Have you noticed how the world seems ‘heavy’ lately? Heavy as in full of woe, of troubles – there is not a great deal of joy around at the moment. And what gets me is that much of it is of our own making.
So many of the problems that currently beset the world are present because we, that is all of us collectively, have allowed them to happen. We are greedy; we are avaricious; we appear to lack compassion and worst of all we seem to have a very strange concept of justice. I am no legal expert but to me justice is more than a slavish adherence to the letter of the law. Anything, anything that constrains a person’s right to the fundamentals of life – education, health, sufficient food and water, adequate accommodation, the ability to exchange ideas and to move freely around the countryside, is unjust. Whatever ‘spin’ is put on it by the authorities such constraints are unjust. I have railed against this before and I will continue to do so to my dying day.
Injustice is the major cause of the World’s problems.
The Americans are now complaining that about forty-five former Guantanamo Bay inmates, subsequently released, have re-entered the terrorist ‘circle’. As if this is an excuse for not releasing them! I strongly suspect that if they had been better treated; treated as human beings; treated with at least a modicum of dignity, then they may well have thought twice about committing further acts. Treat someone unjustly and they never forget. Should they have been imprisoned at Gitmo in the first place? If they were released then presumably no charges were laid against them. But they were still treated badly and they will not forget.
The Israelis have lost in Gaza. No matter what they do they have lost. They know it and that is why they are fighting so hard to ‘justify’ holding on to something that is not theirs – Palestinian land. That is the injustice – holding on to land that is not theirs. That is the root of the problem; that is their dilemma. Flatten Hamas (which they won’t) and hold on to the occupied land and the problem remains for other generations of Palestinians to stew over and the Israelis will be no safer than they are now. Withdraw without flattening Hamas and the Palestinians can rightly claim victory – which would be gall and wormwood to the Israelis.
Then there is Africa. Ruanda, Burundi, Sierra Leone, Liberia, the Congo, Sudan, Somalia, Zimbabwe (and I am sure that I have missed a few) are all failed states and all have huge humanitarian problems, all brought about by greed and injustice. One tribe is ‘better’ than another. Military rulers and refuse to relinquish government because of the privileges they claim. My religion is better than your religion – and so it goes on and on.
There is also Asia and the Middle East. Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Burma, Nepal, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Fiji – again I have missed a few – all have problems. All have institutionalized injustice against certain people, because of religious beliefs, racial characteristics and just the downright overall meanness of the various ruling authorities who are desperate to protect positions, their privileges and their egos.
Nothing will be solved until the injustices are corrected.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
A mixed bag
I was back at work today – for the first time in 9 (yes nine) weeks!! This is the longest break from work that I that I have ever had. It was quite an effort to wake up early enough to get to work in time. Then at work (I had to go to the Head Office and not my normal branch office), for Occupational Health and Safety purposes I was required to take a medical check. I was given a clean bill of health. As I told the medico, I am in better shape now than I have been for a number of years, with a new knee and all. He was quite impressed, which pleased me no end.
The letter the doctor gave me to pass on to the relevant HR person at the Head Office cheered me quite a bit as I had been a bit concerned that they (my employers) would use the fact that I was no longer young and with a new knee as an excuse to get rid of me. Times are a bit tough, sales are down and I feared that this would be, for them, the ideal opportunity to reorganise or “down size”, to save money. This does not appear to be the case. This is a great relief.
All this concern about myself has led me to take my eye of the ball, as it were, concerning events to write about. Here are a few which I will follow up:
The Illinois House of Representatives voted 114 to one to charge Democratic Governor Rod Blagojevich with abuse of power. He now faces a trial in the State Senate. (This is the guy who tried to flog off Barak Obama’s former Senate seat to the highest bidder).
There is still the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, with the Israelis pushing on regardless. I mean 850 Palestinian deaths (or thereabouts) to 11 Israelis is an absurdly high premium to place on the ‘value’ of Israelis, don’t you think – about 77:1? And what a way to ‘value’ someone’s life, in dead bodies! Yuk!!
Then there is a contaminated pet food scandal concerning imported (from Canada) pet biscuits. The manufacturers deny it and say it is the ‘irradiation’ treatment that the Australian quarantine authorities use to kill any unwanted bugs, that is the problem. Other imported pet biscuits presumably go though the same process without any reported side effects (so far at least).
The world just keeps on rolling round and people get up to their usual antics for the usual reasons, money, power or just plain old ego. We never seem to learn that what goes around comes around and that an old proverb (source unknown) says, “Take what you want from life, says God. Take it and pay!”
The letter the doctor gave me to pass on to the relevant HR person at the Head Office cheered me quite a bit as I had been a bit concerned that they (my employers) would use the fact that I was no longer young and with a new knee as an excuse to get rid of me. Times are a bit tough, sales are down and I feared that this would be, for them, the ideal opportunity to reorganise or “down size”, to save money. This does not appear to be the case. This is a great relief.
All this concern about myself has led me to take my eye of the ball, as it were, concerning events to write about. Here are a few which I will follow up:
The Illinois House of Representatives voted 114 to one to charge Democratic Governor Rod Blagojevich with abuse of power. He now faces a trial in the State Senate. (This is the guy who tried to flog off Barak Obama’s former Senate seat to the highest bidder).
There is still the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, with the Israelis pushing on regardless. I mean 850 Palestinian deaths (or thereabouts) to 11 Israelis is an absurdly high premium to place on the ‘value’ of Israelis, don’t you think – about 77:1? And what a way to ‘value’ someone’s life, in dead bodies! Yuk!!
Then there is a contaminated pet food scandal concerning imported (from Canada) pet biscuits. The manufacturers deny it and say it is the ‘irradiation’ treatment that the Australian quarantine authorities use to kill any unwanted bugs, that is the problem. Other imported pet biscuits presumably go though the same process without any reported side effects (so far at least).
The world just keeps on rolling round and people get up to their usual antics for the usual reasons, money, power or just plain old ego. We never seem to learn that what goes around comes around and that an old proverb (source unknown) says, “Take what you want from life, says God. Take it and pay!”
Saturday, January 10, 2009
New Carpets
For the benefit of my readers, my writing has been disrupted by painting and carpets. Let me explain. We, my wife and I, with the assistance of my daughter and son-in-law have been painting our house. Those of you who have attempted this will know that this is no light matter. Especially when the colours - old to new – require more than one coat of paint to affect the change. At the same time we have changed from vertical window blinds to horizontal wooden ‘venetian’ blinds. Then once the painting was done we called in the carpet layers. To finalise the painting, change the blinds and get the carpets done took about four days, all up.
To do all this we had to move all the furniture out of the house (a double story ‘Town House’), some into the garage and, there being no rain likely in Perth for a while yet, some went into our little courtyard. We slept on a matrass on the floor. This was quite literally a pain for me as my ‘new’ knee joint has not yet got full articulation, so it is quite a struggle to both get down to floor level and to get up. Kneeling is the problem. All this meant that I was computerless and for two nights and we were TVless as well!
It was all worth it as the house looks very good now, all repainted with new window blinds and newly carpeted throughout!
To do all this we had to move all the furniture out of the house (a double story ‘Town House’), some into the garage and, there being no rain likely in Perth for a while yet, some went into our little courtyard. We slept on a matrass on the floor. This was quite literally a pain for me as my ‘new’ knee joint has not yet got full articulation, so it is quite a struggle to both get down to floor level and to get up. Kneeling is the problem. All this meant that I was computerless and for two nights and we were TVless as well!
It was all worth it as the house looks very good now, all repainted with new window blinds and newly carpeted throughout!
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Where is the famed Jewish compassion?
Thank God for some sense in this mad Gaza conflict. The following is copied from an ABC news report:
Queen Rania of Jordan, Israel's immediate neighbour, says the deaths of Gaza's children are unacceptable.
"The children of Gaza, the dead and the barely living, their mothers, their fathers, are not acceptable collateral damage," she said.
"Their lives do matter. Their loss does count. They are not divisible from our universal humanity. No child is. No civilian is."
UNICEF says the children of Gaza are being denied fundamental human rights, like protection from violence and access to education and healthcare.
But Israel's Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni says Hamas is the one deliberately targeting civilians.
"They targeted last week a school in Beersheba in Israel. Do you think that the proportionate action is to target a school?" she said.
"We are not going to do this. They are targeting civilians. We are not going to do this."
Two wrongs do not make a right. Israel is trying to justify their attack on a UN school by accusing Hamas of attacking an Israeli school. If Hamas did this, then shame on them. But for the Israelis to deliberately target a school (particularly when the UN gave them the co-ordinates of the school to avoid such an attack) with an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth revenge mentality is criminal. By doing so the Israelis have lowered themselves to the level of Hamas (if it is proved Hamas did what the Israelis claim) and they have lost any moral ‘high ground’ they may have enjoyed.
Children and adult civilians are not acceptable military targets. If Hamas, (and I repeat if), are using children and civilians as shields then that is despicable. But for the Israelis to kill children and their parents because such shielding MAY be occurring is equally despicable. In fact it is worse coming from a highly educated and cultured people like the Jews. They should hang their heads in shame!
The Jews roundly condemned the world for idly standing by while millions of their innocent men, women and children were slaughtered by the Nazis before and during the Second World War. Are the Palestinians not human? Don’t they suffer when hurt, mentally or physically? For sixty years the Israelis have controlled (or tried to control) the Palestinians that the formation of the very State of Israel caused the disenfranchised and now landless people to gather in Gaza – somewhere where they could put some roots down and call it home.
Haven’t the Israelis got any compassion; any understanding of the Palestinians plight? Have they no ‘milk of human kindness’? The Jews were disenfranchised and made landless in biblical times and they fought for centuries to get their ‘promised land’. What do they think the Palestinians are going to do in similar circumstances – just roll over?
Queen Rania of Jordan, Israel's immediate neighbour, says the deaths of Gaza's children are unacceptable.
"The children of Gaza, the dead and the barely living, their mothers, their fathers, are not acceptable collateral damage," she said.
"Their lives do matter. Their loss does count. They are not divisible from our universal humanity. No child is. No civilian is."
UNICEF says the children of Gaza are being denied fundamental human rights, like protection from violence and access to education and healthcare.
But Israel's Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni says Hamas is the one deliberately targeting civilians.
"They targeted last week a school in Beersheba in Israel. Do you think that the proportionate action is to target a school?" she said.
"We are not going to do this. They are targeting civilians. We are not going to do this."
Two wrongs do not make a right. Israel is trying to justify their attack on a UN school by accusing Hamas of attacking an Israeli school. If Hamas did this, then shame on them. But for the Israelis to deliberately target a school (particularly when the UN gave them the co-ordinates of the school to avoid such an attack) with an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth revenge mentality is criminal. By doing so the Israelis have lowered themselves to the level of Hamas (if it is proved Hamas did what the Israelis claim) and they have lost any moral ‘high ground’ they may have enjoyed.
Children and adult civilians are not acceptable military targets. If Hamas, (and I repeat if), are using children and civilians as shields then that is despicable. But for the Israelis to kill children and their parents because such shielding MAY be occurring is equally despicable. In fact it is worse coming from a highly educated and cultured people like the Jews. They should hang their heads in shame!
The Jews roundly condemned the world for idly standing by while millions of their innocent men, women and children were slaughtered by the Nazis before and during the Second World War. Are the Palestinians not human? Don’t they suffer when hurt, mentally or physically? For sixty years the Israelis have controlled (or tried to control) the Palestinians that the formation of the very State of Israel caused the disenfranchised and now landless people to gather in Gaza – somewhere where they could put some roots down and call it home.
Haven’t the Israelis got any compassion; any understanding of the Palestinians plight? Have they no ‘milk of human kindness’? The Jews were disenfranchised and made landless in biblical times and they fought for centuries to get their ‘promised land’. What do they think the Palestinians are going to do in similar circumstances – just roll over?
Monday, January 5, 2009
The problem in Gaza is the Israelis
Tell me please, someone, why is Israel so special – more so than any other piece of God’s earth? The land was there before the Jews were thought of and will still be there long after the last Jew and the last Palestinian has perished. I am fully aware of recent Jewish history and the Holocaust and the Death Camps of horrific memory and why the State of Israel was ‘given’ to the Jews (and ‘taken’ from the Palestinians). That is now past and hopefully the world has learned something from those events. But I wonder if the Israelis have moved one iota from the Old Testament dictum of, “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth”. This does not work – never has, never will. All it does is to build resentment and continue a cycle of injustice, the seeking of revenge and feuding, which helps no one and harms many without solving the original problem. The Israelis should know this. They have been victims of the self same tactics!!
The Israelis know all this very well. Their history is replete with Jewish persecution and they quite rightly complain, loudly, to the world about anti-Zionism. If they persecute others, it is presumably pro-Zionist and therefore ok? So why should they use the same failed tactics, failed against them that is, against others and expect the tactics to work against ‘other’ ie Palestinians, this time around? Attacking Hamas, while at the same time killing innocent Palestinians in the hope that the surviving innocent Palestinians will blame Hamas (their elected Gaza government) for the slaughter and not Israel (whom they consider the occupying forces and also the oppressors) is a very unlikely scenario indeed.
I have said it before and I will say it again, and again – remove the causes and the reason for the formation and popularity of Hamas, Fatah and other hard line Arab organisations no longer exists. Think about the following:-
• The illegal and unjust occupation of Palestinian lands by the Israelis. Against the specific ruling of the United Nations the Israelis have continued with their construction of illegal settlements in occupied Palestinian lands. No compensation is offered to those Palestinians denied access – for 60 years – to what is rightfully their land.
• The Israelis complete clamp on all movement by Palestinians to prevent suicide bombs (so they say and yet the Israelis themselves developed terrorist tactics and used them against the British – see the destruction of the King David Hotel in Jerusalem on 22nd July 1946 when a bomb placed in the basement by Israelis demolished part of the Hotel, killing 91 people -mainly British and injuring a further 46 people. Israelis celebrated the 60th anniversary of this event!)
• The blockade of Gaza. This prevents all shipment of food, water, medical supplies and any form of aid and causes untold misery in Gaza.
• The Israeli practice of using ‘collective’ punishment against ALL those in Gaza for the activities of those few who feel motivated enough to take some action. This is both unfair and unjust - and the Israelis know it!!
My sympathy for the Jewish people and my support for their ‘right’ to live in their Promised Land is rapidly diminishing. Because of their intransigence and obsession with the belief in their ‘rights’ to the land of Israel and as a ‘special’ people the Israelis are building up such a massive problem that we, in the West, will have to bail them out and clean up the mess they will be leaving. All for what? Pray tell me.
The Israelis know all this very well. Their history is replete with Jewish persecution and they quite rightly complain, loudly, to the world about anti-Zionism. If they persecute others, it is presumably pro-Zionist and therefore ok? So why should they use the same failed tactics, failed against them that is, against others and expect the tactics to work against ‘other’ ie Palestinians, this time around? Attacking Hamas, while at the same time killing innocent Palestinians in the hope that the surviving innocent Palestinians will blame Hamas (their elected Gaza government) for the slaughter and not Israel (whom they consider the occupying forces and also the oppressors) is a very unlikely scenario indeed.
I have said it before and I will say it again, and again – remove the causes and the reason for the formation and popularity of Hamas, Fatah and other hard line Arab organisations no longer exists. Think about the following:-
• The illegal and unjust occupation of Palestinian lands by the Israelis. Against the specific ruling of the United Nations the Israelis have continued with their construction of illegal settlements in occupied Palestinian lands. No compensation is offered to those Palestinians denied access – for 60 years – to what is rightfully their land.
• The Israelis complete clamp on all movement by Palestinians to prevent suicide bombs (so they say and yet the Israelis themselves developed terrorist tactics and used them against the British – see the destruction of the King David Hotel in Jerusalem on 22nd July 1946 when a bomb placed in the basement by Israelis demolished part of the Hotel, killing 91 people -mainly British and injuring a further 46 people. Israelis celebrated the 60th anniversary of this event!)
• The blockade of Gaza. This prevents all shipment of food, water, medical supplies and any form of aid and causes untold misery in Gaza.
• The Israeli practice of using ‘collective’ punishment against ALL those in Gaza for the activities of those few who feel motivated enough to take some action. This is both unfair and unjust - and the Israelis know it!!
My sympathy for the Jewish people and my support for their ‘right’ to live in their Promised Land is rapidly diminishing. Because of their intransigence and obsession with the belief in their ‘rights’ to the land of Israel and as a ‘special’ people the Israelis are building up such a massive problem that we, in the West, will have to bail them out and clean up the mess they will be leaving. All for what? Pray tell me.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Gitmo Detainees
So now we (Australia that is) have been asked, twice by the US, if Australia will accept ‘a few’ Gitmo detainees. Why not? For starters many, if not most should never have been sent to Guantanamo Bay in the first place – quite a few have been released without charge. Certainly some of them have engaged in very serious ‘anti-social’ activities in Afghanistan and other locations but as I have said many times before, look at the reason why these people engage in such activities! People normally do not choose to do what they are alleged to have done without (in their estimation) a just cause.
Apart from a few criminal elements, which are found everywhere not just amongst the Arabs, people do not normally kill others or destroy property without considerable provocation. In their (the Gitmo detainees and others) eyes ‘they’ – brother Arabs in Palestine - have been disenfranchised; they have no land which is a fundamental right for normal human happiness and security. They are refugees living in incredibly overcrowded conditions in Gaza. Their rights as human beings are being denied; they have little or no fresh water or food; hospitals have run out of medical supplies; they have limited electricity and worst of all they are being subjected to ‘group’ punishment by the Israelis, which is prohibited by the UN. There is nothing ethical about the treatment of those in Gaza or in Gitmo. Those now held at Gitmo and others, feel sympathy towards their brother Arabs. Who can blame them?
While I certainly do not condone the methods they employ, much of what they do is born of frustration in that no one, who does not have a vested interest, has really listened to their complaints – not for sixty years at least. No one has sat down with the Arabs and said, “Ok. The situation in Gaza is X, we, the non-Arab countries in the Middle East would like Y, what do you want? Let’s work from this point forward?” Where there is a Will, there is a Way.
The Israelis and the Americans have to wake up and realise that they are part of the problem. People cannot be treated as trash without there being some consequences. The Law of Cause and Effect cannot be evaded, cannot be avoided – every action or deed has a consequence. It must be so. As individuals we cannot possible envisage the consequences of EVERYTHING we do. There will be consequences, without a doubt – positive and negative; some will be immediately apparent; some may take many years to ‘work through the system’. The only certainty is that somewhere down the line the initiator of the deed or action will themselves be affected – that is only fair.
To get back to the original question “Why not accept some Gitmo detainees in Australia?” Indeed why not? Give them a chance; give them back their humanity, their dignity and their pride. Allow them to develop as human beings in their own way. Draw a line in the sand and say, “What happened in recent history was unfair and unjust and in many respects unconscionable but it is history and cannot be changed. You are here now – in Australia (or wherever) – what do you, as a human being, want to now become?” There is nothing wrong with being an Arab. There is nothing wrong with being a Muslim. They may be ‘different’ to us White Anglo-Saxon Protestant Australians or Americans but then we are ‘different’ to them too!
The only way, and I repeat only, is to treat others the way you would like to be treated. There is no other viable alternative.
Apart from a few criminal elements, which are found everywhere not just amongst the Arabs, people do not normally kill others or destroy property without considerable provocation. In their (the Gitmo detainees and others) eyes ‘they’ – brother Arabs in Palestine - have been disenfranchised; they have no land which is a fundamental right for normal human happiness and security. They are refugees living in incredibly overcrowded conditions in Gaza. Their rights as human beings are being denied; they have little or no fresh water or food; hospitals have run out of medical supplies; they have limited electricity and worst of all they are being subjected to ‘group’ punishment by the Israelis, which is prohibited by the UN. There is nothing ethical about the treatment of those in Gaza or in Gitmo. Those now held at Gitmo and others, feel sympathy towards their brother Arabs. Who can blame them?
While I certainly do not condone the methods they employ, much of what they do is born of frustration in that no one, who does not have a vested interest, has really listened to their complaints – not for sixty years at least. No one has sat down with the Arabs and said, “Ok. The situation in Gaza is X, we, the non-Arab countries in the Middle East would like Y, what do you want? Let’s work from this point forward?” Where there is a Will, there is a Way.
The Israelis and the Americans have to wake up and realise that they are part of the problem. People cannot be treated as trash without there being some consequences. The Law of Cause and Effect cannot be evaded, cannot be avoided – every action or deed has a consequence. It must be so. As individuals we cannot possible envisage the consequences of EVERYTHING we do. There will be consequences, without a doubt – positive and negative; some will be immediately apparent; some may take many years to ‘work through the system’. The only certainty is that somewhere down the line the initiator of the deed or action will themselves be affected – that is only fair.
To get back to the original question “Why not accept some Gitmo detainees in Australia?” Indeed why not? Give them a chance; give them back their humanity, their dignity and their pride. Allow them to develop as human beings in their own way. Draw a line in the sand and say, “What happened in recent history was unfair and unjust and in many respects unconscionable but it is history and cannot be changed. You are here now – in Australia (or wherever) – what do you, as a human being, want to now become?” There is nothing wrong with being an Arab. There is nothing wrong with being a Muslim. They may be ‘different’ to us White Anglo-Saxon Protestant Australians or Americans but then we are ‘different’ to them too!
The only way, and I repeat only, is to treat others the way you would like to be treated. There is no other viable alternative.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Attitudes
About six years ago I used to help transport a lady confined to a wheelchair; she had MS. She also had a daughter of about twelve years old. Now this lady (and I am being generous when I use the term lady) was obviously frustrated about her condition and relative immobility because I have never met a person so consumed with anger, nor a person so lacking in consideration for others. And her language left a lot to be desired.
This woman (note the change of term) considered both myself and her daughter as her slaves. We were supposed to be at her beck and call. Now I was paid for the task of transporting her wherever she wanted to go but her daughter HAD to help because of DUTY. She was told, in my presence that she (the mother) had a difficult birth with the daughter and had spent thousands of dollars on her clothes, education etc, so it was her OBLIGATION to help her mother. There was no display of love or affection towards the daughter. No tender words of appreciation; no thank you; nothing. I don’t know what excuses the woman gave to the Education Department but whenever I was called to transport her, the daughter was there too. I managed to speak to the daughter on her own a couple of times and she told me that she was not at all happy with her situation. It was beginning to overwhelm her. All she wanted to be was a child – to go to school and play with her friends.
I would be interested to know what happened to them as the daughter was a very nice young girl, who will need much care in the future if she is not to turn out an angry and bitter young woman. In the end the woman’s never ending unpleasantness, appalling language and her continued abuse of my time and services – I was never good enough etc, etc, just wore me down and I refused to transport her anymore. Her abusive behaviour towards her daughter used to grate on me as well.
I tell the story, above, to contrast with another woman (this one to my mind actually is a lady) who also has MS – my wife and I often see her at the supermarket and traveling around the suburb on her motorised wheel chair. Now she also has a daughter, this one would be about eight years old. The difference is that the help this daughter gives her mother is with love, not obligation. They are obviously very fond of each other and there is real friendship between mother and daughter. This sort of love is a pleasure to behold because it is genuine and from the heart. Her daughter is young enough and small enough to get a ‘lift’ on the motorised wheel chair and we have seen the pair of them scooting all over the place.
Now while I only know these people superficially, their apparently different attitudes towards their similar debilitating disease is very telling. One was incredibly negative, angry and not at all happy with her lot, while the other appears to have a more positive attitude and this shows in the happy relationship she has with her daughter and shop attendants. I can tell you which one I would prefer to help!!
This woman (note the change of term) considered both myself and her daughter as her slaves. We were supposed to be at her beck and call. Now I was paid for the task of transporting her wherever she wanted to go but her daughter HAD to help because of DUTY. She was told, in my presence that she (the mother) had a difficult birth with the daughter and had spent thousands of dollars on her clothes, education etc, so it was her OBLIGATION to help her mother. There was no display of love or affection towards the daughter. No tender words of appreciation; no thank you; nothing. I don’t know what excuses the woman gave to the Education Department but whenever I was called to transport her, the daughter was there too. I managed to speak to the daughter on her own a couple of times and she told me that she was not at all happy with her situation. It was beginning to overwhelm her. All she wanted to be was a child – to go to school and play with her friends.
I would be interested to know what happened to them as the daughter was a very nice young girl, who will need much care in the future if she is not to turn out an angry and bitter young woman. In the end the woman’s never ending unpleasantness, appalling language and her continued abuse of my time and services – I was never good enough etc, etc, just wore me down and I refused to transport her anymore. Her abusive behaviour towards her daughter used to grate on me as well.
I tell the story, above, to contrast with another woman (this one to my mind actually is a lady) who also has MS – my wife and I often see her at the supermarket and traveling around the suburb on her motorised wheel chair. Now she also has a daughter, this one would be about eight years old. The difference is that the help this daughter gives her mother is with love, not obligation. They are obviously very fond of each other and there is real friendship between mother and daughter. This sort of love is a pleasure to behold because it is genuine and from the heart. Her daughter is young enough and small enough to get a ‘lift’ on the motorised wheel chair and we have seen the pair of them scooting all over the place.
Now while I only know these people superficially, their apparently different attitudes towards their similar debilitating disease is very telling. One was incredibly negative, angry and not at all happy with her lot, while the other appears to have a more positive attitude and this shows in the happy relationship she has with her daughter and shop attendants. I can tell you which one I would prefer to help!!
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