O Canada! (Something For OmPrem and His Compatriots!)

[Guest guest]

Here in the U.S. of A., it'll be a party-hearty weekend for those

who've bought into the current Administration's sad and scary new

vision of what this nation is all about. (As far as I can tell, that

vision is: "Corporate interests govern money and the environment;

redneck-conservative values govern cultural and social policy; and

military force takes care of the rest." Or something like that.)

 

For many Americans, however, this 4th of July -- marking 227 years

since the Declaration of Independence formally broke the nation's

colonial tie to Great Britain -- should be an occasion of sober

reflection, mourning for what has been lost under the Bush

Administration's benighted, hamfisted regime, and concern over what

it will cost the nation -- and the world -- in the years to come.

 

Whatever happened to the moral resolution and guidance of the George

Washingtons and Abraham Lincolns of U.S. history? The smart,

compassionate ingenuity and subtle, cultured diplomacy of the Ben

Franklins? Or, to come closer to our own time, the compassionate

strength of a Franklin Roosevelt? Like our current "leader",

Roosevelt was "to the manor born" -- a rich, privileged member of the

country's ruling elite. But unlike Bush (who is aptly described as "a

man born on third base who thinks he hit a triple"), Roosevelt's

domestic policies were in many ways driven by compassion for the poor

and marginalized; his global policy was one of prudent international

respect and a deep, considered hestitancy to plunge the nation into

war. None of that now; that's for sure.

 

Well, and so I opened the latest issue of the New Yorker yesterday

evening and found an essay by one of my favorite columnists, Hendrick

Hertzberg, who led off the magazine's July 4th issue with a short

piece entitled, "NORTHERN LIGHT: Why Can't We Be More Like Canada?"

It begins:

 

"The Fourth of July is one of the best holidays around: fireworks

that get better every year, no gift-giving hassles, not too much

commercial exploitation, nice weather (usually), no religious test

for participation. And, no doubt, throwing off the yoke of perfidious

Albion is something to celebrate. Still, every now and then a small

regret intrudes that we weren't able to work out a peaceful

resolution of our differences with the mother country. God knows we

tried ("We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble Terms," the

Declaration of Independence notes sadly), but George III wouldn't

listen to reason. A little less taxation, a little more

representation, and, presto — two hundred and twenty-seven years

later, we might all be Canadians. Would that be so terrible?"

 

It's a great piece, very much worth reading. The whole thing can be

found online at:

http://www.newyorker.com/talk/content/?030707ta_talk_hertzberg

 

Happy 4th, Y'all

 

DB

[Guest guest]

Aum Devi Bhakta

 

That was an interesting article on the virtues and merits of Canada

and Canadians. But it was a little contradictory.

 

The author says of Canada "Our big, easygoing neighbor to the north

has its problems—too cold [of course, only in winter and only if you

don't like winter sports], a weak dollar [purposely kept low to

faciltate exports], a reputation for paralyzing dullness [in the next

sentence he cites some not so dull Canadians -Joni Mitchell, Neil

Young, The Band, the McGarrigle sisters, Leonard Cohen, Alanis

Morissette, Martin Short, Dan Aykroyd, Mike Myers, and Jim Carrey]

 

On the other hand, if by 'dull', the author means that, compared to

Americans, Canadians are much less likely to own a firearm, are less

likely to use them to murder their neighbours, are less litigious,

consider health care a right of citizenship, see native Canadian

communities as First Nations rather tribes, have a quiet confidence

based on Self-awareness, and base decisions more on fairness for all

rather than only ego and money, then we gladly plead guilty to being

dull.

 

A look at our respective constitutional documents says it all:

American - "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness"; Canadian -

"peace, order and good government".

 

But, as we all know, "Paths are many, Truth is One".

 

We can play with externals and have a friendly banter about the

supposed virtues of our respective countries, but we all know that

those externals are unimportant and that continuously moving beyond

them to the Common Ground brings us eventually to a recognition of

the Divinity inherent in everyone and everything.

 

I bow to the Divinity in you, in all Americans, and in all of the

members of Shakti Sadhana. One of my favourite morning prayers

icludes this plea, "May I see the Love and Innocence in all mankind,

behind the masks we all wear and the illusions of this worldly plane".

 

Aum Namah Sivaya

 

Omprem

, "Devi Bhakta"

<devi_bhakta> wrote:

> Here in the U.S. of A., it'll be a party-hearty weekend for those

> who've bought into the current Administration's sad and scary new

> vision of what this nation is all about. (As far as I can tell,

that

> vision is: "Corporate interests govern money and the environment;

> redneck-conservative values govern cultural and social policy; and

> military force takes care of the rest." Or something like that.)

>

> For many Americans, however, this 4th of July -- marking 227 years

> since the Declaration of Independence formally broke the nation's

> colonial tie to Great Britain -- should be an occasion of sober

> reflection, mourning for what has been lost under the Bush

> Administration's benighted, hamfisted regime, and concern over what

> it will cost the nation -- and the world -- in the years to come.

>

> Whatever happened to the moral resolution and guidance of the

George

> Washingtons and Abraham Lincolns of U.S. history? The smart,

> compassionate ingenuity and subtle, cultured diplomacy of the Ben

> Franklins? Or, to come closer to our own time, the compassionate

> strength of a Franklin Roosevelt? Like our current "leader",

> Roosevelt was "to the manor born" -- a rich, privileged member of

the

> country's ruling elite. But unlike Bush (who is aptly described

as "a

> man born on third base who thinks he hit a triple"), Roosevelt's

> domestic policies were in many ways driven by compassion for the

poor

> and marginalized; his global policy was one of prudent

international

> respect and a deep, considered hestitancy to plunge the nation into

> war. None of that now; that's for sure.

>

> Well, and so I opened the latest issue of the New Yorker yesterday

> evening and found an essay by one of my favorite columnists,

Hendrick

> Hertzberg, who led off the magazine's July 4th issue with a short

> piece entitled, "NORTHERN LIGHT: Why Can't We Be More Like Canada?"

> It begins:

>

> "The Fourth of July is one of the best holidays around: fireworks

> that get better every year, no gift-giving hassles, not too much

> commercial exploitation, nice weather (usually), no religious test

> for participation. And, no doubt, throwing off the yoke of

perfidious

> Albion is something to celebrate. Still, every now and then a small

> regret intrudes that we weren't able to work out a peaceful

> resolution of our differences with the mother country. God knows we

> tried ("We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble Terms,"

the

> Declaration of Independence notes sadly), but George III wouldn't

> listen to reason. A little less taxation, a little more

> representation, and, presto — two hundred and twenty-seven years

> later, we might all be Canadians. Would that be so terrible?"

>

> It's a great piece, very much worth reading. The whole thing can be

> found online at:

> http://www.newyorker.com/talk/content/?030707ta_talk_hertzberg

>

> Happy 4th, Y'all

>

> DB