Date:         Sun, 1 Jul 2001 11:36:01 -0600
Reply-To:     John Klun <jklun@GJ.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         John Klun <jklun@GJ.NET>
Subject:      Re: Terry's Anti Semitic Insults --
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

Volks-

I've been trying to ignore this thread and had thought it would have died by
now.  Let's put it to rest.

Some of the remarks that have been made by various people on this list prove to
me that we are dealing with different age groups and cultures here.  I am a
product of the 50's and 60's.  Some of the phrases that have appeared during
this discussion were common when I was growing up.  Unfortunately, today, our
Political Correctness Police have insisted that everything we say should be
controlled by thm.  Those of you who are much younger on this list have no
conception of how things were when we were growing up just as it is difficult
for us to understand you.  Things we older generations say are taken out of
context by younger people and vice versa.

Our country is literally a melting pot of different cultures (I am an immigrant
myself and couldn't speak a word of English before the age of 6), thoughts and
words.  What may be offensive to one is not to another.  Unfortunately, we try
to perceive, understand and judge everything and everyone by our own rules and
perceptions.  Anything that's different is immediately suspect because it is
different from our expectations.

I do not condone prejudice in any form but I will NOT stop anyone from saying
what they think.  The USA is built on the right to free speech whether it hurts
someone or not.  It's when we carry our words into deeds that can cause harm and
injury to ourselves and others.  That is why we have the Aryan Right, Neo-Nazis,
Socialists, Liberals, Conservatives, Republicans, Democrats, Buddhists, Moslems,
Jews, Semites, Chinese, Japanese, Blacks Whites, Yellows, etc., coexisting in
the US.  This is the only country in the world that allows this coexistence.

Let's just say that Terry is allowed to think, say and write what words he
wants, anytime he wants.  We may not like what he has said or how he has said it
but I will defend his right to say it and have.  If you don't want to read what
Terry has to write (on any subject- Vanagon [mandatory content] or otherwise) it
is your right to delete his e-mails and ignore him.  Us older guys (me)
understood what he was saying and it didn't bother us.

True understanding is the attempt to walk a mile in anther's shoes.  Once we
have done that, we will not be so quick to condemn.

The end.


puzerewski wrote:

> I did a search on Zyklon B and discovered that the remarks were in extremely
> bad taste..............Shockingly so............
>
> Things definitely got out of hand.
>
> Adam Puzerewski
>
> 81 westy
> 74 beetle
> 73 Transporter (new!!!!!!!)
>
> Vanagon Partsmobiles
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Horace K. Sawyer" <hksawyer@CATT.COM>
> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
> Sent: Friday, June 29, 2001 7:56 PM
> Subject: Re: [VANAGON] Terry's Anti Semitic Insults --
>
> > At 10:24 AM 6/29/01 -0700, mike and shari wrote:
> > >I took 'to the showers' as meaning, take a break or retire yourself.
> Like the
> > >pitcher who is told to 'hit the showers'.  I doubt very highly that
> someone
> > >here is going to make light of the Jewish holocaust, now, back to my
> sunny
> > >vanagon world......
> > >
> > >
> > >Mike G.
> >
> > Same here, more or less, but a little different to me.  I didn't for one
> > second see it as ANTI-SEMETIC.  In fact, I had to read several of Terry's
> > messages to TRY to find the offending one.  Not that Terry is not
> offensive
> > -- because he clearly is.  : )  But did he mean "to the showers" as
> > anti-Semitism?  It did not ring of that to me.  But then, who knows what
> > lurks in the hearts of men.
> > I thought it had something to do with some sort of joke about a bunch of
> > "us" being in the chat room together, or some nonsense in typical jest,
> and
> > needing to go cleanse ourselves.  (Like HK would really be in there in
> > there doing whatever -- that kind of nonsense, I mean)  Or, the "I'm outta
> > here," or "you're outta here" kind of statement.  "Game over," so to
> speak,
> > or signifying the end of discussion.
> > Don't be PO'd Steve.  A thousand points of light . . .
> > My .03
> > later babe
> > hk
> >