A spiritual solution
A gun did not kill 17 people in Parkland, Fla. A troubled young person and a culture and a social system was and is responsible for this and the many tragedies which we witness each day. We witness the manipulation and misdirection of our youth, whose innate desire to challenge evil is used to further political and social objectives, rather than addressing the root cause of our malaise. We present fame and fortune as the goals of being a successful person, ignoring and denying the development of our spiritual nature as the true definition of a human person and experience. We have uprooted the valuing of noble achievement, predicated on the Law of Love, in which we witness the dignity and worth of each and every person and accept our responsibility for loving and helping our neighbor. We allow ourselves to be conditioned to ignore the teaching of random acts of kindness and the value of a kind word or smile offered to a stranger as the center of our activity as a human being. Instead of helping our youth and ourselves to pause and appreciate that so many tragedies can be avoided, and a society and self raised to great achievement, we allow our attention to be conditioned to false narratives and definitions of self and events. We need to return our educational systems and parenting to focusing on the spiritual as well as the material nature of the art of being human and engage each other in conversations and loving experiences. Perhaps then we can help and save alienated individuals from the evil acts to which they turn.
Paul Jankiewicz, Ph.D.
Ulster Park
‘Yes — you can’
I have a dream: I’m in a tunnel, and spot FDR, Yeats and Conrad in the dark, commiserating.
As often these doomsdays, I’m martini-numbed; and, thus emboldened, I wobble over to humor the men out of their pain. (I’m feeling no pain — or less than usual, anyway.) I hear:
FDR: “November 8, 2016 — a date which will live in infamy!”
Yeats: “Things fall apart—the center cannot hold! Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world!”
Conrad: “The horror! THE HORROR!”
The men are resolutely, miserably dry-eyed — entombed by unshed tears, exactly as I have been since that infamous date. I ache for them to fully let go: to inspire with not only impassioned words, but with tears, and maybe even an embrace, enfolding all of us.
Instead, they shut their eyes against the tears.
Suddenly, Paul Revere gallops in on horseback, bearing Patrick Henry, who exhorts: “Now is the time for all good men to — ”
With the advantage of both evolution and insobriety, I interrupt, “And all good women! And, after Parkland, alas — but also, maybe, at last — all good young people!”
They nod. But, rather than determining to come to the aid of their country, and the world, each man frowns resignedly, says, “No — I can’t,” and trudges off alone.
Disconsolate, in an illuminated area I notice Florence Nightingale, nurturing wounded soldiers and many others and promising free health care forever. And Sojourner Truth, enrolling multitudes of black and immigrant voters.
Every eye shines with hope and determination.
I approach and ask, my voice nearly breaking: “I’ve let you be in my dream; if I can — please — be in yours … ?”
I wait tremulously. Then the two women smile, open their arms wide, pull me into an embrace, and together say: “Yes — you can.”
And, finally, the tears come.
Tom Cherwin
Saugerties
Faso deserves our support
I’d like to write this letter to show my appreciation and to express my approval of Congressman John Faso. I feel that Congressman Faso is doing a great job. I know people on the left hate our president but certainly there’s no reason to dislike our congressman. I hope he voted in favor of the tax reform act, which is giving all of us a tax break. My New York State taxes are a lot less than $10,000 a year.
On immigration, he is right on. We all have to obey the law. We can’t pick and choose which laws we will obey. In fact, immigration laws have not changed since Obama was president. Why should immigration laws not be enforced? What about those law-abiding immigrants who waited on line and did the right thing? Honor them!
Congressman Faso has voted to defend our country and increase the depleted military budget. Who could oppose that?
Remember, no other country has open borders. You can’t be a country unless you have a border/wall separating you from the adjoining country. I applaud Congressman Faso despite the organized attempt to discredit him. I encourage everyone to continue to support him and let’s keep Congress out of the hands of Nancy Pelosi and the extreme left.
Sean Pascoe
Kingston
Join the family! 
