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Slather and lather sunscreens

Betsy L. Angert — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 22:15:35 GMT

The habit that hurts the habitat.

"Gun Laws and Crime: A Complex Relationship"

Betsy L. Angert — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 19:46:03 GMT

Dearest Andrew . . .

I never imagined it might happen; nonetheless, on this issue, we do not agree. I may love persons who hunt, and I do, still, today, I am more convinced than I was decades ago; guns in the community cause unnecessary death. Please consider what poverty creates. People in financial pain, emotionally are injured. Some resort to drugs. Others turn to alcohol for comfort. Individuals strapped steal so that they might buy food or shelter. Children, left home alone, join gangs. They too seek solace and a sense of family. In troubled times, our fellow man, friend or relative, does not express fondness well. Hurt hearts often resort to violence.

I share a story. This tales is but one of too many.

Chicago Killings Raise Parents' Fears
SWAT Teams Patrol Streets to Avoid Repeat of 36-Shooting Weekend
By Diana Alvear
Chicago, April 26, 2008
All day, Chicago was a city on edge, with police gearing up to combat the waves of violence that have hit the city hard over the past few weeks.
Police SWAT teams are saturating the city's South Side, the area where most of the 331 shootings in the city this year have occurred. The teams are out in street patrols, backed up by helicopter surveillance.
It's their response to last weekend's shooting spree, which alone counted for an estimated 36 of those shootings, seven of them deadly.
Jitters Weatherspoon, a South Side native, said the violence in his neighborhood is forcing him and other parents to hold their children hostage in their own homes, for fear of seeing them get shot.
"That's a parent's worst dream is to have to bury their own kid and yes, it's happening. People are burying their kids," he said.
Recently, he came close to realizing that nightmare. His son was carjacked at gunpoint.

Who might a carjacker be? What might he or she have seen in earlier days. We cannot know what occurs in the lives of others.

Consider a trained soldier. For him or her, the fight or flight response is deeply engrained. Now, in 2008, many one-time warriors are out on the streets. Some say 200,00 veterans have no shelter. Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome is common among those who return from a war not of their making. In America, they have found another combat zone. Civilians may see one of these sweet souls who served their country, and think this person is a vagrant, trespasser, or potential thief. If a homeowner believes it is best to protect their home or self with a gun . . . Might we also wonder; what might the homeless soldiers think of those who approach them abruptly? We cannot control what occurs.

Might I also share what may offer a bit of balance.

There is no question, of course, that guns figure in countless murders, suicides and accidental deaths. Over the five years ending in 1997, the Justice Department says, there was an average of 36,000 firearms-related deaths a year. (Fifty-one percent were suicides, and 44 percent homicides.) Determining whether particular gun control laws would have, on balance, prevented some of those deaths is difficult. Take Washington, D.C., whose near-total ban on handguns in the home was on the receiving end of last week's decision.
At the crudest level, as Justice Breyer wrote, violent crime in Washington has increased since the ban took effect in 1976. "Indeed," he continued, "a comparison with 49 other major cities reveals that the district's homicide rate is actually substantially higher relative to these other cities than it was before the handgun restriction went into place."
Those statistics by themselves prove nothing, of course. Factors aside from the gun ban, like demographics, economics and the drug trade, were almost certainly in play. "As students of elementary logic know," Justice Breyer wrote, "after it does not mean because of it."

The because is beyond statistics. Humans are not logical, although they would wish to believe they are. We need only consider neurology. People process what enters the brain through the amygdala, otherwise known as the emotional sentinel. Ears and eyes are conduits, not a means for comprehension. The rational portion of our gray matter is less powerful than humans wish to accept. Minds are malleable. I offer . . .

Fear is the emotion most responsible for reinvigorating the study of emotion. Our studies have led us to understand that the amygdala is the key, no matter how the stimulus comes into the brain: through the eyes, the nose, and the ears.
The amygdala is programmed to react without benefit of input from the thinking part of the brain, the cortex. Eventually the cortex gets involved, but this processing takes longer.
We also know that the amygdala's input to the cortex is much stronger than communication the other way. An emotional reaction like fear can more easily gain control over the cortex and influence cortical processes than the cortex can gain control over the amygdala. This may explain why psychotherapy is such a difficult process.
Thus, it is possible for emotions to be triggered in us without the cortex knowing exactly what is going on. For many of us, this happens all the time. In some people, this may be especially strong, so their emotions are being triggered in ways that prevent them from having insight into what they are doing.

People may wish to profess, "If guns are outlawed only outlaws will have guns." However, in truth the regulations that rule us are rarely written on paper. Principled decrees, documented, and placed in legal books can only help to deter or delay us. Sadly, as statistics reveal people too frequently do what they want. The reasons are rarely rational or reasonable.

Greater access to what causes much harm will increase the probability of what too often comes. Perhaps, we might assess the correlation to the number of firearms on the market and usage. An evaluation of economic stress and how this affects gun crimes would also be an interesting study. I sigh as I contemplate what is likely to come.

Gun Laws and Crime: A Complex Relationship, By Adam Liptak. The New York Times. June 29, 2008
pdf Gun Laws and Crime: A Complex Relationship, By Adam Liptak. The New York Times. June 29, 2008
"The Future of the Study of Emotion." By Joseph LeDoux, Ph.D., the Henry and Lucy Moses Professor of Science at New York University's Center for Neural Science, is the author of The Emotional Brain.

The will to learn . . .

Betsy L. Angert — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 16:59:49 GMT

Might we consider methods that are more expansive when we discern the way.

I ask why.

Betsy L. Angert — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 00:03:10 GMT

Dearest Mike . . .

I trust most every American citizen could say, as I will. As I considered the presidential candidates I could only conclude, this will be an extremely arduous election for me.

I am not a warrior. I never have been. In my life, combat is not and never was an option. Within each of the last three generations, in my family, there has always been at least one person who considers him or her self a peacenik. I am among those who favors global harmony. I even trust to my core tranquility is possible. When you grow up in a home where people speak rather than scream you learn to have faith in the power of calm communication.

As I watched this election season unfold, I realized the candidate who spoke as the people did, we must Exit Iraq immediately, was not given a forum. The person who envisioned a Department of Peace was said to be unelectable. The preferred policies to leave the Middle East were half-hearted at best. The top tier offered tentative plans to bring the troops home. Yet, Americans accepted these.

As one who deeply believes, if anyone wins someone, or countless, will lose, a life, a limb, an eye, a sense of self, safety, or security, I marvel as the presumptive nominees defer to the current course and the Commander-In-Chief. Slight variances in procedure are supposed to calm the fears of an apprehensive America. Mine are heightened.

I inquire as Congressman Wexler did when he addressed General Petraeus; what is victory? What did our soldiers die for? For those who live with stresses that might never pass, I ask why.

Wexler Questions General Petraeus on April 9. 2008

Liberals, Congressman Wexler . . .

Betsy L. Angert — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 03:52:24 GMT

Survive and thrive.

The era of the end?

Betsy L. Angert — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 03:26:47 GMT

Dearest Storm Bear . . .

The logic escapes me.

We couldn't risk losing him and there was no time to wait for anaesthetics, so we had to shoot him.

I do not understand the desire for lower gas prices. We know these will lead to increased consumption and dependence on fossil fuels. Supposedly, people have come to accept and global warming will accelerate if we continue as we have. Human reason and rationales are beyond my comprehension.

"Owing to past neglect, in the face of the plainest warnings, we have now entered upon a period of danger . . .
The era of procrastination, of half-measures, of soothing and baffling expedients, of delays, is coming to a close.
In its place we are entering a period of consequences..."
~ Winston Churchill, November 1936

I would say "G-d help us" were it not for the fact I believe the Almighty helps those who help themselves. I also avow "Thou Art G-d. " Neither of these philosophies allow for the possibility man will do much to save our planet. Humans have harmed Mother Earth and our selves. If man is his own Lord . . . well, G-d help us.

America, colorblind?

Betsy L. Angert — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 01:44:11 GMT

. . . or colormute.

Where Have All The Flowers Gone?

Betsy L. Angert — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 18:08:42 GMT

I love this thought Andrew. I am reminded of the tale . . .

Where Have All The Flowers Gone? - Peter, Paul and Mary

For me, the message relates to more than just war. What humans do to deplete the balance of nature is a tragedy. We kill plants, flowers, people, and all forms of life.

I know not why. I only cry as I consider what two-legged mammals do.

My last Earthly conversation with Mom

Betsy L. Angert — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 04:55:26 GMT

The taxi came to take me to the airport before my Mom passed. We knew we would not see each other in the same way again. We kissed and hugged. Mommy said, "Have a good trip." I replied, "You too."

Please Mister Bush . . .

Betsy L. Angert — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 14:17:20 GMT

Do as you promise; end America's addiction to oil.

No more drilling, offshore or on.

Invest in research and development of alternative fuels, not policies that fill the full pockets of your oil-rich friends and family.

buzzed

Betsy L. Angert — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 02:56:16 GMT

I submitted this treatise to Buzz Flash. If you wish to broaden the audience for what I think a glorious reflective editorial and artistic essay, I invite the click of your mouse on the link below.

If you are unfamiliar with the process or Buzz Flash, this site provides headlines, news, and commentary for a geographically-diverse, politically-savvy, pro-democracy, anti-hypocrisy web community.

There readers can cast a "vote" for articles they think worthy of attention.

If you choose, please travel to the link below, register if you have not in the past and buzz away. You can chose a screen name if you rather not use your given moniker.

Offshore drilling is the answer? Really?
http://www.buzzflash.net/story...

Regardless of the decision to buzz the essay, I thank you for your consideration, time, and for being you.

The Seventh Generation, our priority

Betsy L. Angert — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 00:06:58 GMT

Again, the talk of the day is the price of petroleum. People protest. They do not wish to pay exorbitant rates at the pump. Pocketbook issues take precedence in the public's collective mind. From the President to Presidential candidates, from Governors to Senators, from the man on the street to the woman in the office, people have set aside formerly held principles. Few recall the wisdom they once expressed. The environment must be our priority if the Seventh Generation is to be.

United we stand . . .

Betsy L. Angert — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 00:01:17 GMT

More than eighty percent of Americans agree; let us not stay the course.

Tim Russert touches hearts

Betsy L. Angert — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 23:09:56 GMT

and minds.

In memorial . . .

Obama Speaks of Smears

Betsy L. Angert — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 04:58:54 GMT

KO - Obama Fights Back Against Smear Campaign