing out corruption brands him a traitor, he is happy to be described as one.

Good for him.


In totally different news, this is being composed on my aging, ailing laptop, Ol' Bessy.  She is probably around 8 years old, a Toshiba, big, heavy, and prone to overheating easily.  Why do i mention this?

Because Bill Moggridge, who came up with the original design for the laptop -- a device whose screen display folds down over its keyboard -- has died of cancer at the age of 69.

Rest in Peace, Bill Moggridge; you make my days easier with your genius creation.


Today is:

Day of Remembrance/Patriot Day -- US (all flags at half staff)

Discontinued Thoughts Exhibition -- Fairy Calendar

Eleven Days of Global Unity -- Day 1, Unity (sponsored by We, the World)

Emergency Number Day -- US

Fiesta Nacional de Cataluna -- Catalonia, Spain (National Day of Catalonia)

Husker Harvest Days -- Grand Island, NE, US (the largest irrigated working ag show on a permanent site in the US; through Thursday)

Jinnah Day -- Pakistan (Founder's Day)

Kentucky Bourbon Festival -- Bardstown, KY, US (self explanatory; through Sunday)

Libraries Remember Day -- encouraging libraries, which preserve knowledge and heritage, promote tolerance, and represent all that is the antithesis to terrorism, to remain open the entire 24 hours of this day as symbol of freedom, tolerance, and hope

Make Your Bed Day -- make your mom happy!

National Day of Catalona -- Catalona

National Day of Service and Remembrance -- US

National Hot Cross Buns Day

Nayrouz -- Coptic Orthodox Church (Coptic new year and day of confessors) related observances
     Enkutatash -- Ethiopia
     Keddus Johannes -- Eritrea (a/k/a Geez New Year)

No News is Good News Day

Queen Paola's Birthday -- Belgium (an official flag day)

Sacrifice to Zeus Epoptes -- Ancient Greek Calendar (date approximate)

St. Sperandea's`Day (Patron of Cingoli, Italy)

St. Vincent of Leon' Day (Patron of Cercemaggiore, Italy)

Teacher's Day -- Argentina


Anniversaries Today:

Diocletian New Year

Remembrance of 9/11/2001


Birthdays Today:

Harry Connick, Jr. 1967
Kristy McNichol, 1962
Lola Falana, 1943
Tom Dreesen, 1942
Brian DePalma, 1940
Paul "Bear" Bryant, 1913
D.H. Lawrence, 1885
O. Henry, 1862


Today in History:

Battle of Teutoburg Forest ends, 9
Michimalonko leads indigenous warriors to attack and destroy Santiago, Chile, 1541
Alexander Hamilton is appointed first US Secretary of the Treasury, 1789
The Hope Diamond is stolen along with other French crown jewels when six men break into the house used to store them, 1792
Stephen Foster's well-known song, Oh! Susanna, is first performed at a saloon in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1847
Jenny Lind, the "Swedish Nightingale", gives her first US concert, 1850
The Olympia Columbian becomes the first newspaper published north of the Columbia River, 1852
The postal mail chute is patented by James Cutler, 1883
Mahatma Gandhi coins the term "Satyagraha" to characterize the Non-Violence movement in South Africa, 1906
The Quebec Bridge's central span collapses, killing 11, 1916
Hurricane Carla strikes the Texas coast as a Category 4 hurricane, the second strongest storm ever to hit the state, 1961
U.S. President Jimmy Carter, President Anwar Sadat of Egypt, and Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel meet at Camp David and agree on the Camp David Accords, 1978
Hungary announces that East German refugees there are free to leave for West Germany, 1989
Hurricane Iniki, one of the most damaging hurricanes in United States history, devastates Hawaii, especially the islands of Kauai and Oahu, 1992
September 11 terrorist attacks on the US, 2001
The State of Israel claims completion for its unilateral disengagement from the Gaza Strip, 2005
Russia tests the largest conventional weapon ever, the Father of all bombs, 2007

4 comments:

  1. I dont know.
    the older I get the more I wonder if we ever will.
    (thinks about the current hatefilled political campaining going on)

    ReplyDelete
  2. This reminds me of a similar moment I had during the first Gulf War. I saw a bumper sticker that said
    "Kick Hussein's A**, We Want Cheaper Gas"

    Charis

    ReplyDelete
  3. Bumper stickers like that are just ignorant. The scary thing is when you see more than a small amount of that ignorance around. Some of the stuff coming out of politicians qualifies

    ReplyDelete
  4. Miz, i don't know that we will ever get any better, but i think we have to keep trying.

    Charis, i'll put that one in second place.

    Jenny, you are right, the ignorance and hate mongering from politicians scares me.

    ReplyDelete

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