Pagan news and views
Dear Editor:
Re: Man-made global warming fears reach hysterical pitch
Dear Mr. Rohrich,
I am flattered that you would give my email (and my website) such publicity over one little email. I would have thought the better course of action would be to simply ignore what was, admittedly, a puerile (although very cathartic) response to what I felt was another example of the Right having lost the plot entirely. Since you have chosen to respond that does give me pause to wonder - do you ever receive negative emails?
Lack of constructive criticism (and I do not imply for one second that my email fell into this category) can often lead one down erroneous paths. Unchecked Democratic ideologies lead to Communism. Unchecked Conservative ideologies lead to Fascism. With a Republican Congress, President and now Judiciary, the US is swinging way too far to the right and in the process it is alienating it’s friends and it’s own people.
I confess I have not kept up with Canadian politics, but I think you will find that your Tory party is more similar to the Clinton administration in ideology than it is to the Bush Administration, simply because Canada is a lot farther to the left to begin with. I frequently see the difference between a Socialist country and a Conservative one, traveling at annual intervals between the US and the U.K. Certainly, I can understand your conservative frustrations at some individuals choosing to live their lives sucking at the government teat. I have a friend in the U.K. who has been an out of work actor for the last twelve years, and there are times I would like to pummel him into the ground with a cricket bat. But he is happy, healthy and not a threat to others. The world is a better place for having him in it, because he does do volunteer work for the Sally Army. The UK is the better for the social system they have in place. I am sure Canada is the better for it. Certainly the ratio of gun owners to gun violence in Canada is a lot healthier than in the US.
Last year, Hurricane Katrina showed what can happen to a society - to people - when basic needs are not met. The right, ideologically, does not choose to meet those basic needs. The left does. The right does not cater to lazy people, the left does. Personally, I would rather have a society where the bottom rung is sitting around watching Oprah and dreaming of a better life, than have a society where the bottom rung is trying to take my life because it’s hungry and wants what I have.
Conservatism breeds isolationism and as a result the US is technologically 5-10 years behind Europe, which is itself 5 years behind Asia. Smart Roads, Smart TV, Smart Cars: these are all things that I have not seen in the US yet. When I told my UK friends about Tivo when it came out, they were very polite, and simply said “Oh yes, we’ve had that a while now”. Another thing the US appears to be missing? Smart People. The US education system has all but collapsed through lack of funding. This is not to imply that most Americans are stupid, but more and more of them are poorly educated.
The US is what will happen to Canada if the right wing is allowed to proceed unchecked. There is nothing wrong with holding opposing views. Opposing views mean that more voices get to be heard, and hopefully more truth emerges. I admit I have a hard time understanding the politics of exclusion, I have a problem with a society that measures itself by it’s apex and not it’s base. When you have a society of people that are not all the same, you can choose to either accommodate their differences or exclude those that do not share common elements with the majority. I would rather find a way to include such people, because that is how I would myself and my family to be treated. I want government to treat people the same. I do not want government to make them the same.
I see from your letter that you did a little research on me. Again, I’m flattered. You pointed at my religion, I assume because you could not point at my race, gender or sexual persuasion? What if I was a black lesbian Christian? Would you prefer that over a white straight male pagan?
I am not my religion. I am not my color, my gender or my race. I am what I do. I enter the world through my writings, as do you, apparently. That at least, we have in common. Perhaps that’s a good start.
Vaughan Wynne-Jones
