Serious Thoughts

Moe serious thoughts and ideas

Counting Out America

/ Joe Broadmeadow / 3 Comments

First, it was Johnny can’t spell. Then Johnny can’t read. Now, Johnny can’t count. Why has education in America failed?

Recently, we stopped at one of those local farm stands to pick up some fresh vegetables. We’ve been going to this same stand for many years. It’s one of those family owned farms where generations of the family all work.

After picking out a few items, we placed them on the counter. The young, high-school aged girl gave us the price.  Seeing another item we wanted, we added that to the pile.

Instant panic appeared on the girl’s face. She looked at the collection of vegetables then told us her phone wasn’t working right and she couldn’t figure out the total.

Now, we’re not talking about very complicated math here. We’re talking adding $3.50 and $1.75.

Couldn’t do it.

She was not some immigrant from a third-world country who suffered from a lack of educational opportunities. She was early teens and could not do basic math.

She could manage texting and Facebook I assume.

This was in a small town with a well-established school system. This particular town brags of being the birthplace of public education in America. Apparently, it has now reached the end of its life.

Everyone is quick to jump on the blame the school system bandwagon. In particular, those union teachers who do not educate kids or care about them. If this young girl couldn’t add it must be the teacher’s fault.

It is not.

This is a basic life skill. The ability to do simple math is critical in one’s day-to-day life. Understanding things like 10% off or what the cost of one apple is if it’s $1.00 for four is a common task.

Something a parent should instill in their children.

Yet, it would seem this girl’s family is satisfied with their child’s inability to do the most basic of tasks. They’re comfortable letting her rely on the increasingly pervasive cell phone.

Education is not something you send your children out to get, it is something you participate in and reinforce in your daily lives. Sending your children out unprepared and ill-equipped to do basic things is nothing less than child abuse.

Perhaps there will come a time when we can do away with education. Just have a one-day class on how to use a smartphone. Find all the answers in a Google query.

Who needs an education? We have a handheld surrogate.

It was evident in that farm stand that the future of America is on its final countdown to failure.

Here’s Why Black Lives Matter Fails: Fighting the Wrong Battle

/ Joe Broadmeadow / 3 Comments

Headline Milwaukee, Police shoot and kill a 23-year old man who was ARMED with a stolen handgun. The man pointed the gun at the police officer, refused to drop the weapon, and was shot and killed.

Protests break out.

Police face violent crowds.

Police cars burn. Property damaged. Looting ensues. Innocent people injured.

car-fire

Someone misread the text message or Facebook post.

The guy was armed with a stolen handgun that he pointed at the police officer and refused to drop it when told.

How many of those “angry” protesters would offer the same opportunity if someone pointed a weapon at them?

I can tell you, none. They’d either run away or, if they had a weapon, shoot first. Yet, they expect the cop to find some alternative way short of returning fire. They are quite willing to sacrifice the officer’s life.

By rioting over the shooting death of a man who had every opportunity to drop the weapon, they demean their cause and make themselves look foolish.

There are many legitimate issues raised by the Black Lives Matter movement. The message may be difficult to accept but necessary for us to address the issue of racism. But I can tell you this, even someone like myself who readily admits to the racism issue with law enforcement, and society in general, loses respect when people react in such a manner.

Protest peacefully, advocate in the courts, poke the American people out of their comfortable ignorance as needed.

But once you burn cities over the actions of a criminal you lose your credibility and you give back any gains your efforts have made.

Perhaps if you were as vocal about the proliferation of firearms in the hands of criminals and their crimes you would find a great deal more support of your goals.

If the flames of a burning police car reflect your anger, you’ve lost.

Patently Offensive

/ Joe Broadmeadow / Leave a comment

When did being offended become the national pastime?

People take offense at everything they find different or contrary to their own beliefs or perspectives. The concept of tolerance has gone the way of the dinosaur. Something we dig up by accident once in a while to marvel at the magnificence that once was.

If someone wants to display the Confederate Flag, let ‘em. I think it more a reflection on them that they choose to celebrate a representation of a repulsive philosophy than an acknowledgment of history.

And they lost. I prefer to celebrate a victory. If someone wants to cheer, “We’re number two, we got beat by you,” have at it.

Some people take offense at the display of the American flag. A symbol of their very right to disagree and talk freely about these differences.

Some people are offended by religious displays, patriotic displays, sports, military, police, and other symbols.

All of this offense at symbols belittles the very nature of intelligence and tolerance. It demeans a rational approach to understanding our differences that, when blended in the best way, make us all Americans.

When did it become necessary for the whole world to restrain from championing a cause out of fear that some would disagree? It is in a civil and rational discussion of these different causes that we find a common solution.

Those who embrace the symbol of the Stars and Bars suffer from a lack of fundamental understanding of the overwhelming stain of racism in this country.

Those who would burn the American flag fail to see the contradiction in their actions. They are able to do such things because brave men and women died to uphold the rights represented by that flag.

Those who are offended by the display of a Christmas tree, a Menorah, the Star and Crescent, and others demand tolerance for themselves yet refuse it to others.

Knowledge and education are the keys to the world’s problems. Focusing our efforts on arguing what shouldn’t be displayed drains energy from that which would do good; seeking to understand the history behind these symbols and recognizing them as powerless unless we imbue them with power.

The best example is the Swastika of Nazi Germany. To most people, it represents an unspeakable horror and destructive philosophy. Yet the symbol, called Svastika in Sanskrit, means auspiciousness. Nazi Germany co-opted the symbol for the Third Reich.

Most take offense at the sight of such a symbol. The image of Neo-Nazis in today’s world reflect the continuity of the ignorance, brutality, and irrationality of that era and philosophy. Yet, by understanding the original meaning, one can see the irony in a bunch of ignorant white bigots embracing a symbol created in a Buddhist/Hindu tradition.

A symbol carries meaning only if we recognize it. A Christmas tree is a symbol of the Christian faith or it is a tree sacrificed in the tradition of the Druids.

A flag with stars and bars is the symbol of the proud history of the south or a representation of the failure of one race to impose its false superiority on another.

If you find something offensive, first make sure you understand why. Then work to foster a better understanding. Seek to educate not merely cover up.

Americans should be made of tougher stuff than to let symbols, words, or insignificant displays offend us.

Don’t take offense. Don’t whine and cry and whimper in weakness. Seek to understand that the most offensive symbol in the world represents the ignorance of those who promote it, not the power or truth of what is represents.

Grow a pair America. If this offends you, good. Do something.

 

 

Sacrificing Trump

/ Joe Broadmeadow / 2 Comments

Time to set the record straight there Mr. Kahn. I concede the sacrifice of your son for the freedoms we all enjoy in this country is beyond my ability to comprehend. I hope this country never forgets your son and his family for this, the greatest of sacrifices.

But Donald Trump has sacrificed as well.

He has sacrificed his honor.

He has sacrificed his integrity.

He has sacrificed his credibility.

He has sacrificed his rationality.

He has sacrificed his intelligence.

He has sacrificed our trust by refusing to release his tax returns.

He has sacrificed American workers for the sake of higher profits.

He has sacrificed his word of honor by dishonoring his debts and obligations.

He has sacrificed the principles of the Republican Party.

He has sacrificed the tenets of the Constitution.

He has sacrificed the essence of America, our tradition of tolerance and acceptance.

He has sacrificed the guarantees of the Bill of Rights.

He has sacrificed the foundation of this country in pursuit of his mega maniacal ego.

So, Mr. Kahn, while your son paid full price for being an American, Trump has sought to discount it by sacrificing the truth.

Let’s hope Trump has one sacrifice left, that he sacrifices victory in November.

 

Anybody Here Seen My Old Friend John?

/ Joe Broadmeadow / 4 Comments

My wife and I spent an afternoon at the JFK Library in Boston. Since our trip to Texas and our visit to the LBJ Library, we’ve decided to make visiting Presidential Libraries a sort of hobby.

At the LBJ library, the media exhibits hit home since they reflected our childhood and coming of age. Those formative years when breaking news meant something. Those years when one read a newspaper to get the story.

The era of Vietnam, race riots, Johnson’s Great Society, the realities of an increasingly complex and fragmented world and the joys of A Charlie Brown Christmas and the wonder of men landing on the moon.

The Kennedy Library offered much of the same, albeit more limited as was his Presidency.

We were both struck by the differences in the tone and timbre of the politics of the day. The video of the famous Kennedy-Nixon debate was shocking in the lack of anger and incivility.

Two men of differing ideologies and political persuasions argued for their positions, they did not engage in vitriol and character assassination of their opponent. They argued with logic, intelligence, compassion, and civility. The contrast to the world of today could not be more startling or disheartening.

Kennedy was a magnificent orator. We would do well to listen to some of that wisdom as we consider the choices for President.

Too often we… enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.

Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one’s own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others.

 Our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education. The human mind is our fundamental resource.

 For time and the world do not stand still. Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or the present are certain to miss the future.

It would serve all Americans well to visit a place like this library. I fear for many Americans it might be their first time IN a library, but we can hope.

Kennedy recognized a lack of education as one of the greatest risks to this country and the world. His words presaged the depths to which we’ve embraced ignorance and intolerance as substitutes for hard work and compassion.

Has anybody here, seen my old friend John? Can you tell me where he’s gone…?

Some of you will remember, do the country a favor and educate those that never had the opportunity to experience the hope of that era.

Show them there is wisdom to be found, but it takes more than 144 characters and spelling counts.

P.S. For a memory sure to bring a smile, click here

Insights from 60 Revolutions of the Sun

/ Joe Broadmeadow / 2 Comments

In my now sixty complete revolutions of the sun, I am struck by how much the world has changed and how little people have progressed.

We are a single race. The human race. Yet, one is hard-pressed to find examples of this.

We live at a time when access to information is at an all-time high and rationality at a depressing low. Instead of recognizing our differences as nothing more than window dressing, we isolate ourselves with those we share those shallow aspects and separate ourselves from those we see as different.

Why is it we fill our hearts with the irrationality of prejudice, the willful ignorance of others, instead of embracing the commonality of our nature?

Tolerance is something we demand for ourselves and deny to others. The surface differences that comprise such a small percentage of our being cloud the overwhelming similarities.

At a time when it would seem the very survival of our common race is at hand, we focus on promoting our differences instead of joining together to insure our survival.

The faiths of the world publicly espouse their common goal yet continue to teach the doctrines of difference.

Politicians play to the lowest common denominator of fear to further than own careers no matter the cost.

We resort to violence as a solution rather than recognizing violence is at the root of the issue. Violence is the tool to protect differences not people . What we need is the rationality of diplomacy and acceptance.

I can only hope that five hundred or a thousand years from now the descendants of the human race look back on the foolishness of this time as a product of ignorance and stupidity.

Much like we mock the ignorance of the Dark Ages or the image of Stone Age man cowering in his cave from the thunder and lightning of the gods, future humans will find a similar ignorance in the history of our time.

If there are any descendants to do so.  I can only hope we survive  to live up to our self-described moniker of Homo Sapiens.

With all the tools of destruction and our skills at killing our fellow humans over artificial differences, there may not be anyone left to attain such insight and maturity of character.

Black Skin Kevlar Skin

/ Joe Broadmeadow / Leave a comment

It is impossible for me to know what it is like to be black in America. My upbringing in Cumberland, Rhode Island in the 1960’s could not have been more plain vanilla. Cumberland wasn’t home to very many black families.

The first conversation I ever had with a black person wasn’t until I went into the Air Force. So for me to pretend to understand what it’s like to be black in America is foolish at best and dangerous at worst.

Later, when I became a police officer, I came into daily contact with a much wider variety of ethnicities. Yet, it was easy to fall prey to the us versus them mentality. As my experience grew, so did my appreciation for the similarities we shared rather than the superficial differences.

Unfamiliarity breeds misconceptions and prejudices.

The America of the 60’s was torn by the strife of racial hatred. Cities in America were burning. Images of riots showed lines of club-wielding police officers, almost exclusively white, facing off against protesters, mostly black, in the confrontations over segregation and racial discrimination.

It was these images that served as the basis of my exposure to people of color. I didn’t see prejudice in Cumberland. Not because it didn’t exist, but because there were few people of color living there.

As a police officer, I saw examples of prejudice perpetrated by officers. Yet, the times were changing. These acts, once institutionalized, were by individual officers rather than department policies.

The truth of the matter is they became more concealed, more insidious because they hid behind the façade of arresting criminals. If there is one thing I learned as a police officer, it is that everyone is one dire change of circumstances away from committing a crime.

All it takes is a sudden downturn in fortune and a once successful, happy, employed individual might turn to some criminal action to obtain money or sink into the abyss of drug addiction.

This condition is color-blind.

There is another aspect to being a police officer that creates conflict. We started wearing ballistic vests, donning Kevlar skin as part of our job. A necessary evil that created a mindset that every moment on the job was fraught with risk.

Cops are not taught that people of color are dangerous. They are taught that everyone is. Cops begin every encounter assuming the person they are in contact with poses a threat. It is drilled into them in the academy and in the field. They evaluate the person starting from that assumption. It sets a certain tone to every encounter.

For anyone not raised with black skin to say they understand the problem or can empathize with someone of color is ludicrous.

For persons of color to assume the individual in Kevlar skin is a racist threat with murderous intentions is equally ludicrous.

I was taught to seek out a police officer if I were in trouble. People of color often teach their children to fear cops based on their own experiences. As a country, we can do better.

To applaud the killing of Police Officers while doing their job is to sustain the perception and problem. It derails any attempt at a solution.

America can no longer afford to ignore the endemic racism prevalent within our society. We must confront it in an open and honest manner.

The reason our prisons are full of people of color has nothing to do with propensity to commit a crime. It has to do with a difference in access to justice. The lack of access to dedicated legal advice is the prime factor behind incarceration rates. Until access to justice no longer comes with a price tag, such disparity will continue.

I cannot pretend to know what it is like to be a person of color in this country. Just as most people cannot begin to understand what putting on Kevlar skin and going out into the dark night is like.

There is room for increased understanding and conversation on both sides of that spectrum. The time to act is now. The cities are smoldering. Now is the time to remove the fuel of discrimination before they are burning once again

 

American Divine Right: Fallacy of a Presumptive Nominee

/ Joe Broadmeadow / Leave a comment

The latest headline of the trend-driven media proclaims Clinton as the presumptive nominee. Her delegate totals, if one includes super delegates, puts her over the threshold for the nomination.

But if there is one truth in politics, it is that when someone says they are committed to a certain course of action it means for the moment.  Between now and the Democratic convention on July 25th (coincidentally my birthday and only good things can happen on that date) there are many moments for new commitments to arise.

One cannot ignore the rising tide of popular votes sustaining Bernie Sanders. One cannot ignore the increasingly dangerous prospect of the anti-Clinton movement propelling Trump into the Presidency (and, I fear, America into an abyss.) One cannot ignore the clamoring for a stop to this American version of Divine Right determined by party insiders and political supplicants.

Those of us outside the inner sanctum of party politics want our voices heard. Those on the inside, while pantomiming statements that say they support this new paradigm, are more interested in protecting what they see as their moment.

As I said in the beginning, moments change. Clinton does not have the number of delegates to secure the election. She has 300 more delegates than Sanders. Super delegates do not count until their vote is cast.

Much can happen between now and then. We can hope that enough super delegates will listen to the voices of millions of Americans, weigh the chances of their two candidates against Trump, and vote their conscience not their self-interests.

Trigger Warnings (Not what I thought they were)

/ Joe Broadmeadow / 2 Comments

I read an article about the 248th Brown University Commencement and learned something new. (http://www.providencejournal.com/news/20160529/brown-university-commencement-a-force-to-be-reckoned-with)

One of the commencement speakers, Sabrina Imbler, in touting the accomplishments of the Class of 2016, pointed to their demand for “safe spaces” and “trigger warnings” as a significant accomplishment.

Here’s a definition I found for safe spaces,

“…anyone can relax and be able to fully express, without fear of being made to feel uncomfortable, unwelcome, or unsafe on account of biological sex, race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, cultural background, religious affiliation, age, or physical or mental ability…” (http://safespacenetwork.tumblr.com/Safespace)

I thought that was the guarantee of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights?

There are those who disagree with others by the use of threats and intimidation. The Constitution and the law are there to prohibit that. It is the foundation of this country.

If the reality doesn’t match the ideal, shouldn’t pursuing it be our goal?

Safe spaces do not bring us closer to the ideal. They are the equivalent of burying one’s head in the sand.

Yet, the Class of 2016 is proud about convincing the school to create these safe spaces. Available, of course, only to Brown students. Sort of a private safe club.

Apparently irony is lost on them. As is reality.

It would be better if they set out to be the example for others. Demonstrate tolerance in their daily interactions, not save it for display in a space barred to keep out the rest of the (real) world. That would be a worthy accomplishment.

Trigger Warnings were new to me. So I did some research. Here’s a definition,

…a statement at the start of a piece of writing, video, etc., alerting the reader or viewer to the fact that it contains potentially distressing material (often used to introduce a description of such content). (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/trigger-warning)

Originally intended to warn sexual-assault victims that certain writings, which detailed other victim’s experiences, could trigger traumatic memories. Certainly a worthy goal and yet now twisted into something else.

It’s become a rating system for classes that may make you question your beliefs. “Warning this class may challenge your naiveté. You may realize you are misinformed or worse. Attendance may cause you to learn something.”

Now, course content which may clash with a student’s political, religious, or other beliefs must contain warnings that someone might disagree with them.

Are you kidding me?

I disagree with them. This is nonsense. I would expect someone will disagree with me on this article. I don’t fear their disagreement, I welcome it.

I might learn something.

I know full well violence is how some irrational people deal with those who hold a different perspective. But legitimate debate from differing perspectives is not a risk to a complete education, it is a key element of it.

On this Memorial Day, we remember the men and women who paid the ultimate sacrifice for this country. Willing to die to uphold the ideals of this great nation, they paid the tab for the Bill of Rights.

There were no signs on the beaches of Normandy, “Warning. Soldiers with a different perspective ahead who may strongly object to your presence. Seek a safe place.”

We are not a perfect nation.

We have not yet fully achieved the goals of the founders.

The sad state of affairs in this country is, in the eyes of many, not all are created equal or entitled to the same respect.

We let our differences cloud our commonality as Americans and as human beings.

These attitudes arise from ignorance. An ignorance that, if left insulated from debate and criticism, persists. If part of that means making someone feel uncomfortable about their cherished beliefs, so be it.

If the Class of 2016, after four years of study, is proud of successfully demanding “safe spaces” and “trigger warnings” but not of helping chip away at the very attitudes they most fear, then they have not been well-served by Brown University.

I disagree with your point, dear speaker, get over it.

Joe Broadmeadow, of Lincoln, is an author and a retired captain in the East Providence Police Department.

A Change of Hate

/ Joe Broadmeadow / 1 Comment

Here’s a sneak peek at my latest novel, A Change of Hate.

I am working toward the release of this next novel featuring Harrison “Hawk” Bennett Attorney at Law from the Josh Williams series.

Hope you enjoy. All novels

March 1966, Dalat, South Vietnam.

Green Beret First Lieutenant Harrison Bennett stalks his latest target, an elusive Viet Cong Colonel. After weeks of hunting, the man’s face fills the rifle scope.

A deep breath, a partial exhale, a tap from the observer confirming the target.

The trigger squeeze and rifle recoil meld into the muscle memory of training, the pink mist replaces the man’s face, and it is done….

March 2016, Providence, Rhode Island.

Attorney-at-Law Harrison “Hawk” Bennett sits at his desk going over his morning schedule. His phone rings….

His world is about to change forever.

Walking into the reception area, his memories go into overdrive. His eyes see what his mind cannot accept.

A saffron-robed Buddhist monk stands and smiles. A face he last saw seconds before he ended its life stares back at him. A specter from his nightmare lives.

“It has been a long time, Lieutenant Bennett, and a long way from our time in Dalat.”

“I thought you were dead, Colonel. They gave me a medal for killing you.”

Bennett finds himself thrust into a world of treason, double-cross, and a justice department bent on vengeance. Those he once fought alongside have become the enemy.

Forced to choose between his dedication to the law and the memories of the dead and dying in the jungles of Vietnam, Hawk faces his greatest challenge; defending a man he believed he killed from a government gone rabid over protecting its secrets.

Cover for Createspace

A Change of Hate: A Harrison “Hawk” Bennett Novel. The latest work by Joe Broadmeadow coming soon to Kindle and print on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Check out my other books at https://www.amazon.com/Joe-Broadmeadow/e/B00OWPE9GU