Category Archives: Culture Nights

Go tell the Spartans Rams

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There were two brave, defiant and ultimately glorious campaigns on display this past weekend featuring determined underdogs rising up to give their much larger foes all they could handle and more. One was in the new movie, “300” (see previous post) — the story of 300 Spartans standing against the massive Persian army and the elite Immortals at Thermopylae to defend their way of life. The second was tiny Roseau High School demonstrating its way of life by rising up against greater numbers and big school hockey powers with their monstrous enrollments to win the 2A (highest) state hockey title.

For the Roseau Rams, “The 300” might refer to the school’s enrollment (342 in 2006, to be exact), but like the Spartans they proved that when you get your opponent in a confined space you can triumph through heart, spirit, discipline and skill. What makes it all the more inspiring is that it’s not just a Cinderella story of a small school winning out against long odds, it’s a story of Cinderella saying “Forget about the ball, I want to be on ‘Dancing With the Stars.'” Roseau had the option of playing in Class 1A, created back in 1992 to make things “fair” for schools with smaller enrollments from which to draw their teams. Like the Spartans, they sneered at any such accomodation by themselves or their opponents, especially since in the days of the one-class, all-sizes tournament they had made 29 trips to the state tournament and won five titles.

In “300” Leonidas forcibly rejected the Persian ambassador’s request for a token sign of obedience and submission to King Xerxes. “This is madness!” the ambassador said, seeing the hostile intent. “This is Sparta!” shouted Leonidas as he kicked the man into a pit. Similarly back in ’92 the State High School league came to northern Minnesota with a similar, reasonable proposal to bow to the forces of reason and warm, fuzzy feelings. “This is Roseau!” was the response, with the authority of a slapshot from the blue line, and the small school with the proud tradition insisted on competing against the biggest schools at the highest levels, going on to win the 2A title in 1999 and again this year, persevering over teams in the field with as much as eight times their enrollment.

In ancient Sparta, young boys were taken from their families at age six and sent to the agoge, to learn fighting and endurance, to develop a love for freedom, self-government and responsibility, and to never retreat or surrender. In Roseau the children start skating even earlier, learning to forecheck, backcheck and keep their egos in check and to never, ever stop skating.

There were two brave, defiant and ultimately glorious campaigns on display this past weekend — I hope you enjoyed and appreciated them both.

Who said you can’t go broke betting on the bad taste of the American public?

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Howard Stern talks but the (shareholders’) money walks…

The announcement of a proposed merger between Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI, news, msgs) and its archrival XM Satellite Radio (XMSR, news, msgs) was treated by most of the media this week as if were just another financial event to be studied through the prism of balance-sheet analysis and the federal regulatory approval process.

But the merger plan actually amounts to the death of a dream for investors who came to believe that shares of Sirius — propelled skyward for a short time by the hiring of snarky talk show host Howard Stern — would make them rich beyond compare.

For while the merger might ultimately save the company from total oblivion, it is unlikely to save investors from billions of dollars in losses incurred over the past several years or, perhaps more importantly, from a loss of faith in stock ownership.

Millions of people bought Sirius shares at $6 to $8 for their retirement accounts, and rode them down to $3.50, never losing faith in Stern. At this point, they need to face up to the fact that they’re screwed. Stern made half a billion. They will make nothing. They can file SIRI stock certificates away under “S” for stupid. They blew it.

Two Mexicos, two stories

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There’s in interesting confluence between Chad the Elder’s post today on Fraters Libertas and an article in the Washington Times, also from today. The globe-trotting Chad, currently in Chihuahua, recounts a rant by his Mexican host describing the “two Mexicos” and his opinion that the Mexicans working in the U.S. are not the same as those back home:



“Let me tell you something; they’re not real Mexicans. You see, there are two Mexicos. This…us…here…THIS is the real Mexico. Them? They’re not really Mexican.”



Those in the States may be different, but they are a significant percentage of the population, according to the Times article: more than 10 percent of the Mexican population is currently in the U.S., including more than 14 percent of the country’s workforce, and they send home $23 billion a year. Nevertheless, some of those back home are lonely:



Mexican wives want U.S. to return husbands

By Stephen Dinan

THE WASHINGTON TIMES

February 26, 2007



The women of Tecalpulco, Mexico, want the U.S. government to enforce its immigration laws because they want to force their husbands to come back home from working illegally in the United States.



They have created an English-language Web page where they identify themselves as the “wetback wives” and broadcast their pleas, both to their men and to the U.S. government.



“To the United States government — close the border, send our men home to us, even if you must deport them (only treat them in a humane manner — please do not hurt them),” it reads.



In poignant public messages to their husbands, the women talk about their children who feel abandoned, and worry that the men have forsaken their families for other women and for the American lifestyle.



“You said you were only going to Arizona to get money for our house, but now you have been away and did not come back when your sister got married,” one woman writes to a man named Pedro. “Oh how I worry that you have another woman! Don’t you love me? You told me you love me.”



It’s a stark reminder of an often forgotten voice in the U.S. immigration debate — the wives, children, parents and villages left behind as millions of workers come to the U.S., many of them illegally. The plea also underscores the dual effects of migration on Mexico: Its economy needs American jobs as an outlet for workers, but determined, able-bodied workers get siphoned out of Mexico.



More than 10 million Mexican-born people, or nearly one out of every 10, was living in the United States in 2005. And as a percentage of the work force it’s even higher: One in seven, or 14 percent, were here, according to the Migration Policy Institute. The institute said 77 percent of Mexican workers in the U.S. were younger than 45, and 70 percent were men.



Villages devoid of men between 20 and 50 are common in many parts of the country. The stories of single mothers struggling to raise their children are just as frequent.



…



But for now, Mexico is also addicted to the influx of cash. In 2006, Mexican workers in the United States sent $23 billion back to their families in Mexico, an amount that rivals Mexico’s foreign income from oil sales.



All in all, it sounds like a theme that can turn Kevin Ecker into a “family values” guy.


Where there’s smoke, find out who’s trying to blow it into your eyes

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I’ve had some comments percolating inside me since Sunday regarding the Pastor Mac Hammond story in the StarTribune and the subsequent follow-up articles, but a crises at work (I’m losing a valued employee) and a crisis at home (the illness and departure of our cat) have distracted me from giving this the attention required. Meanwhile, others have also been weighing in (good posts here and here).

My thoughts are the religious angle is but a common and convenient smokescreen to the real issue.

First, let’s deal with the smoke.

You know you’re not supposed to pick a fight with someone who buys ink by the barrel, right? Run afoul of the media’s sensitivities or business interests (especially locally) — say, if you happen to own a piece of land that the city covets for a ball park development and you brazenly hold out for market price — and you can expect to be denounced in boldface type in stories and by communists columnists. If you’re a church that’s guilty of offending the media (I’ll get to that offense in a minute), and don’t fit into the mainstream, reliably liberal denominational mode they’ll try to make you look like Fred Phelps or Jim Bakker, depending on which fits the template or best serves the purpose.

In this case, since Pastor Hammond (interestingly enough, the Strib never refers to him as Pastor, Reverend or any other religious title in its story) of Living Word Christian Center is flamboyant and possesses many material goods that come with a high standard of living and preaches on prosperity then the angle of attack is that Mac Hammond = Jim Bakker, in much the same way that Iraq = Viet Nam, regardless of any fundamental differences there might be. Living Word is described as a “name it and claim it” church, though there’s nothing in the church’s statement of doctrine, or in the list of books written by Hammond’s wife, Lynne that suggests this is the main focus of the ministry.*

While it’s always interesting to see whether the Sunday School drop-outs in the media can out-do their clerical targets in taking scriptures out of context, it is a disingenous argument. First, there is nothing inherently noble about being either rich or poor, even though our society idolizes and gawks at the rich (while supposedly hating them) while merely giving lip service to the poor. In fact, all people are inherently sinful (yes, even the good people) and need to be saved and ministered to. Neither the rich or the poor are saved or condemned by their financial status, but by the state of their hearts, and all will be judged by their fruits.

Everyone is ruled by money, but in different ways, and money is a hard master. Far better to make it a servant, which is part of the so-called “name it and claim it” doctrine. Money is a powerful thing, however, and I’m reminded – not of scripture – but of the poem about the Lady and the Tiger. The snares are there and they are both subtle and profound for those who preach prosperity — just as they are for those who preach the holiness of poverty. Pastor Hammond may take his interpretation to the extreme; if so he’ll be judged – as will those who preach to the opposite extreme.

For what it’s worth, my wife and daughter have committed themselves to spending a year helping a young single mom develop the life-skills she needs to get out of poverty. This includes sharing the same spiritual principles that we’ve used ourselves. While the mother wants and enjoys the material things that have come to her so far as a result of this outreach, she is completely uninterested in the spiritual (at least for now). This doesn’t make her any worse than others we’ve helped or tried to help in the past, perhaps just more honest.

I’m not concerned with media criticism of Pastor Hammond or his ministry. For one, persecution is promised to believers and if he’s sincere in doing God’s work he’ll be fine even if he is not perfect. (For all the wealth he’s supposedly extracted for himself, the church does appear to have done and built some tremendous things.) Second, if he is in error, the consequences are certain and out of the hands of the media and others. It is interesting, though, how money becomes the focus of the media. Apparently the thought that 10,000 people voluntarily go to something they enjoy and give out large chunks of money to do so is suspicious, though I’d say members of Living Word show better judgment than Timberwolves season ticket holders.

As I said at the beginning, the religious criticism is just a smokescreen and a handy club to try and beat Hammond and Living Word into submission. The real issue is politics and power, and in short the media and the government doesn’t like competition in telling people how to think and act and especially what to do with your money. They are the modern day Pharisees and Sadducees, focused on making others conform to man-made interpretations and doctrines that keep them in power while missing the Spirit that inspired those.

The media has no problem with religious leaders getting involved with issues — as long as they’re on the “right” side: AME churches hosting one-sided candidate forums for Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, Buddhist temple fund-raisers for Al Gore, or Cardinal Flynn speaking out on global warming, etc. Use your pulpit otherwise, however, and watch out. My thinking is that this latest “expose” grows out of Living Word hosting Michelle Bachman during the last campaign and Pastor Hammond’s hearty endorsement of her candidacy. Since then they’ve allowed a little time to do some research and find some disgruntled former church members (have you ever known a church — whether of 10 people or 10,000 — that didn’t have disgruntled former members?) and let some legal eagles see if they can find some plausible-sounding charges; whether true or not the charges get attention and serve as supressing fire to get the church or similar communities to duck their heads.

Now, just a few months after the campaign, you’ve got a “watchdog group” in Washington, D.C. filing charges and demanding an investigation into the Living Word’s tax-exempt status. In this case the watchdog is Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). That sounds very noble, but whenever I see a group being called a “watchdog” I always look to see who is holding the leash. With a little poking I think we can find out who the major contributors or founders of CREW are, but their own statements on their website are pretty unabashed as they indicate they were created to fill a niche opposite of conservative watchdog groups such as Judicial Watch, The Rutherford Institute and the National Legal and Policy Center.

Conservative groups such as these have no real parallel in the progressive arena. There are a number of non-partisan groups that address government honesty, including Common Cause, Public Citizen, the Center for Public Integrity, and Democracy 21. While we applaud their efforts, we have noted that these groups focus principally on research and legislation. They do not use litigation to target outrageous conduct, nor do they bring the message of injustice to the people the way their conservative counterparts do. Because these public interest organizations focus mostly on policy issues and not on obstacles faced by ordinary citizens, these groups have not mobilized a shift in public opinion on the issue of government honesty. CREW fills that niche.

This isn’t about religious doctrine, though doctrine can be ginned up to discredit your opponent. Instead it is about free speech, about who gets to speak and who gets shouted down (or sued).

[*Full disclosure: I am not now, and have never been, a member of Mac Hammond’s church, Living Word, nor have I ever met Mac or, to my knowledge, anyone on his pastoral staff. I think I have a good understanding of the doctrines that are said to be taught at Living Word, but I’ve never seen or heard a sermon myself. I have known several people over the years who are, or have been, members and found them to be very grounded and focused on helping others.]

We can be heroes

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“We can be Heroes, just for one day.”
— David Bowie

Last month I had a short post on this blog about a man in New York who jumped onto the subway tracks to save a stranger’s life. In that post I described the Carnegie Hero Medal; this story led to a series of posts by me on another blog (here, here and here) on the nature of heroism and its roots in our day-to-day lives. One of the things that has stood out for me is that the Carnegie folks have found a common response in many of the people who survived their act of heroism and received an award: a belief that God or Jesus would have wanted them to do what they did.

I was reminded of this in today’s St. Paul Pioneer Press:

“God was the one who helped me make my decision,” said Carrera, 46, of South St. Paul. “I took it upon myself to help stop the guy in the van.”

David Carrera is the man who used his own vehicle and driving skills on January 28 to force another driver — who had struck a young girl with his van and was dragging her down the street — to stop his car, saving (so far) the little girl’s life.

He said he did what everyone should do: Pay attention and help each other. “I would have done it for anybody else,” he said.

His wife, who was a passenger during the chase, said the couple really had no other option.

“I don’t think it’s a really big deal,” Antonia Carrera said. “We had the opportunity to make a difference in somebody’s life. I think it’s everybody’s responsibility to watch out for each other. Not to preach, but just try to do the right thing.”

Carrera didn’t go to that intersection looking to be a hero. Something happened, however, and he reacted. His sense of responsibility didn’t end after the initial event, either. He and his family have gone regularly to Regions Hospital in St. Paul to visit the 10-year-old girl, Gladys Reyes, and her family. Gladys remains in critical condition in the burn unit and has already had several surgeries, including one to amputate her right arm.

I strongly believe that your outlook on life, and the way you live your life, are things that you choose and this becomes ingrained in you and makes it easier for you to act on a moment’s notice in an extreme need without having to ponder or debate the “right” thing to do. For David Carrera and his family the response was both immediate and ongoing. As for the rest of us, we weren’t at the scene (though I could have been, as it happened at an intersection near my home that I drive through several times a week), but we might still play a part.

Gladys Reyes’ family has no medical insurance, and her parents are struggling financially. Contributions can be made at any US Bank branch office, or mail a check or money-order (sorry, no on-line capability) to:

US Bank – West St. Paul
1493 South Robert St.
West St. Paul, MN 55118
Attn: Heritage Middle School’s Gladys Reyes Benefit Account

Update:

A benefit luncheon and silent auction for the Reyes family will be held this Sunday, Feb. 18 beginning at 11:00 a.m. at the Hilton Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport-Mall of America, which employs Gladys’ mother as a housekeeper. More details at the link.

Give them that old time religion

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Just what are the Democrats invoking?



From Debbie Schlussel in the New York Post (via Michelle Malkin, go there for more links):



THE Democratic National Committee made a strange choice to deliver the invocation last Friday at its winter meeting: Husham al-Husainy – an extremist who has a long record of support for prominent Islamists at war with America and Israel.

Al-Husainy’s words before the Democrats – asking God to “help us stop . . . occupation and oppression” – were jarring enough, since he was likely referring to either American soldiers in Iraq or Jews in Israel.



But his past statements and activity make those words even more ominous.



Al-Husainy heads the Karbalaa Islamic Education Center mosque in Dearborn, Mich., one of the largest Shiite mosques in North America. He is an open admirer of the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini – under whose rule Americans were held hostage for 444 days.



During last summer’s Israel-Hezbollah war, al-Husainy led rallies in Dearborn in support of the Lebanese terrorist group. Protesters displayed swastikas as well as anti-American and anti-Semitic posters.



I attended one rally, at Dearborn’s Bint Jebail Cultural Center – named for the stronghold in south Lebanon from which Hezbollah rockets rained on Israel. Al-Husainy was among several who delivered hate-filled, anti-American rhetoric. He cheered as others called for the hastened destruction of the Jews.




The class of the league

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For what it’s worth, I’m rooting for the Colts in the Super Bowl this Sunday. This has nothing to do with my growing up in Indianapolis, or starting my own football career there. In fact, if my Optimists Club youth football league experiences had any bearing on this I would hate the Colts because the team I played for (the Mini-Packers) missed out on an unbeaten, untied season when the star running back for the Mini-Colts scored the game-tieing touchdown after the whistle was blown by his father, the referee. Thankfully, I’m over that now.

However, while I otherwise have fond memories of Indianapolis and still have many family members living there, my rooting interest is centered around the Indy coach, Tony Dungy. While it’s all too easy to believe the media hype and images of this “genius” coach or another, I have heard and read enough about Coach Dungy’s personal character — and over several seasons seen enough of the way he handles himself on the sidelines under extreme circumstances — to come to the belief that he really is what he seems to be: a great coach and an even better man.

I especially appreciate his faith and I attribute his peaceful attitude and helpful actions to his being able to grasp and keep a long-term perspective even in the midst of perhaps the most intensively short-term focused public environment. Even as he was being passed over for head coaching opportunities he was emminently qualified for, or getting jobbed by replay calls (while coaching Tampa Bay in the play-offs), he has maintained his composure and helped others to see that it’s not all about him. Of course, that’s what the NFL wants us to think about Tony Dungy because it’s a good “story”, but it’s not hard to see what a deep and sincere respect and affection playes and other coaches have for the man. This was never more clear than last year when his son died just as the Colts were about to enter the play-offs. Even in that trauma, where it was obvious he was truly stricken and grieved, he continued to exude peace and class while focusing on the needs of others. What an example and inspiration he is to the rest of us, whether we have anything to do with football or not!

Finally, in a league where people go to great lengths to secure even the tiniest advantage for themselves, and where one high-profile, brilliant mastermind publicly and pointedly snubs his former assistants, Coach Dungy has promoted and championed his assistant coaches for other jobs, even though it might have made things more difficult for himself. In fact, one such disciple or protégé is now the head coach of the Bears and will be one of the key factors trying to prevent Coach Dungy from winning a championship. Somehow I don’t think he’d have it any other way.

Update:

“I’m proud to be the first African-American coach to win this,” Dungy said during the trophy ceremony. “But again, more than anything, Lovie Smith and I are not only African-American but also Christian coaches, showing you can do it the Lord’s way. We’re more proud of that.”

(HT: Lassie at Freedom Dogs)

It’s, like, a real bummer, dude

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Katherin Kersten’s column in the StarTribune today laments the fallen state of youthful language skills, citing overheard examples of overused words (“awesome”), trite expressions and ubiquitous cursing. Her take, with which I generally agree, is that we are losing our appreciation for language due to a diminishing common experience of seeing it used well.

Today, teens aren’t the only ones who have lost the ability to speak and write with vigor and eloquence. Folks of all ages are reading less — especially the classics, whose authors wielded our language most powerfully. As a result, our ability to express ourselves is diminishing, because we can’t draw on their example for inspiration.

Indeed, there has been quite some cultural devolution from “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known,” to “Don’t have a cow, man.” That doesn’t necessarily mean that people, especially young people, are less intelligent or less stimulated; they have shown an amazing ability to adapt to the high-speed inundation of the digital, text-messaging world with it’s word and number contractions and abbreviations, and some hip-hop rapping is remarkably facile and creative. What is missing is a certain cultural currency of universal themes and ideas. Kersten cites one example of an attempt to bring this back:

Last month, Diane Ravitch, an eminent historian of education, provided the perfect antidote: “The English Reader: What Every Literate Person Needs to Know.” In this anthology, she and her son Michael Ravitch have gathered what they regard as the most memorable speeches, poems, essays and songs in the English language.

“Today, our common cultural reference points come from the visual culture: Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez,” Ravitch told me last week. Our schools could help remedy the problem, but often don’t, she says. That’s because “‘relevance” is now the watchword in education.

In textbooks, teens tend to find countless stories about young people much like themselves, according to Ravitch.

“How much richer it is to be able to use your imagination — to communicate with people who lived 200 years ago and come away with something that remains in your head and your heart,” she adds.

Norman Fruman, an emeritus English professor at the University of Minnesota, agrees. “Good literature deals with ideas, as well as emotions and the psychology of human behavior,” he says. “It records our greatest tragedies and our highest aspirations.” During 40 years as a teacher, he saw a steep decline in students’ knowledge of their literary heritage.

Having a collection of inspiring prose and oratory in one volume is a timely start. According to a Wall Street Journal article from January 3rd (HT: Port McClellan), the classics are being removed from what many might consider their last public refuge: libraries.

Checked Out
A Washington-area library tosses out the classics.

BY JOHN J. MILLER

“For Whom the Bell Tolls” may be one of Ernest Hemingway’s best-known books, but it isn’t exactly flying off the shelves in northern Virginia these days. Precisely nobody has checked out a copy from the Fairfax County Public Library system in the past two years, according to a front-page story in yesterday’s Washington Post.

And now the bell may toll for Hemingway. A software program developed by SirsiDynix, an Alabama-based library-technology company, informs librarians of which books are circulating and which ones aren’t. If titles remain untouched for two years, they may be discarded–permanently. “We’re being very ruthless,” boasts library director Sam Clay.

According to the article, books by Charlotte Brontë, William Faulkner, Thomas Hardy, Marcel Proust and Alexander Solzhenitsyn have already been pulled to make more room for more books from the recent best-seller lists. As in the schools, “relevancy” is puddle-deep evaluation that goes into giving the “customer” what they want, rather than what they ought to have. Granted, the argument, “It’s good for you” has never been especially persuasive to me whether the subject was books or vegetables, and there is quality in many of the newer works. My contention is, however, that we may focus too much on the pretty, colorful fish in the shallows and never venture into deeper waters where there are some truly awesome (in it’s literal sense of the world, not the teen version) creatures.

While there are times I would like to take others by the hand long enough to place a good book there, I look realistically to where I have the most influence: in my family. Reading has always been a favorite pastime for our children, starting with my wife and reading to them when they were still infants. Both my daughters read from an early age, and Tiger Lilly was especially motivated to learn her letters well before she started school. The television has never been a big focus for the two of them (in fact, I probably watch more tv than they do) and I think this shows in their writing and vocabulary. There are still opportunities to go deeper, though.

Tiger Lilly is our sole student in our little home-educating academy and she checks out staggering numbers of books from the local library. I am casting about right now, though, for a suitable classic and I’ve about settled on “The Count of Monte Cristo”, one of my favorite books when I was her age. I think she has the taste for adventure and righteous outlook to become absorbed in the story while absorbing and appreciating the themes of liberty and justice — and the well-turned sentence.

Give him a medal!

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“We live in a heroic age. Not seldom are we thrilled by deeds of heroism where men or women are injured or lose their lives in attempting to preserve or rescue their fellows; such are the heroes of civilization. The heroes of barbarism maimed or killed theirs.”

– Andrew Carnegie
A 50-year-old New York man literally leapt to the rescue of a stranger on Tuesday in a way that would have made Andrew Carnegie proud:

NEW YORK — Wesley Autrey faced a harrowing choice as he tried to rescue a teenager who fell off a platform onto a subway track in front of an approaching train: Struggle to hoist him back up to the platform in time, or take a chance on finding safety under the train.

At first, he tried to pull the young man up, but he was afraid he wouldn’t make it in time and they would both be killed.

“So I just chose to dive on top of him and pin him down,” he said.

Autrey and the teen landed in the drainage trough between the rails Tuesday as a southbound No. 1 train entered the 137th Street/City College station.

The train’s operator saw them on the tracks and applied the emergency brakes.

Two cars passed over the men _ with about 2 inches to spare, Autrey said. The troughs are typically about 12 inches deep but can be as shallow as 8 or as deep as 24, New York City Transit officials said.

…

Autrey had been waiting for a train with his two young daughters. After the train stopped, he heard bystanders scream and yelled out: “We’re O.K. down here but I’ve got two daughters up there. Let them know their father’s O.K.,” The New York Times reported.

While spectators cheered Autrey, hugged him and hailed him as a hero, he didn’t see it that way.

“I don’t feel like I did something spectacular; I just saw someone who needed help,” he told the Times. “I did what I felt was right.”

Mr. Autry’s story has appropriately been featured on tv and in many news stories, and it reminded me of something I learned about several years ago: the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, created by the well-known industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Carnegie created the fund, initially endowed with $5 million, in 1904 after being inspired by reading of the selfless rescue efforts of people responding to a coal-mine disaster.

The Carnegie Hero Fund Commission has given out more than 9,000 medals since its inception to individuals who risk their lives to save others, including 92 people in 2006. Each received a medal and grant ($5,000 in 2006). In addition, widows and orphans of rescuers receive Carnegie pensions and some children of deceased medal earners receive college scholarships. To date the fund has distributed more than $29 million in one-time grants, scholarship aid, death benefits, and continuing assistance.

The fund has some interesting requirements. People who save others in the line of duty – police, firemen, soldiers – don’t qualify, though several off-duty individuals have won. People who save family members qualify only if they are killed or severely injured in the rescue. Essentially, you can’t be a hero for doing what’s expected of you. Most of the awards go to people who risked their lives to save strangers. For the record, 7 recipients last year died in their attempts to save others; two medal winners were in their 70s and one was 81; three were 15 to 16 years old; five were women. Medal winners were recognized for rescuing others from burning (46), drowning (17), assault (15), animal attack (5), accidents (5) and falls (2). You can get the details concerning these and other heroes here.

I celebrate Mr. Autry and wish that the 92 heroes recognized with Carnegie medals last year could have received the same attention and celebration — not just because they deserve it, but because we need to hear about it. Just think, 92 people; that’s nearly two heroes a week we could be splashing on our video screens, tabloids, web pages and talking about over lunch. I’d much rather hear about these actions than some celebimbo who’s gone out without her underpants. And, much like Carnegie’s quote that opened this post, I’d much rather see the media focus its attention on those who preserve or rescue their fellows as opposed to those who take a bomb into a public place to maim or kill theirs.

Never before seen footage of the last supper!

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Television just loves Christmas specials. Why, just the other evening I was channel-surfing the satellite dish and came across The Secret Lives of Jesus (Jesus was a petulant child who hurt other kids and as a grown-up had a “special” relationship with Mary Magdalene — oh, and was never really crucified), The Gospel of Judas (he was really a sensitive, sweet guy that Jesus confided in who got a bad rap because Jesus actually asked him to be his betrayer), and a show about the book of Revelation that described the Apostle John (if that’s your real name) as a bitter, half-crazed old man sleeping on rocks and lashing out at society. I also saw a few minutes of a show where an archeologist “discovered” the natural reason why the Pool of Bethesda could have looked as if an angel occasionally stirred the water.

No doubt these were all meticulously researched documentaries dedicated to digging out the truth, though I noticed that a guard leading Jesus away from Herod in one of the re-enactments was wearing blue jeans and tennis shoes under his long robe. The programs all seemed to have the requisite talking heads with impressive religious and academic titles and scholarly accents for authenticity, though I suspect that a closer examination might find they and their theories about as credible as David Duke addressing a conference of holocaust deniers. As for the Gospel of Judas, the experts can prove that the fragments of the codex are old, but not that it’s anything other than a self-serving treatise from the already discredited Gnostic canon. I suppose it’s kind of like someone 2000 years in the future finding a portion of Ward Churchill’s 9-11 account and saying, “Aha – I knew it all along!”

It’s interesting that these shows all happen to be scheduled at this time of year, but at least it allows for easier side-by-side comparision. As far as credibility goes, I think the programs I glimpsed all fall short of other seasonal productions such as “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” (Amazing scientific fact: Bumbles bounce!)