.comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

Grizzly Mama

There's a Grizzly who has escaped the City of Brotherly Love..(and she's going back to homeschooling!!)

My Photo
Name:
Location: Out of Philly, Pennsylvania, United States

"All who have meditated on the art of governing mankind have been convinced that the fate of empires depends on the education of youth." Aristotle - Greek Philosopher.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

'I'

"But I still wonder how it was possible, in those graceless years of transition, long ago, that men did not see whither they were going, and went on, in blindness and cowardice, to their fate. I wonder, for it is hard for me to conceive how men who knew the word "I," could give it up and not know what they lost. But such has been the story, for I have lived in the City of the damned, and I know what horror men permitted to be brought upon them.

Perhaps, in those days, there were a few among men, a few of clear sight and clean soul, who refused to surrender that word. What agony must have been theirs before that which they saw coming and could not stop! Perhaps they cried out in protest and in warning. But men paid no heed to their warning. And they, these few, fought a hopeless battle, and they perished with their banners smeared by their own blood. And they chose to perish, for they knew. To them, I send my salute across the centuries, and my pity."


I have just finished reading Ayn Rand's 'Atlas Shrugged', 'Fountainhead', and most recently, 'Anthem'. The quote above is from 'Anthem'. I have been ruminating over Objectivism ever since, and will write some of my thoughts about that philosophy in another post.

'Anthem' is very short and easy to read. I enjoyed it (I enjoyed all of the Ayn Rand books that I've read!) and will recommend it to you and to both of my daughters as well.

The two paragraphs quoted above struck me. How do we continue to find ourselves facing this same battle, over and over again through history?

It seems to me that most lives lived involve a struggle for learning, trial by error. Making mistakes - learning from them - going back at it until it's right. Hopefully we receive some guidance in our struggles, and then we probably get a few things right before we die. How is it, then, that of all the generations of struggle, making mistakes, learning from them - over and over, lives lived and knowledge passed on, how is it that we find ourselves on that slippery slope once again? Too close to the horrifying possibilities that await - barely able to (hopefully) pull ourselves out?

I agree with the paragraph following the two quoted above:

"Theirs is the banner in my hand. And I wish I had the power to tell them that the despair of their hearts was not to be final, and their night was not without hope. For the battle they lost can never be lost. For that which they died to save can never perish. Through all the darkness, through all the shame of which men are capable, the spirit of man will remain alive on this earth. It may sleep, but it will awaken. It may wear chains, but it will break through. And man will go on. Man, not men."

I agree with it, but despair at the suffering, the horror, the misery of so many if we allow 'I' to be taken from us in some collectivist's wet dream once again. Sure, if the worst happens it won't last forever. But it will last long enough to destroy an untold number of lives. The people who suffered are not nameless, faceless people - they are real and innocent people like you and me and our children. The lesson learned to be forgotten in a couple of generations. The mistake repeated.

Link

Monday, August 17, 2009

'Defiance' with Daniel Craig



I was at the video store the other night, trying to find some movies to rent for a sleepover that my daughters were having. I looked through all of the new releases, and just thought that it was SO INTERESTING that the only movie that was completely sold out was 'Defiance' with Daniel Craig. They had dozens and dozens of copies in inventory with a sizable display - all rented out for the week. I hadn't even heard of it - but I have to tell you it looks like a good one.

It's about 3 brothers in Eastern Europe during WWII - and it's based on a true story. The brothers escape the Nazis by disappearing into the woods, where they eventually assembled quite a group of like minded individuals willing to resist the Nazi terror. They end up protecting a sizable group of Polish Jews who are fleeing the slaughter.

Is it just me, or do you also think the fact that this movie is completely sold out could be a measure of the mindset of the American people?

When I rent it and watch it - I'll let you know if I like it.

There is information and reviews at Fandango Movie Review. (I haven't even read the review at this site - I hardly EVER read movie reviews.)

Link

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

News From the National Republican Senatorial Committee

National Republican Senatorial Committee

Grizzly Mama,

PelosiThis week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer published a column in USA Today in which they called those who oppose the Democrats' health care plan "un-American."

We would like to know, what could be MORE American than citizens from across the country voicing concerns about controversial legislation to their elected officials?

Perhaps opposition to the Democrats' plan for health care is so fierce because Americans don't like the idea of socialized medicine. They don't like the thought of the government being so deeply involved in their health care decisions. And they don't like the cost - $1.5 trillion over ten years. And that's on top of the President's failed stimulus plan and a bailout for failing auto companies. There is an economic breaking point, and it seems that the Democrats have found it.

We believe that all Americans have a First Amendment right to challenge their elected officials. I ask you to join me in signing a letter to Speaker Pelosi and Leader Hoyer by clicking here.

If 10,000 Americans sign on to this effort, it will send a strong message to the Democrat leadership in Washington that their strong-arm tactics are unacceptable. Please, sign the letter today, and then send this link to five of your friends: http://www.nrsc.org/unamerican

Sincerely,

Jesmer
Rob Jesmer
NRSC Executive Director

Paid for by the National Republican Senatorial Committee
Not Authorized By Any Candidate Or Candidate's Committee
www.nrsc.org