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Roughly 35 years ago, that which ought to be said now:

I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro’s great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen’s Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to “order” than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: “I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action”; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man’s freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a “more convenient season.” Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection.

Martin Luther King Jr. – Letter From Birmingham Jail

Death and Support

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The death of Jerry Falwell and the ongoing carnage in Iraq has had me meditating on two heavy topics. First, regarding Jerry Falwell. He was a despicable man who used the bully pulpit of radicalized religion to spread a message of intolerance and hate. He happily contributed to the phony culture wars, and as a result has helped polarize the United States. He may or may not have been an evil man, but it is no doubt that his ideology was. Therefore I am glad he has died. Although his power had declined of late, he served as a figurehead for a nasty and un-American movement. We are told never to speak ill of the dead, however I see no reason for this in the case of Jerry Falwell. His blustering against everything outside of his narrow view of reality coupled with the sheer sin of manipulating lonely and desperate people leaves him with no remorse from me; I’m glad to see him go.

Another topic that is weighing heavily on me is the “support the troops” meme. All of the Democratic candidates are espousing how much they support the troops; indeed Edwards, my favorite, is offering a T-shirt which reads “Support the Troops” on the front and “End the War” on the back. While I understand the political expediency of such expressions, I wonder if it is just cover. I wonder if it is okay to not support the troops, and the more I think about it, this is how I feel. Now I realize that joining the Army these days is predicated on many factors, not in the least socioeconomic. But that does not negate the fact that the mission is immoral. I strongly reject the neocon doctrine of foreign affairs, and this war is the showcase of just that. Our troops are in Iraq as an occupying force, and the Iraqis are resisting them as such. This does not mean that I support the killing and maiming of American (or “coalition”) forces, but I do understand why the Iraqis are planting bombs by the roadside.

Although we Americans come from a society that is both free and liberal, we must realize that much of the world does not operate on these terms. Strongmen, however reprehensible, often through their brute force put a lid on nasty, self-destructive tendencies present in any society. Although America is a multi-ethnic society relatively free of violence, we must remember that the American model IS exceptional. Therein lies the dilemma. Most people on the right these days take our special standing as a mandate to bring these values, by any means, to other parts of the world. On the left, however, most are unwilling to acknowledge the privileged situation of the United States and foolishly call for equal justice/rights around the world. Both views are naive, and more so, self-destructive. We must discard both mistaken sets of belief. Not that I’m asking anyone to be a moderate… as many of you know, I am not. But if one is to be radical and campaign for change, then one must have an agenda that has a chance of success. Of the real demons that face the US, radical Islamic terrorism is not even in the top 5; fighting poverty and outsourcing, protecting the environment and our civil liberties all take precedence over the irrational fear of terrorism.

So no, I don’t support the troops because they are engaged in a mission which is damaging our country by the day. Because I do not support them, I want them out of there. How about that?

30 Minutes, Five Days, Decades.

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Wednesday I got a notice in my mailbox stating that a package awaited me at the local post office. I was notified, as usual, that the postal staff would be available to assist me in retrieving this package from 8 – 3 on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I get to the post office a half an hour late and although the lady who does all the paperwork is still there, I can’t pick up the package. Admittedly, I was late, and no, I’ve never had any massive problems before.

However, I am freshly piqued about the absurdity of this Communist-era system. It boils down to the fact that the pickup window is far too small. Think about it, 8 – 3 on Tuesday and Thursday; working hours on two work days. This assumes that the person who needs to retrieve his/her package will be able to somehow leave work, go all the way to the post office, wait in line, and then return. If this person had a half hour lunch break, this might be accomplished, with little or no time to spare. However, in Romania, the workday trend is to begin early, around 8 and continue straight through until roughly 3. After work, most individuals return home for lunch, which is the primary daily meal here. Therefore, since the odds of a person having a lunch-break are slim, and it is likely that this person’s working hours are at least 8 – 3, the package pickup window, (Tues/Thurs 8-3,) could not possibly be less convenient.

The real kicker, though, is the absurdity of the customs process. Whereas amazon.com shipments are expedited to a full service window, (i.e. they can be picked up any time,) shipments originating from foreign countries necessitate a customs inspection. However, this inspection is farcical at best, and in my opinion, vestigial of the built-in corruption endemic during the Communist era. The pickup process entails 2 stops. First, you present your ID card to a postal worker who writes your ID number somewhere on the package’s shipping label. After you sign somewhere, anywhere on that label, the clerk goes into a back room to retrieve your package. The package is then placed on a scale, at which point the clerk cuts it open.

Then, responsibility is transfered to the visiting customs official. Not simply a lowly postal worker, the customs official has his own uniform and log-book; he has come to the post office from the central customs office to perform his bi-weekly duty. The extent of this duty differs widely. Those customs officials used to snooping and in all likelihood seeking something from which to extract a bribe (in the old days of course,) will take everything out of the package and question why you could possibly want such things. However, I must give credit where credit is due and state that this variety of customs worker has been rare, and reportedly becoming rarer; bravo Romania! Most of said officials will simply peer in the box, or pull out the topmost item only to quickly send you on your way. You need not sign again.

But, here comes the real treat. The past 3 or 4 packages I have retrieved did not even make it to step 2; that is, they were never opened. I’ve heard rumors that this is due to the fact that it is technically illegal to open and inspect these packages; perhaps though the staff have simply lost interest in examining my massive candy shipments. Regardless, this non-enforcement of step 2 renders the customs official a mere looker-overer; his only function in my last few pickups has been to acknowledge, via nod, that the package has been retrieved. As I said, sitting behind his little pane of glass in his neat uniform and large log-book, he resembles a vestigial organ no longer quite sure of its purpose, content only with the fact that it may still, sporadically, cause problems.

So, when I arrived a half hour late to find the customs officer gone and the postal worker unwilling to get me my package which stood just feet behind her, I consoled myself with the fact that my minor inconvenience was simply a symptom of a larger unresolved issue in Romania. Given the country’s unwillingness to engage in sincere reform, many practices from old eras persist to this day. I am positive that this is the case with foreign package pickup. This is also the case with the grade registers in the schools, as well as pretty much all other aspects of the educational system. I’d bet that even if the post office was to begin tracking packages by computer, that when all was said and done, the object of efficiency would still only be available on Tuesday and Thursday, from 8 – 3.