Post by RacerX on Feb 18, 2003 12:07:10 GMT -5
I just received this from a friend in an e-mail. I enjoyed the read, maybe you might too. Here goes:
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“We must BE the change we wish to see in the world.”-Gandhi
What is an American?
You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American, any American. So, an Australian dentist wrote the following to let everyone know what an American is, so they would know when they found one.
An American is English, or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian, or Greek. An American may also be Canadian, Mexican, African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Australian, Iranian, Asian, Arab, or Pakistani, or Afghan. An American may also be a Cherokee, Osage, Blackfoot, Navaho, Arapaho, Apache, or one of many other tribes known as native Americans.
An American is Christian, or Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim. In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan. The only difference is that IN America, they are free to worship as each of them chooses. An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that, he will answer only to God, not to government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for government and God.
An American is from the most prosperous land in the history of the world. The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes the God-given right of each man and woman to the pursuit of happiness.
An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need. When Afghanistan was over-run by the Soviet army twenty years ago, Americans came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country. As of the morning of September 11, 2001, Americans had given more than any other nation to the poor in Afghanistan.
Americans welcome the best: the best products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best athletes. BUT they also welcome the least. The National symbol of America, the Statue of Liberty, welcomes your tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the homeless, tempest tossed. These, in fact, are the people who built America. Some of them were working in the twin towers the morning of September 11, earning a better life for their families. I’ve been told that the World Trade Center victims were from at least thirty other countries, cultures, and first languages: including those that aided and abetted the terrorists.
So, you can try to kill an American if you must. Hitler did. So did General Tojo, and Stalin, and Mao, and every other bloodthirsty tyrant in the history of the world. But, in doing so, you would just be killing yourself, because Americans are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit and freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American.
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Let the US bashing continue,
RacerX
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“We must BE the change we wish to see in the world.”-Gandhi
What is an American?
You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American, any American. So, an Australian dentist wrote the following to let everyone know what an American is, so they would know when they found one.
An American is English, or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian, or Greek. An American may also be Canadian, Mexican, African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Australian, Iranian, Asian, Arab, or Pakistani, or Afghan. An American may also be a Cherokee, Osage, Blackfoot, Navaho, Arapaho, Apache, or one of many other tribes known as native Americans.
An American is Christian, or Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim. In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan. The only difference is that IN America, they are free to worship as each of them chooses. An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that, he will answer only to God, not to government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for government and God.
An American is from the most prosperous land in the history of the world. The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes the God-given right of each man and woman to the pursuit of happiness.
An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need. When Afghanistan was over-run by the Soviet army twenty years ago, Americans came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country. As of the morning of September 11, 2001, Americans had given more than any other nation to the poor in Afghanistan.
Americans welcome the best: the best products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best athletes. BUT they also welcome the least. The National symbol of America, the Statue of Liberty, welcomes your tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the homeless, tempest tossed. These, in fact, are the people who built America. Some of them were working in the twin towers the morning of September 11, earning a better life for their families. I’ve been told that the World Trade Center victims were from at least thirty other countries, cultures, and first languages: including those that aided and abetted the terrorists.
So, you can try to kill an American if you must. Hitler did. So did General Tojo, and Stalin, and Mao, and every other bloodthirsty tyrant in the history of the world. But, in doing so, you would just be killing yourself, because Americans are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit and freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American.
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Let the US bashing continue,
RacerX
)are American, and I have wanted to make it my home for a long time. What I do not like, and what I have a tendency to bash, is the current government. I disagree with a majority of their decisions and actions.
Don't Die Before You Live...
