Of Patriotism, Heroism, Pain and Restraint

We all are searching to find meaning in the events of the past days. A statement by Albert Schweitzer came to my mind.

Schweitzer wrote about the people who belong to what he called the fellowship of those who bear the mark of pain.

Schweitzer observed, “Those among us who have learned through personal experience what pain and anxiety really are must help to ensure that those out there who are in physical need obtain the same help that once came to us. We no longer belong to ourselves alone; we have become the brothers and sisters of all who suffer.”

We now know who some of those people are. They are the people of New York and Washington who are carrying on, often heroically, through it all. They are the people of the United States--you and I and others--who are wiping away our tears and looking for what we should do next.

But these people who bear the mark of pain are also the Palestinians and the Israelis. They are the people of Afghanistan who have suffered so much for over two decades.

The question and challenge Schweitzer raises, then, is What shall we do about it? How do we work to alleviate the suffering of our brothers and sisters--whoever and wherever they are in the world? In the present climate that includes the rhetoric of hate and the promise of vengeance, how can we become instruments not of violence but rather of justice and healing and peace?

Marv Meyer

Albert Schweitzer Institute

Chapman University

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As an American, I share the recent tragedy with all other Americans. As a Jewish American, I am very concerned about reports that Arab Americans are being threatened and harassed throughout the country.

I own a private education company and have worked with many Middle Eastern families over the years. Through my business, I have come to know Saudi Arabian families, Egyptian families and Iranian families, to name a few. None of these people have ever been anything less than very cordial to me. All of them have always been very pro-American and at times perhaps even more patriotic than Americans whose families have been in the United States for many generations.

As I am teaching my classes, I will be stressing to my students that they should not only be respectful of Arab Americans, but also be vigilant and stop their friends from treating these people any differently than other Americans.

Who knows? Someday we may need them to look out for us.

David Benjamin

Irvine

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Although I support the president of the United States in seeking justice, I do oppose going to war. We are a strong-enough country that with our might and abilities, we can seek justice and not revenge or retaliation. We need to find those involved in the horrible attacks on Sept. 11. We need to stop them but we do not need to stoop to their level of retaliation. We should not sacrifice innocent lives in the name of our righteousness.

Georgie Saydak

Los Alamitos

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Red, white and blue are not the colors we expect to see in September. They are used in cold, crisp February as we celebrate the birthdays of two presidents, in May for Memorial Day, and again in July as we parade and picnic and shoot off fireworks into the sky.

Today as I drive down the street I see red, white and blue blooming on porches and frontyards and mailboxes. I see those colors wrapped around tree trunks and hanging from fences and freeway overpasses, even waving from car antennas. Those colors are displayed above the front windows of buses, on storefronts, along sidewalks, draped from balconies.

What is this sudden blossoming new growth that is speeding across our land and even across the oceans? It is the long-dormant seeds of patriotism that has not been seen in full bloom for 60 years. It has appeared at various times of stress and conflict in our history, but at last it is running rampant throughout the United States and perhaps around the world. Water it, feed it, protect it. Share it with each other. Do not let it ever become extinct!

Gladys Hagerty

Orange