Ireland
Current mood: contemplative

Normally I don't get social-political on these pages. But now I feel I have to.

Under my lists of heroes, I have the name of Bobby Sands. Most people outside of Ireland under the age of 30 probably don't know who is he. I highly recommend you check him out on the web.

After someone saw this, I received a very nasty e mail from someone who wanted to know how I could admire a murdering terrorist. Of course their words were not as polite.

I started to ignore it and then decided not to.

To begin with, I am not Catholic. I have problems with the Catholic Church stand on some issues. That said, please understand I also have disagreements with the church I was raised in. I walked out of the church house doors when I was 18. I never returned to what I was raised in. The only church I have ever been comfortable and happy in is the Congregationalist. My mother still believes I am headed for Hell because of that.

I am not the most political being on the planet. I do vote cause if you don't vote you don't have a right to bitch when things do not go the way you want. I have been involved in my political causes over the years, including marching, running for public office, signing petitions and calling the public number of the White House where one may speak to a live person to rant and rave. I do write my representatives and when my kids were in school was very active in the education system where we lived. I fully expect if the President ever gets within 25-50 miles of where I live, I will be one of those people the Secret Service interviews.

My family votes Democratic and Republican. We disagree on issues, people, taxes, etc. That is our right as guaranteed by law, tradition, and plain old ornery attitude that most Americans have when it comes to government but rarely admit to.

American politics are dirty, sneaky, underhanded, conniving and we love it that way.
Yes, I am an American and love my country very much. Dirty laundry, social problems, etc aside, I am proud to be a citizen of the United States,

I'm former military, USMC, and spent several years as a civilian worker in law enforcement. I have been a nurse, clerk, customer service rep so I can honestly say I have dealt with a diverse spectrum of people.

I was taught to observe and listen not only to what was being said, but to hear what wasn't being said.

I've seen the worst and best people people can be in stress situations.

I watched the Vietnam protests and riots. I lived through the Civil Rights movement and the Womens movement. Have the problems been solved? No, but there are women in high places of power in this country that 20 years ago never stood a chance. Ask Condolezza Rice, not only a woman but a minority woman. In January, an African American will become the leader of my country. A descendant of abused and mistreated people has risen to the highest position of power one may attain in the US.

Being a child of the 60's and 70's HAS made a strong impression on me and helped to define who I am.

Am I perfect? No. I have my faults and prejudices that I see every time I look in the mirror. I can be arrogant, have a nasty temper as many people who have been on the receiving end of it will be glad to tell you, when my heels are dug in it might take an act of God to move me. I am not always a nice person. Period.

I have had to fight the prejudices that I was taught and raised with. Do I succeed? Not all the time, but I do try to work on them.

Now that one has an idea of where I am coming from, I'll get back to my response to the nastygram I got.

I do not attempt to say I understand the country of my mother's ancestors. The problems there run centuries deep, crossing all lines, social and economic. I personally feel the hatred runs too deep for the problems to be solved in my lifetime, my childrens or my grandsons. I sincerely hope I am wrong about that.

My best friend and I have decided to visit Ireland next September. It is a birthday to myself from myself. I've always wanted to go there because being of Irish descent was a great source of pride for my grandmother (She was a McKinney McClure), but also my mother.

In preparation for that trip, I decided to begin brushing up on Ireland's history, traditions, and people. Like most Americans, the 'Troubles' were not something I was very familiar with. They were not widely reported in the press here at any great length for a long time, and quite honestly I don't recall the press being concerned. What coverage we did get seemed to focus on the violence and not the underlying causes. What most of us knew at that time was Ireland was a place to avoid.

So being the netaholic and bookworm I am, I began reading and hunting the web.  What I found left me shocked. I was appalled at how terrible the violence was, but not as to what I came to see as the underlying causes.

I attempted to contact people on different sides to get their viewpoints. Reading them is one thing, talking is another. I tried to reach Protestant websites and received no answer. I tried to join an IRA forum and was politely declined.

Religions, economics and power over others has long been ways for people to get and maintain control over others. It's a sad thing, but so very human. From what I have been able to find, these have been used against Irish society as a whole for centuries, by the English.

A people whose faith was outlawed along with their language and customs, whose economy has been used to keep them under control, and who had all political power stripped from them was bound to fight back. Human nature will not allow us to do otherwise. Look at the history of any nation and you will find people fighting for equality. It's awful that it's still continuing around the world, but it's a fact of life.

From what I've read, both peaceful and violent attempts were made over the centuries
to address the problem. And yes, there were problems. Instead of attempting to try to take care of the issues, a minority was even more dehumanized by official edicts in Northern Ireland.

To the e mail writer:
Interment was wrong. If this had been happening in England to Anglicans, would you still believe it to have been acceptable?

Denying people jobs, better housing, the right to vote because they have a different belief system than yours is wrong. No argument you can make will ever support the right to do these things.

Forcing people out of their homes, and jobs in some cases is morally corrupt. Again, no one can make a reasonable justification for this.

I was taught God is no respecter of person's meaning we are all loved equally. For people to set themselves up as judges over others scare me. That is an arrogance that looks as if you are setting yourself above God himself and I believe that is an arrogance that you will have to answer to.

I abhor violence. I know that may sound strange considering some of my employment record, but it's true. Violence accomplishes little most of the time, except more violence and a loss of believe in your cause. My opinion only.

That said, I can understand how violence erupted. You can only push people so far before they respond. England brought these problems on herself, fully abetted by the RUC, the British Army, and those in authority.

Violence, to me, is never an answer, but sometimes it seems to be the only language some people can understand. Did it get out of hand? YES, on all sides of any issue. All who participated share blame in the death that occurred.

I am not defending the IRA, but I am defending my choice.

As for Bobby Sands, yes I do admire him. I don't admire any violence he was involved in but I do admire his willingness to not only say what he believed, but carry through on his convictions. The man took an stand, something to few of us are willing to do, and proved his belief in his cause. How can one not respect that?

Many of us say we believe this, that or the other, but when push comes to shove the majority back down. This man didn't. Maybe if more people in this world followed through on their words, the world would be a better place.

Would I have the courage to follow through on mine, even if it meant my dying? I don't know. I would love to say yes, but the truth is none of us do until we are in that situation. I don't know if 'the call' will ever come to me. I hope I have that strength. I would like to think I do. I just don't know if I am that strong.

My question to you, e mail writer, is Do you? Again, easy to say yes, but your words prove that wrong.

I am going to visit the country of my grandmother next year. I will do all the touristy stuff, but will talk to anyone I meet. I'm going to eat the food, meet the people, visit places of history and try to learn more about who I am.

As for the writer of the e mail. Please feel free to respond. My email address is narabitzdottycrucis@yahoo.com.

Goodnight everyone.