Writing for a Different Audience

The next few days I will be writing on a professional level.

"Archbishop Cranmer" runs a great site.


Venture into the journals of Anwaar Hussain and James Oppenheim.

Jason Siggers runs a busy site.

Remember the obvious as you read a daily dose of blogs. Freedom of speech is a liberty enjoyed by all Americans. But the freedom to engage critical analysis is ignored by the majority. Please! Cast a critical gaze on everything which you read. Naturally, it should include my site! smile

See you next week!

Tammy Swofford

Book Review: I'm Still Standing

It seemed a necessary tribute to purchase the story of Shoshana Johnson, a P.O.W. during Operation Iraqi Freedom. So little was divulged regarding the captivity of this Army cook when she first came home. Her story was overshadowed by the rescue and subsequent media saturation surrounding Jessica Lynch. Yet after reading the book in leisurely manner over the course of approximately three hours my recommendation of this book is a bit muted. It is worth reading, but not worth the purchase price. Await its arrival at your local library.

The story is heartfelt. Yet the grammar is poorly constructed which makes for a bumpy ride. Sentences with the words "had had" or ending with linking verbs should never have made it beyond the copy editor's desk. The lack of command of language on the page bothers me.

Beyond the issue of language clarity, extraneous information which is irrelevant to the basic tale is readily apparent. Discussion of tattoos and body piercings seems an unnecessary literary venture. The disclosure that Ms. Johnson prefers to date men of a different color is a bit of an odd inclusion in the book. Perhaps it allows the reader to view the humanity of the soldier. I cannot speculate on these inclusions.

The picture which emerges from the story is one which might leave the reader open to a new level of debate as to whether women should be within the theater of operation in a ground war. The relatively short time in captivity left an indelible mark on the psyche of this female soldier. In spite of a fairly consistent use of the word "kind" to describe her captors, the difficulties and injuries of this woman haunt her today.

There is open admission of suffering from PTSD. I have nothing but compassion for the author. Yet her story - and it is her story to tell - is tinged with bitterness.

There also seems to be lack of historical grasp of what is possibly the low-intensity phase for the next global conflict. Ms. Johnson is able to reach and lay hold of her father's service in Gulf I. Yet her gaze does not move far enough back on the timeline. The opening curtain on a new stage occurred with the bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut. It placed us on the cusp of a new reality. That event may find its culmination in the future actions and escalation of tensions between the West and nations seeking to join the nuclear club.

Tammy Swofford

*My gratitude is extended to this soldier for her sacrifice on behalf of our nation.

Diyah

Jehu, an Old Testament king of Israel, demanded a bloody gift. The heads of seventy royal princes were delivered in baskets to the city of Jezreel. The lineage of Ahab was decimated and the future of Jehu secured.

Years later, the prophet Ezekiel is moved by the Spirit of God to bring a new standard regarding vengeance. This moving oration is found in Ezekial chapter 18, and is one of my favorite benchmarks of Old Testament law. Each individual is judged for his own actions and the punishment for misdeeds falls squarely on his own head. There is no place for slaughter of a family unit to avenge a death.

Within the tribal belts of the Middle East the code of honor and laws of retribution are much different than what we find acceptable in the West. The right of retaliation against murder is a strongly held belief. But the jurisprudential tradition of "Diyah" or blood money can be found in al-Baqarah 178, which presents a law of equality where the near (male) relative of a murder victim may accept blood money as opposed to meting out death to avenge the family honor.

These laws of retribution and expiation within Shar'iah are very complex and vary a bit within the jurisprudential schools. The right of retaliation extends to bodily harm and loss of limbs, an eye, testes, etc. Whether in gold or in camels, the blood price is set. This right of retaliation can be renounced in favor of Diyah, but it is up to the near relative to determine a course of vengeance or one of mercy.

But what about the little girls who were brutally murdered in Iraq? One of the jurisprudential schools has this to say:

"The blood money for a woman is half that of a man, both regarding her life and her limbs."

(Reference available on request)

Article Link

Tammy Swofford

Book Review: "When Everything Changed" by Gail Collins

The book by Gail Collins was gifted to me by a man. My friend has good taste. The book is a great choice for all women regardless of the season in their life or current circumstances. The actual title is a bit longer, as noted in this link. And it aptly describes the topic of interest.

Over the years the debate has raged regarding gene pool v environment. My own belief is the gene pool cannot be mastered by the environment. But the environment is fully capable of modifying behavioral response. Reading this selection I smiled quite a bit. Considering myself unique, I discovered that I am quite an ordinary woman who falls in line with culture based on my place on the historical timeline. Born in such manner that placed me too tender an age for the rampant promiscuity of the late sixties and early seventies, my sexual boundaries were never at risk for complete deconstruction. Instead, I am very much a product of the 1980's where the rise of the Moral Majority as a backlash against the lack of restraint of the prior generation moved the wildly swinging cultural pendulum back toward the middle. College degree, delay of the welcome of offspring, and then a move to modify a career in favor of motherhood are all part and parcel of environment.

Gail Collins provides an excellent combination of research and moving storytelling as she weaves the lives of the women into the fabric of thought. Most chilling, the chapter on civil rights. It is quite distressing, on scale of the book by James McEachin - "Farewell to the Mockingbirds". It is important to remember that man is never more than a generation away from a propensity for societally accepted hatred. My tears flowed, at certain points in the reading.

One deficit within the story of abortion rights is the neglect to present in strong manner how this industry has impacted the ability of infertile couples to acquire babies by adoption. It would have been admirable for Ms. Collins to bite the bullet on this issue.

I did find the final chapter a bit of a discredit to the talents of the author. The editorial bias is evident. Ms. Hillary Clinton is cast as a political goddess. No mention of Whitewater, impropriety with F.B.I. files, or the ethical concern with the Dubai port deal. I could name a few more issues, but why present a laundry list? Ms. Palin, is crafted as a folksy political anomaly and she might as well be a modern day Medusa. smile

But this book receives high marks from me. It is a lovely selection no matter political persuasion or issues of conscience.

Tammy Swofford

tammyswofford@yahoo.com

Without Mercy

The political process in Washington is in a state of decay and must be revitalized to serve the Will of the People as envisioned by our forefathers.

Without Mercy:

The incumbency must be relieved of their positions and sense of entitlement. Read me lips. All of them, across political persuasions. The system is embedded with the tools of corruption under the auspices of the law. A little yeast, leavens the whole loaf.

Without Mercy:

The ousted incumbents must be monitored by the electorate. A statistically significant number of them will continue business as usual taking jobs as lobbyists for the special interest groups which sustained them in Congress. The removed incumbents must become persona non grata at Capitol Hill functions and within the hallways of our government. If they are on the calender of a new member of Congress as a lobbyist there should be an accounting for the nature of their visit. A secondary visit by representatives of the electorate should follow, to show distaste for the soft corruption which plagues our officials. Their job is to serve as stewards of the public trust, not as lackeys for profiteers.

Without Mercy:

The electorate should demand that the Congressional member and their staff work for the good of the people of the state they represent.

Without Mercy:

The electorate should seek to bring legislation at the state level to strengthen state rights and negate the encroachment of the federal branch into issues best resolved in regional manner. Smaller is better, when it comes to government.

Without Mercy:

Americans must go to the polls in droves with one purpose. That purpose is not abortion, tax reform, gun rights or any other issue. Our purpose is to revitalize the political process and reclaim the scaffolding of governance. It is accomplished with removal of the powerful incumbent base in Washington. We should be disgusted at this point with the highly scripted "Woodsy" apologies for the miserable state of affairs in Washington.

After we clean the House and the Senate we may then proceed to tackle the issues near to our hearts. But our focus should be on revitalization of process, not hot-button items of political interest.


Tammy Swofford

Official News Release: Petty Officer First Class Sean Caughman

NMCB-22, Kandahar, Afghanistan

February 18, 2010


A memorial service was held in Kuwait on February 18 for Sean Leach Caughman, an Information Systems Technician (Seabee Combat Warfare) Petty Officer First Class with Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Twenty Two, who died of natural causes on February 16, 2010. Among those in attendance were Lt. Gen. William G. Webster, Jr., Commander of Army Central Command, as well as many other United States Navy, Marine, Army and Air Force officers and enlisted personnel.

A Navy Reservist, IT1 Caughman was deployed to the Battalion’s Kuwait Detachment in support of Operations Noble Eagle, Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, performing many critical functions within the Information Technology and Communications Department. In his primary function as the Detachment’s computer expert, he aided in the resolution of the computer and telephone network trouble calls, allowing the Detachment to perform its mission successfully. He also held positions as an Electronic Key Management System custodian, responsible for communications equipment.

He also was the Detachment Navy Career Counselor assisting the Detachment’s 100 personnel in making informed decisions about their Navy careers. While performing his duties, he was always willing to interrupt his work to help others. He was a good listener and always offered sound advice. He never let his emotions get the best of him and was always calm and collected under pressure.

After a short period in the Air Force, Petty Officer Caughman joined the Navy in April of 2000 as an IT2 through the Advance Paygrade (APG) program. His first duty assignment was the USS Frank Cable (AS-40), a submarine tender. Transferring to NMCB 22 in March of 2005, he served in the Communications Department for the last 5 years, quickly becoming a Subject Matter Expert in both Radio Communications and Computer Networks.

He has deployed twice with NMCB 22, the first of these was in 2005. He earned the Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist Designator in February of 2006 and attained status as a Navy Career Counselor in June of 2007. His awards included the Navy Achievement Medal, the National Defense Medal, both the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary and Service Medals, Armed Forces Reserve Medal, Naval Reserve Meritorious Service Medal (2), and the Expert Pistol Medal. In 2008 he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from LeTourneau University.

An extraordinary individual, he was bright, funny, extremely positive and a huge fan of Star Trek and a lover of sushi. He was also part of the stunt crew during the filming of “The Protector”, a 1999 film starring Lee Majors. He had a bright future in the Navy ahead of him. He died while answering the call of his country and will be sorely missed by all the men and women of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Twenty Two.

*Bloggers note: Most recent update, the remains of IT1 Caughman will be flown into NAS Fort Worth on Tuesday.

Tammy

Sarah Palin, meet Howard Phillips: A Cautionary Tale

With the euphoria over the recent political upset in Massachusetts and what appears to be the growing clout of America's Tea Party it seems good to reflect a bit on the glory days of an earlier grassroots political movement, the US Taxpayer's Party.

Political aspirations and momentum do not always transition to sustainable political gain. Sarah Palin's team would do well to take a historical look at the sizzle and fizzle of Howard Phillip's attempted runs for the presidency and the risks inherent with a platform built on too many reformative planks which dilute focus and political strength.

Mr. Phillips, a convert from Judaism to Christianity was the Director of the U.S. Office of Economic Opportunity and also headed the President's Council on Youth Opportunity during the Nixon administration. In 1974 he became the founder and chairman of the Conservative Caucus, a position held to this day. Leaping forward in time, it was in 1991 that Mr. Phillips met with a handful of men to form the national US Taxpayer's Party. While many analysts saw the party as a private political limousine for Patrick Buchanan, Mr. Phillips had aspirations of his own. He made his first run for the presidency in 1992 with Bob Tisch, a veteran of both World War II and the Korean Conflict. He ran as the US Taxpayer's Party presidential candidate again in 1996, appearing on forty state ballots. Seeking to define more clearly the party goals, the organization changed names to the "Constitution Party" in 1999.

This party campaigned for abolition of the IRS and the Federal Reserve System, and abolition of public welfare. They campaigned for pro-life and strengthened gun ownership liberties. They also supported greater use of the death penalty. Howard Phillips never saw the realization of his presidential dream. It is a cautionary tale.

The next blog will be titled "Without Mercy". I will place my thoughts on the page as to what I feel is necessary political action for the coming election season.


Howard Phillips blog

Tammy Swofford

Islam in the 21st Century: America, Unprepared

Fareed Zakaria writes of a flowering of "Jeffersonian democracy" within Muslim-majority nations. He speaks of moderate Muslim leaders waging and winning a war against extremism. Mr. Zakaria blames Republicans for fanning fears and speaks of a turning tide. "We no longer fear the possibility of a major country succumbing to jihadist ideology."

As he writes, Pakistan fights to contain a radical flank and several nations in Africa are being roiled with a resurgence of distilled Islamic thought attached to military fervor which is moving with rapid political pulse. As he speaks of "the enemy in our minds" I prefer Mr. Zakaria not push rational individuals off the cliff with his dismissive attitude. There are many of us who have studied geopolitical Islam for years. It should be a succinct goal for rational and thoughtful policymakers to take control of domestic and foreign policy decisions, stepping up to address valid concerns regarding Islam's interface with and quest for dominance of the West in the 21st century.

We were unprepared for Islam in an environment of technological advance. The political gestalt of Islam in the 21st century is something which must be tackled with immediacy, tenacity, but also ethical policy goals toward the 1.5 billion Muslims who inhabit Muslim-majority nations and reside within our midst as Americans.

Islam is a theocracy-based form of governance which is politically configured differently depending on the sect or school of jurisprudence. It plays out with cultural nuances expressed in manner of dress and home life. But at its core, Islam is not comparable to democracy due to the restraints and obligations of creed.

I have read the 2002 U.N. Development report of which Mr. Zakaria speaks. The first report is quite good, but the second report showed the corruptability of scholarship. I am not in disagreement with all of the thoughts presented by the editor of Newsweek. But I do think he is prone to a good whitewashing of certain things.

Within the West, it is the progressive template of the Muslim Brotherhood which is moving forward in decade-incremental goals. Having shared meals, many a cup of coffee, and vibrant dialogue with the followers of Qutb, al-Banna, and Mawdudi I have noted a dedication to cause. The decade of the 1980's saw the emergence of Da'wah programs across the landscape and a deliberate movement into disenfranchised population groups such as the prison population. My mentorship in Islam was under one such motivated scholar.

One of the goals for the 1990's was to make Islam a palatable product, with a "neutral emotional value" through introduction of scripted response into media. The first Gulf war also provided a platform for orientation to Islamic studies for American troops deployed to Kuwait.

This current decade is one one in which the Muslim Brotherhood seeks establishment of para-parliamentary legal structures (hence parallel society and system of governance) in superimposed manner over existing government structures.

So while Mr. Zakaria decisively lands on the flight deck with his own "Mission Accomplished" banner, the fact of the matter is that America and Western Europe still have their work cut out for them. Islamic jurisprudence is superficially similar to democracy in that it provides a needed scaffolding for governance. But it is not Jeffersonian, rather it is the structure provided by Muhammad bin 'Abdullah bin 'Abdul-Muttalib.

Tammy Swofford

Islamic Distance Learning

Between current news on the capture of top Taliban leadership and the latest cawing on the Newsweek fence by Fz lies the vast uncharted land of Islamic jurisprudence. The next blog will move back into Islamic Distance Learning with a topic of interest. I will need to bundle together a bit of research and see what can be moved into blog-length commentary.

Fox News article

Fareed Zakaria article

Tammy Swofford

tammyswofford@yahoo.com

Kevin Smith: Twitter "This" !

Director Kevin Smith has an obesity problem. From the image provided for the story on his Twitter-Twister against Southwest Airlines it appears he suffers from morbid obesity. Possibly a more realistic Twitter would read thus:

"Dear Fans: I am quite chunky. I am a ticking human bomb. Medical research confirms that the co-morbidities for obesity are heart disease, stroke, diabetes, arthritic conditions, and high cholesterol. And now, even the propensity for early senile dementia appears to be associated with one too many trips to the trough. Southwest Airlines did me a favor today. They kicked me off the flight. I am now seeking consultation with an internal medicine physician and will undergo a complete physical. I wish to thank the flight crew for issuing forth what was a humiliating wake-up call regarding the physical danger I present to myself. And to the passengers seated next to me who felt my hips flubbering out into their own seat space underneath the jammed down arm rests, my sincere apology."

Director Kevin Smith needs to grow up and take responsibility for his health. Kudos to Southwest Airlines for assuring that each passenger is able to enjoy their flight in comfort without having to squeeze their knees together to make room for an obese client.

Tammy Swofford

Kimberly Al-Homsi: Free to be Crazy

Received an interesting email this morning from a friend. Yeah. He had a conversation with Kimberly Al-Homsi when he was at Pep Boys for a car repair. I called him and we chatted about his interface with this woman, who has been of interest to federal anti-terrorism officials for quite some time.

Quick Sketch Profile as given by my friend:

Physical Profile:

Combat fatigues without any rate or rank designation, identifying patches. Bald head.

Language:

English, but Arabic when on the telephone.

Interests:

Weapons. Rattled off a large list of weapons, claimed to be a "Marine Sniper" in the past.

Free to be crazy and on the street.

Kimberly Al-Homsi: personal friend of Wadih el Hage, threatened to kill a police officer, caught performing surveillance on a local airport.

Free to be crazy and on the street.

Finally arrested after a road rage incident, with explosives found in the vehicle.

Free to be crazy. In America.
Your cherished freedom. Her opportunity.
Local news coverage link.
New Swofford Commentary

Technology and our National Chip

One secondary benefit of the Dallas-Fort Worth power outage was the limited time available to open and answer e mail while at my favorite coffee establishments. Thank God for an extended e-Sabbatical! I needed the rest!

Technology has ushered in the advent of a chip on the national shoulder. Problematic is that your offense, should remain your offense. It should not be passed on like an emotional virus into the laptops of everyone on your contact list. Examples of bad behavior and poor citizenship abound. Perhaps it is time for each of us to assess what we consider worthy of passing along into cyberspace so that we don't look like asses.

Even though the faked receipt was a decent forgery, I don't give a damn if Michelle Obama ate her way through a three hundred dollar snack at the Waldorf-Astoria. The staff can roast a suckling pig on her balcony and have a man in a toga hand-feed her peeled grapes for all I care.

It doesn't work me up to get an email with the subject line, "Crotch Salute" and a photo jab against President Barack Obama. His character does not determine my character. He is my Commander-in-Chief. If I am ever in his presence he will receive all due protocol and military tradition which is afforded the positional authority of the presidency.

The list goes on, but two examples suffice. Each of us have other examples which come readily to mind.

If nations are to be judged let the judgement not fall squarely on the shoulders of the leadership, rather let it fall on the character and actions of "We the People". Leaders rise and fall. They are here today and gone tomorrow. But let the State of the Union remain strong. May it be carried forward on the shoulders of kind-hearted and tender Americans.

Feel free to cease and desist with forwarding emails which create a national chip on the shoulder.

Smiling,

Tammy Swofford

Fiqh Council of North America Fatwa Against Airport Body Scans

It was only a matter of time. As always, technology and Islamic jurisprudence collide on certain issues. I have a decent professional standing with one of the council members that came to this decision. So although familiar with the reasoning and the Qur'anic admonitions regarding modesty, am not familiar with the process involved. Possibly, I will give the topic a whirl in coming days.

But for now, "Snowmageddon" hit the Dallas-Fort Worth area with a record 12.5 inch snowfall and the Swofford family is part of the 200,000 families lacking electricity. My husband, ever pragmatic stated, "It is not a big deal statistically." Ms. Melancholy shot back, "A statistic is never a concern to me unless I am the statistic."

Anyway, isn't life grand? Coffee with Tom Gordon coming up shortly at the Barnes and Noble on Preston and Royal in Dallas. Hubby is out on the hunt for more firewood and a generator so that we can warm the walls of the homestead a bit.

Nature is amazing. Last week I enjoyed the Spring dance at the park. The squirrels were jumping from branch to branch as if listening to Tchaikovsky and his 1812 Overture. The new population of young adult ducks on the lake were congregated near the bridge and looked like a miniature sailing regatta. The few insects venturing to the edge of the sidewalk wobbled along as if involved in a drunken Mexican Hat Dance.

And then the billions of flakes of snow descended on our landscape. I attempted a walk at the park yesterday. Beautiful but treacherous! In my mind, it is all worth it for the sake of the children. This is a wonderful treat for the kids. O.K. I admit it. The explosion of beauty across the landscape is worth if for me too. smile The blog will return, with the eventual return of electricity. Meanwhile, coffee with a dear friend. How could life be any better? Smiling.



Tammy

North DFW MOAA

Last night my spouse and I attended our MOAA chapter dinner at Cafe de France. The attendance was less than usual due to weather and road conditions.

We always have a raffle to maintain a college scholarship fund for worthy cadets in area JROTC programs. Last night we also honored a request from one of our members who is in Iraq. He provided a list of practical items which are needed by the Iraqi troops he is training. He knows they will soon be "on their own" and wishes to leave them with a reminder of the friendship which they have shared.

From a group of less than fifty in attendance, three hundred dollars was given to the scholarship fund and an initial two hundred dollars was raised for the troops in Iraq.

MOAA chapters across the nation continue to provide a strong flank of support for retired, current and future military officers. We also move strongly in volunteerism within our local communities and to meet the needs of our troops abroad and also their requests for assistance to their military counterparts.

MOAA. It is an organization which shows the strength of a nation.

I am a proud member of North DFW MOAA.

LCDR Tammy Swofford, USNR, NC

Church Arsons in East Texas: An Attack on Societal Anchors

"This child is destined to cause the rising and falling of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. "

The words of Simeon: Luke 2:34, 35

Jesus Christ. Spit Upon.

Throughout history the spit has been spewed and the insults hurled against this man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. He dined with prostitutes and the IRS. wink He forgave adultery and ran an occasional soup kitchen for the hungry. (loaves and fishes) He was not an insurrectionist and taught that it is right to pay taxes. (render unto Caesar) He loved children and made provision for the care of his mother at the time of his death. But He is hated for what He proclaimed: the need for the redemption of man.

What innate darkness resides within the psyche of a prolific church arsonist? East Texas is reeling under a spate of eight recent church arsons carried out by either an individual or possibly a group of individuals.

The Texas countryside is dotted with small churches, some dating from the days of our pioneering forefathers. They host unusual names such as "Little Hope Baptist Church", which was built in honor of a small girl named Hope who died at tender age. The countryside boasts the nearby cemeteries such as "Baby Head Cemetery". There is a story.... for that one.

Many of these old churches support very small congregations of less than one hundred souls. But more important than the number on the membership rolls is the memory bank which resides within the walls of these buildings. Generations of family weddings, baby dedications and funerals have been commemorated by the community within these small edifices. Adjacent grounds are used for the annual Easter egg hunt or summer church picnic. Some churches host the local Boy Scouts troop. And many a country woman has found the thrill of her life singing the solo to the accompaniment of an organ and small choir. So these small yet important houses of prayer provide a societal anchor for community life, the ebb and flow of the slower-paced days of East Texas.

What kind of an individual is capable of torching church after church without a sense of remorse? It would be the person in need of redemption. Unfortunately, the spittle is already forming on their lips for the next arson attack. May they soon find themselves in the custody of our state. America, allows freedom of worship.

Tammy Swofford

Kevin Curnutt

I have followed this story in the Fort Worth Star Telegram. From the link you may view the documentary video.

Click here for link

Tammy

Swofford Unleashed: The Failure of Palestinian Leadership

The Palestinian political landscape is a fetid one. It takes just a brief scan of the U.S. Department of State travel warning to acknowledge Palestinian leadership has failed their constituency on large scale.

It is hard enough to deal with the displacement of a family. But what challenges prevail with the displacement of a generation? The rise of the state of Israel and the birth of a modern homeland for the Jewish Diaspora created a generational displacement of the Palestinians. And it was from within the ranks of this displacement that a fledgling Palestinian leadership began to take hold of the political machinery. In the process, these men have done a damn good job of providing a role model for how post-conflict governance must not be engaged

.

In the previous blog you can see the situation through the eyes of an elderly Palestinian who remembers very well the day that his family was forcibly vacated from their home. He leaves us with the sentiment of the generation displaced: "We will wait." The war is not over, so life cannot go on. His final thoughts will be against Israel, mired in the reality of the past, but incapable of building a future on the real estate which is now within Palestinian possession.

The Jews on the other hand, have managed quite nicely through the centuries based on the Jeremiah protocol.

"Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile."

*Moving back to recall the paraphrase of a conversation with an editor within a major national news organization:

"We (the Jews) have always manage quite well. Recognizing that we might always be somewhat on the run, we kept our luggage packed but also invested heavily in intellectual luggage, an exportable product . We educated our children to become scientists, lawyers, physicians, bankers and merchants. We cultivated a culture which honored educational achievement. Personally, do you know a Jewish farmer?"

The Palestinian population has been cursed with the leadership of a displaced generation. This leadership style shows in primary source documents such as the Hamas Covenant and the ideological rants of men who lived through a historical event but are yet unable to find the forward motion to healthy local governance. It is showcased by a cadre of men of the quality of Yasser Arafat, who it was recounted was a ".... bumbling fool who couldn't organize a party in a drinks factory." The Palestinians have been ruled by men of the generation of displacement. They hold the rusty keys to the ancestral homes, but decades later refuse to provide a hopeful and prosperous current reality for the teeming mass of humans over which they claim ownership.

Any time a rocket is shot across the Israeli border we should mutter, "One less Palestinian Ph.D." Each time a cache of weapons moves through one of the tunnels under Gaza we should understand that Palestinian women do not have access to women's health or adequate birthing facilities because of the crass neglect of domestic policy. Who gives a damn if they die in childbirth or the baby suckles from a dry breast? Floating barrels of explosives across the border into Israeli territorial waters is far more important. Don't get me started on the illiteracy rate.

Palestinians are more than deserving of a new generation of leadership, one which does not feel displaced, but one which seeks to put the root of the Palestinian people deep into the soil on which they now stand, a leadership which works to see a fruitful flourishing of local commerce, international trade, educational opportunities, and healthcare infrastructure within their own borders. They are deserving of a strong domestic policy which encourages growth.

The leadership of the displaced generation must begin to step aside. The international community should assist and provide the necessary security for a new generation of Palestinians to take the helm of the party machinery. Otherwise, upwards of two million people will continue to suffer under the curse of the flawed leadership style of a historically displaced generation.

Travel Warning for Gaza and the West Bank

Tammy Swofford

tammyswofford@yahoo.com

Preface to Next Blog

Please read the following blogs in preparation for an analysis of the Palestinian political landscape.

The Palestinians

Hamas: The Sequel

The Challenge for Khalid Meshaal

You will see "Swofford Unleashed" on the page next.

Tammy Swofford

Waging Non-Violent Struggle

A reader from New York called me last night and recommended this selection:

Click here for link

The reader is very focused on past and current world events and I enjoy his perspective on many issues, particularly the foreign policy issues which plague the Middle East.

My own stack of books is too high at this point, and I read sequentially what is piled up around me.

But I thought it good to pass on the link, should the book be of interest to any of you.

Tammy Swofford

President Barack Obama: Avatar

Future historians will dip their quills in the ink of color when presenting the story of our current President Barack Obama. It will do well for the American electorate to embrace the greater and more immediate truth. We elected our first Avatar to the highest seat in the nation, that of President of the United States of America.

Barack Obama was brought to the national stage with a highly crafted and constructed public image made to interact with a targeted consumer base. Language processing structure was used to create a personality which would draw an electoral response to the product. The Avatar was designed, redesigned and upgraded long before Barack Obama was selected to play his role on the stage. When the time was right, the design was moved from the political lab onto the streets of America.

Congratulations, Americans. We now have our first Presidential Avatar. But the design flaw is showing. We are now finding it hard to relate to the powerful presentation which swept so many off their feet and sent them dashing to the polls.

May the political experiment fail. May we return to the polls wiser and with greater prudence.

Tammy Swofford

Love and Miracles Unfold Slowly

Bloggers note: What follows is written with love for a friend dealing with a son who is a new head injury from a motorcycle collision. Tammy

********************************************************************************

Early in my nursing career I learned everything there is to know about love and miracles. The lessons were learned by working in a Neuro ICU with high-level C-spine and also traumatic head injuries. The years spent within this intensely demanding and satisfying environment taught me the subtle lessons of life. But it was Luke who impacted my life the most.

Luke took a fall down a large pipe while working on an oil platform. Knocked unconscious and in a jack-knifed position it was several hours before he was located and rescued. The lack of circulation cost him his legs. But the traumatic injury to his head cost him much more.

Luke arrived at our facility with healing bilateral amputations and a restlessness and recklessness which can be the classic signs of head injury. He quickly received the needed PEG feeding tube so that we could meet his nutritional needs. He was then unceremoniously secured to his bed with a posey chest restraint and bilateral wrist restraints. He was as mean as a cat in a burlap bag and foul-mouthed in a loud and belligerent sort of way The region of the brain traumatized determines the behavioral pattern as the head injury resolves. Luke - discovered the joy of profanity.

For weeks we listened to Luke screech "F-ck You! F-ck You!" as he peddled what remained of his amputated limbs in the air. He would bicycle his way to exhaustion and we had to frequently change his sheets because he would soak with perspiration from his mindless exertion.

Head injuries, even very traumatic ones, can at times respond to love. I learned to love deeply through the care given to comatose, violent and even hysterically responding head injuries. They wouldn't always respond to words. But they would respond to demonstrated love: hugs, pats on the shoulder, a kiss on the cheek.

I began to love Luke and his wife and daughter. We watched the miracle of his renewed life unfold slowly and in beautiful manner. He returned to a state of complete mental and psychological wholeness. It took several months. And when Luke left our ICU to head home? This nurse cried.

Love and miracles: they go hand-in-hand and sometimes..... they unfold slowly.

Always hope. Always love. And always, expect a miracle.

Tammy Swofford

tammyswofford@yahoo.com