Wow.

I woke up to one virulent nastygram this morning! That happens on occasion here, especially when I state opinions about US politics. The "love it or leave it" folks come out of the woodwork.

The writer implied (again - it's getting dull) that as a cultural dissident in this country, I have no right to complain about politics. I've made it clear in the writer's mind that I "hate" this country and everything it stands for. There was all kinds of talk about loyalty, duty, patriotism and the fact that I have forfeited my right to say a word! He ended with "try doing and saying the things you do and say in your beloved Thailand. See where it will get you."

It was a long nastygram. Several hundred words. I'll give the writer this much: he was articulate. He didn't use a bunch of filthy language. Most of the nastygrams I get are written in all caps with really stupid grammatical errors. They're full of vulgarity. Usually they are unsigned. This guy signed his name and gave me his email address. For that reason alone, I will probably reply to him.

I try to appreciate the nastygrams as much as the praise. After all, it is someone taking the time to share an opinion with me and that in itself has value.

But let me address this "I have no right..." issue. I do have a right. For several reasons.

I live on this planet. At least for now. I may be getting old but haven't gone to the Other Side yet. What the US does affects the rest of the world. Look at any country in the world and tell me it's not impacted by activities, political and geopolitical, of the US. I will never fall back on the "I was born here" argument because I think it's cheesy and has no substance. The fact is that we are all stuck on this planet together, for better and for worse.
Secondly - and perhaps most importantly - my history has included all sorts of activities which I believe will make the US a better place for everyone - in the US and without. If I didn't care about American people, there are plenty of other things I could have done with my time. I could have gone shopping more, partied more and feathered my own nest for the past 30+ years. I could have used that energy to my benefit only. That would have been praised quite highly in this culture. After all, I would have been (as my macroeconomics instructor in college said) "looking out for my own self-interest and maximizing my own potential".

Huzzah!

I've seen a lot of changes in the landscape over the past thirty years. From peaceful protests in the early 70s to protests now that are met with excessive police presence, arrests and violence. Watching the alternative press cover the protests in St Paul is very frightening. (I might add that there's been very little coverage in the mainstream press - including MS-NBC, CNN and, of course, Fox.) I've seen people bullied into sitting it out because they're afraid for their jobs, their families and their physical well-being. People are afraid of speaking their minds on email, on blogs, on talk radio shows and in the press. All of this in the name of "The Patriot Act" which, if you choose to take the time to read it, I guarantee it will scare the hell out of you.

I am not afraid to speak my mind. Maybe I just have nothing to lose and perhaps the fire in my belly is just too strong. These things matter to me. People matter to me. The idea of any nation putting dangerous policies into place and exporting them all over the world scares the hell out of me and I'm going to speak up about it. I've spoken up about Sarah Palin because I believe she would be a disaster for this country. In a higher position, she'd be a disaster for the world. Anyone who would say the war in Iraq is "God's will" and pressure a librarian in Wasalla to ban certain books, firing her when she wouldn't comply, is someone to fear. Look at the fact that she may have used her position to get her sister's ex-husband fired from his job as a state trooper. She whined during her RNC speech about having to give POWs any rights. Is that someone who deserves power? I don't think so! She's a scary lady, one who makes John McCain look like a pussycat in comparison. I will continue to speak out about her.

So if anyone wants to disagree with me, please feel free. If anyone wants to challenge my ideas, please do. If anyone has an opinion or belief system that is different than mine, I want to hear about it. But don't ever tell me I "have no right" to speak up about US politics.

You're dead wrong!

~*

More nastygrams...

Wow, yesterday's post really generated some interesting nastygrams. They were not particularly creative, nor well-written. There's another thing I've noticed that strikes me as odd.

They all came during the night.

I was home all day yesterday and not a single nastygram came in while I was awake.

As soon as the screensaver came on, they started pouring in. There seems to have been a cluster of them between 1.00 am and 3.00 am.

This led me to wonder about something. Why is it that people write nastygrams in the night? Is there something about the safety of the dark that allows us to reveal the uglier side of ourselves? Maybe it's just the idea that there can be no immediate response, no dialogue?

Maybe there's something about the darkness and the small hours of the morning that allows us to think those negative thoughts more freely, knowing that no one will see our expression and no one will see our fingers flying across the keyboard, typing things we'd never say in person. In other words, there will be no consequences.

I'm not a fan of writing nastygrams to anyone. There are things I've read on blogs all over the internet that have irritated me, made me angry, things with which I disagree. If I disagree based on some fact, I might write a polite note to challenge the thinking, usually in the comments section. If something I read is just so foreign to my way of thinking that I find it repulsive, I just click away.

What would make you write a nastygram to someone ~ or would you?



Peace,


~Chani, who has been told in no uncertain terms to take my "ugly, fat ass" to Thailand, a country which, after all, truly deserves me. :)

Answering my nastygrams....

I don't know how many other bloggers wake up in the morning to nastygrams but I do occasionally. It's not very often. I wake up to email from an anonymous account by an anonymous person whom I have upset in some manner.

These messages aren't the same as those who write and challenge something I have to say. Those are great and I don't mind them at all. In fact, I welcome them. The nastygrams are those notes that come, written at times in all caps, usually less than two lines and are generally angry.

This one stands out:

"You will never be Thai, no matter what you say and no matter how hard you try!"

This particular note came from someone in Thailand. I traced the email and it was sent through TOT's servers.

My response would be this:

I am fully aware that I will never be racially Thai. My heritage is British. I am Caucasian. I've never been good at caring about race or DNA. It's the old "content of his character" thing. Bites me every time.

I believe strongly that all people eventually find what makes best sense to them, what blends with personal values and inclinations. That could be Thai for me and British for the writer. Someone else will have another affinity. Overall, that is the purpose for all of us, the purpose of life itself. We explore. We discover. We learn. We make choices. When we find ourselves at odds morally with our culture of origin, we might try to use the system to change those things. Or we find something else. People move all over the world to find a place and way of life that brings them to peace. Maybe that is what the Biblical passage of John 14:2 means. "In my father's house, there are many mansions."

I think the real concern of the writer, if I can make a wild guess, is whether I am honoring the culture or whether I am using it as a personal "niche", something to stand out as "cute" or "different". Maybe he is concerned that I don't understand or respect the depth of thousands of years of history or results of thousands of years of life wisdom gained through hardship.

While I am not a professional historian, I understand as well as I can. Part of my ongoing process is continual learning. I can assure the writer that I honor the culture very much ~ and I respect those who came before me and created it.

I also understand that there is no paradise here on earth. No place is perfect.

The woman who cuts my hair is Cambodian. While she cuts and colors, we talk. She told me a story from her own background. When she was young, she and her family were moved to a refugee camp in Thailand. During that time, she and her sister remember rapes and torture committed by Thai guards. I have no reason to believe she is lying. There is enough documentation to back up her claims.

That is something that is unacceptable, regardless of culture and history. The continued mistreatment of Burmese refugees in Northern Thailand is equally unacceptable and the guards and government officials who approve or engage in the behavior should be tried before an international court and be brought to justice. Period.

Thailand deserves a good international weenie-wacking for being so lax when it comes to the sex trade and human trafficking.

And we won't even go into the drug smuggling.

So, yes, I recognize that Thailand has issues. And I recognize that those who engage in the behavior use the social mores and culture of the country to justify and rationalize their actions.

I believe as we age, we become less of a "purist" and more realistic. We cull out the good, try to do what we can about the bad and life goes on. Choosing a way of life is a multi-dimensional process and we begin to understand that fundamentalism of any flavor rarely works because life itself is messy and complex.

My choice of Thai culture was not entirely intellectual. That was only part of it. It was also experiential. It is based on personal experience and an internal compatibility. In that regard, it's not unlike finding a wife or a husband. We accept that no one is perfect and nothing will meet our needs or desires 100%. We accept the bad with the good and do the best we can. We make our peace.

Peace,


~Chani