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My fundamental unit of conciousness for today.
I'm a JAEG (Jewish American Expatriate Geophysicist ;-) who works in an Australian governmental research agency in Perth. There happens to be a Palestinian woman working in my office (another Ph.D., but she's an engineer) and, needless to say, things have been a little tense in the office of late. I read your blog today after following Dave Winer's pointer, and found the beautiful photo from AFP of the little Palestinian girl holding flowers at a memorial service in Gaza City for the victims of the WTC and Pentagon attacks. After drying my eyes and blowing my nose, I printed out the photo, and handwrote a note on it to my colleague offering any help my family or I could give to her or her family in staying safe in the coming troubled times. I handed it to her, and hugged her bawling like a baby, to which she replied (after reading it) "God bless you". Doc, I just wanted you to know that you contributed a little to world peace today. (At the very least, my little corner of the world.) To the little girl in the picture, if you are listening, I just want to say "here is one Jew who does not hate you" no matter what is said or done by the American and Israeli politicians in the name of my people(s). I will pray that you and your family stay safe too. (That's a whale of a lot of prayer for someone who has described himself religiously as an agnostic for the last couple of decades.) That picture is now hanging in my office right next to the one of the firefighters who, knowing some hundreds of their workmates and thousands of innocents are entombed in the WTC rubble behind them, are raising the American flag on the tilted flagpole. To me, the two pictures are different sides of the same coin: bravely do what you can to help thy neighbor. The pieces found in the mainstream media are utterly blatant examples of what Noam Chomsky has labeled the "manufacture of consent". While I don't agree with the ferverence of Chomsky's brand of politics, I think that he (and you) have put your fingers on a very real phenomenon. Doc, your blog is a breath of sanity and clear thinking amidst all of the saber rattling found elsewhere. I just wanted to say: Right On Doc. (P.S. The New Yorker wife and 4 month old daughter of another colleague of mine, who were visiting family "somewhere" in Manhattan during the attack have just contacted us here in Perth. They are safe.) There are responses to this message:
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