They finally got to me

I try not to take too much extreme rhetoric to heart. I feel the size of the electorate and the views of our populace tend to moderate extremism. That said, some extreme talk really infuriates me. Two colleagues sent me a copy of a letter this week purported to be written by a Fourth Grade teacher in Missouri. I could barely read the letter without seeing red.

The letter is highly critical of President Obama, which I do not ordinarily mind. However this one derided Obama for bowing to the King of Saudi Arabia, for reaching out to Muslims, for allegedly saying that Americans provided aid to the world and doesn't Europe know how much we help rebuild them after WWII. A letter veiled in so called patriotism was nothing more than an extreme hate letter written by a teacher of our young minds, God help us.

Obviously this woman thinks that because we rebuilt the economies of France, Germany, Italy, but she left out Japan after WWII we should be viewed as some great savior country. The fact is we would not have had the tremendous economic expansion if we had not created overseas markets to take out goods. The real mistake we made was greed. Instead of listening to the people who had fashioned quality standards that made our military superior in WWII we took the attitude of get it out ASAP and damn the consequences so all kinds of quality procedures that had been built into the military procurement methods were abandoned. We produced goods, but even in our own country the quality image of our manufactures became a joke.

In the meantime countries who had long histories of craftsmanship and quality, plus Japan who learned from the Americans who had helped establish the quality procedures during the war listened and learned and eventually took markets away from us. We founded the electronics industry, it went offshore. We founded mass production of automobiles, we allowed offshore competition to make huge inroads into our auto industry until it is on the verge of collapse today. Our position was here, these are goods made by the great and wonderful U.S. Take them, pay us, and bow to our superiority. It didn't take long until they shoved our superiority up our ass.

This woman goes on to criticize Obama for bowing to a Saudi King. It could've been a head nod. Regardless, it seems to me that we need to reach out to someone in the Mideast. I've nodded my head in recognition of someone, even a slight bow is a sign of respect not subordination.

This woman then goes on to say how dare President Obama reach out to Muslims, doesn't he know that this country is founded on the Judeo-Christian ethic. There's an idea. First this country was founded on the principles of independence, independence to choose and act in a manner that we choose. People who came to this country also came to escape religious persecution, which means you have to freedom to practice any religion you choose. Now as to the idea that we were founded on the Judeo-Christian ethic, there a good idea. In the middle ages some of the worst atrocities and most cruel actions were initiated by good Christians trying to liberate Jeruselam. Our J-C Ethic allowed people to go to church on Sunday and bid at auction on slaves on Monday without batting an eye. Our J-C Ethic permited the wholesale slaughter of Native Americans and subjugated them so thoroughly they have not recovered to this day. Some hate crimes are committed by overzealous self-rightous defenders of the faith.

I do not agree with everything that President Obama is advocating. However, I do think it is time we reach out to our enemies. I think it is time to end the boycott of Cuba. I think it is time we actively pursue partnerships with our South American brothers. The economy is now global, our dependence on that global economy is very deep. We need to quit pursuing this holier than thou attitude and pursue friendship and building relationships with others in the world. There is that old saying, "Pride goeth before the Fall." That saying doesn't mean that pride disappears before the fall, it means that first come pride, then comes disaster. We can take pride in materials, pride in our materialism and stick it where the sun don't shine for all I care. I take pride in members of my family, my daughters, but I certainly don't think the sun rises and sets with them. This teacher in Missouri, if she really is a teacher should be fired before she inflicts any more self-rightous propaganda on her students.