I am an old fart. No doubt. I have always thought of myself as a people person, non racist. Over the years I have come across many people of all colours and races. My brother in law is Black. My other brother in law is Japanese. I think they are great guys yet if I ever think of criticizing any one of their colour, as in Black Lives Matter, on the same grounds and on the same moral standards as myself, then I am attacked by the progressive crowd and considered a racist, a bigot, intolerant, red neck asshole…too bad but oh so sad…and wrong.
I am a Christian. I am proud of the fact. I am unapologetic about my faith. Yet because of that I am considered as someone who must be absolutely stupid, irrational, imbecile, idiot. How can you even consider something like God as being relevant if you cannot see him or her, or feel their presence, or believe in their incredible legacy of love and salvation for all of us? Well, it is a matter of faith. Something that is lost on so many people these days, especially the Governor General of this great country of ours. Someone who has ridiculed my beliefs only because those beliefs are non scientific in her eyes.
My faith in God has given me moments of sheer joy of being alive and incredible inspiration that I cannot even begin to describe to you. My faith has also helped me get through some very bad times such as the death of my wife and recently my brother. My brother, who was mentally handicapped, was a gift from God himself. He was angelic, had a joyful disposition and an innocence that could have only come from the Almighty. He was blessed and his blessings fell on all of us who knew him. I feel sorry for our Governor General and for all of you out there who lack faith, don’t believe in anything except yourselves or anything that you cannot see or that isn’t secular in nature...too bad and oh so sad.
I am a patriot. I have served my country for 37 years. I loved it. I am proud of the fact. But in this country so many of my fellow citizens despise the military, the police, any person of authority. Why? Because they lack self discipline and self respect in their own right. We are considered losers by many of our fellow Canadians and especially from our political leadership. Too bad and oh so sad.
I am tolerant. I do not care if you are black or white or gray (grey) for that matter. Everyone is unique. Everyone is wonderful in their own right. Everyone deserves respect. Everyone needs love and should be loved. But when you attach identity labels to yourself and demean me because of the colour of my skin – white is a colour you know – or my beliefs, or my faith and expect me to cow tow to your every need or whim because of mistakes or prejudices of the past then who is the intolerant one here? Yes mistakes and prejudices have been made. In the past. But this is the present. I have faith in the future. Let us move on and not be so damn sensitive to every little thing out there. Unfortunately, as I have seen through some of the feedback I receive from this blog, many of you have lost your sense of humour or sense of fun. In your eyes everything is offensive. And when everything is offensive then nothing is offensive anymore. Fun has become a four letter word. That is too bad and oh so sad.
I am proud of my American friends. One of my very best mentors was an American. I met him and his wife in Hawaii when I lived there way back in 1973 / 74. He was a Navy Veteran of World War II. He treated me as an equal even though he was 50 to my 22/23. He was generous, intelligent, patriotic, religious and tolerant. He possessed many of the values that defined his generation as being the Greatest Generation. He volunteered for many years at St Jude’s Hospital in Memphis Tennessee. It was Ted who convinced me to join the Navy after I had sewn my wild oats. It was Ted’s life that inspired me to write Kurofune: The Black Ships. Ted was a wonderful man and a proud American. He passed away June 2011. He was 87. He died the year I retired and 37 years after I knew him. Coincidentally, I served 37 years in the Royal Canadian Navy after I met him.
So for all of you smug Canadians out there, Americans cannot be defined by a single politician or a political party. And to refuse to go to the United States because you do not like their duly elected President or to shun Americans as being ignorant ignoramuses and idiots – as I have heard too many times, then who are the intolerant ones here? Canadians are probably the smuggest, most holier than thou racists on the entire planet. And that is bad and oh so sad. And hypocritical.
I am not an intolerant racist. Yet whenever I poke fun at a particular group or an individual, or religion, or an event I am labelled a (insert whatever label here) phobe. Our free speech is under threat and when we lose that we have lost our freedom and we will ultimately begin to denigrate into totalitarianism. And that my friends will be very bad and oh so sad.
After considerable thought on my part I am finished doing this blog for the time being. It was fun doing it. I may come back to it in the future but for now I am just going to use it as a vehicle to promote my current books and to those that come.
For people like Derek, thanks man.
John aka Shakeyjay!
Out.
And for my last musical addition, a Christian song written by a Jew that is psychedelic during an era of piece and love. Talk about inclusiveness. Remember that. Trying to replicate Woodstock ain’t goin to work. By the way this song was way ahead of its time with respect to its Riff.
https://youtu.be/8aZsF7v0pNw