Back from LA, and while I usually like to talk about shows I've seen,
records I've picked up, etc., I would like to give this update to all our
international friends as well as let those across the USA what's happening
in this jaded, leftist community;
On Friday night, I drove from Olympic Blvd., in West LA east to Hollywood.
(About a 45 minute drive). On literally EVERY streetcorner, there were
people holding flags, candles, singing, honking horns, etc. As the LA peeps
know, that drive takes in a pretty wide socio-economic spectrum, but
neighborhood to neighborhood, the response was the same.
I remember being particularly struck by an elderly African-American grandma,
standing all by herself on the sidewalk in the middle of the block, waving
her flag. On the radio, I heard a man-on-the-street interview with a young
Puerto Rican guy from New York, who said passionately, "They're coming into
my neighborhood, killing my people? I wanna go! I hope he sends ME!"
At a gift supply store in Hollywood, a line outside the door was about 400
deep, with every skin color represented in full effect. It took me awhile to
understand that the line was to buy flags.
I find the entire country has almost completely unified, as if the flames
from the WTC set off a giant arc that welded us all at together. It's like a
wave. I was even sitting in a hotel room this morning watching Hillary
Clinton and I said to myself, "This lady makes good sense." Now for a
Republican like me, that's shocking, and not a little bit frighting!
Heck, even that stupidly blatantly jingofied Lee Greenwood tune, "God Bless
the USA" had me fighting back tears... and that's just wrong!
The flip side. Driving back to Phoenix, AZ, (me, on a plane? not yet...), I
heard that in Mesa Arizona, a Hindu Indian who owned a gas station and wore
a Turban was shot to death by some ignorant/ terrorist / pig / thug / savage
who thought he looked Arab enough. This cretan is now in custody. A
candlelight vigil was attended by hundreds outside the man's store. 2
teenagers were quoted as saying that they went to his store 2 or 3 times a
day, and he was the nicest man they ever met.
Please, everyone, let's get the word out. Righteous anger is appropriate.
Racism, thuggery, bigotry, vigiliante zealotry... that's what we're fighting
against... No internment camps this time. Let's show the world that in the
USA, for all it's imperfections and nasty past, "you've got to admit it's
getting better... it's getting better all the time."
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Mon Sep 17 2001 - 07:56:15 CEST