Author: Joy Ann LaJeret

I have watched and listened to the news regarding the lives of the two Tsarnaev brothers, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar.  The most tragic figure is their mother.  She may have let her religion get in the way of her rational thinking processes, when she urged her oldest son to follow the rules and teachings of possibly radical Islam.  How is any mother to know when they step over the edge into fundamentalist thinking or radicalism? It has happened in many incidents recorded by the Catholic religion.

I cannot even imagine how I would feel if my sons had done what her two boys may have done in Boston at the marathon. I have read what the conspiracy theorists are saying about it being a staged attack and how no one was really hurt, there was no blood only paint. Zubeidat’s escape into that reality may be the only way she can cope with the horror of what her sons did or may have done there. I have watched her rants when in front of American journalist and television cameras. Her hurt is beyond my ability to comprehend. She has lost her two boys and at some point may have to face her inner demons; and the fact that she was party to the religious transformation of her son Tamleran, which may have led him down a wrong path.

When I see the pictures being shown of Tamerlan and how much he wanted to be an Olympian boxer, I am overcome with grief by the way things turned out for him and his victims. I can understand his deep disappointment in not being able to become a boxer of this magnitude because he could not become a citizen due to his actions when he slapped a girl or girls. His pain must have been extremely deep to have it come out on innocent people in the way it did. What better way to exact revenge on the American people who ended his career with their rules and laws. It was a sporting event and the people running that marathon were athletes striving for perfection in their sport, in much the same way he once trained and executed his events.

Most parents want what is best for their children.  I think Zubeidat wanted that for her sons too. Maybe she was doomed to lead them to this act, partially because of her religious views and partially because of where she lived and bore them. Only the God she believes in knows her heart and how things got to this point. One thing is certain, every mother who was involved in this incident, whether an on looker or a victim or the mother of victims, were united in this unholy act of terror. Unlike men, women understand the heart of a mother at a very deep level of understanding. They participate in creation in an intimate way.

I had three boys. Like I have said in earlier blogs, the middle one committed suicide, the oldest is still struggling and one has nothing to do with my family. I know one of my boys could have done something as terrible; because two of them got into drugs as teens. Drugs often bring out the worst in teenagers and young adults. Luckily nothing major ever happened…I was just lucky. One thing I do know is no matter what your children do, you will love them. You may not speak to them, you may banish them from the family for a period of time…but in the end, you will always love them. Also, you will live with the pain of their death for as long as you live. I pray that Dzhokhar doesn’t get the death penalty. I believe that will make him a hero. I hope this for his mother’s sake too, no matter how vilified she may become by the American public.

While I am opposed to the death penalty, I see that money decides fates. Would you rather have the state take the person’s life or as a taxpayer pay what it costs to keep someone in prison for life. If the state or federal govenment doesn’t have the funds to feed or care for older and younger adults or those with challenges, how does one justify using state or federal funds to keep someone in prison for all those years? In spite of complicated decisions like this one, I am hoping the authorities do not make a hero out of Dzhokhar by taking his life. On the other hand, I am concerned about his mother.

No matter what kind of person she is now, she is still a child of the God she believes in. I think it would be tragic for her to pay the penalty of losing both of her sons. But if that is the penalty that is set upon the family, may the God they believe in give them the comfort they need to get past this and live with it. Hopefully, this God will be merciful to all the people participating in this event in one way or another.

photo credit: jeff_golden via photopin cc

I just happened to be watching the news, when breaking news stated, the two suspects in the pictures distributed on line by the FBI, had been engaged in a incident in Cambridge. This morning, it was reported that one man, age 26, was dead and he was the brother of the suspect at large. The suspect at large is 19 years of age and both had ties to Islam.

I watched the agony and anger in their uncle’s face as he was interviewed by the press. My heart went out to the family. Certainly they will bear the burden of being related to the two brothers, who were his nephews. I saw the pictures of the young men and thought what a waste all of this is. It was just more wasted lives when their bomb went off at the Boston Marathon. Lives cut sort or altered in a way that can never be the same.

In the days and weeks ahead, we will learn the motive these men had for the horrific acts they most probably committed. What in the world shapes the thinking of men like this? I suspect they may have grown up in a environment of hatred and the lack of respect for human life and intolerance of others beliefs and values. Yet this doesn’t square with the religious beliefs of the Muslim faith, most southern Russians hold in that region.

When I look at the suspects clothing and the fact they were students, they seem very middle class to me. So poverty would not have much to do with their anger at the western way of living. If they were raised in their country to believe that violence and the murder of others is normal, we might be able to figure out why they poured their rage out on innocent runners and their supporters at the marathon. I know that there are volumes written on the causes of terrorist acts; but I think there is a simpler answer to why this happens.

I think one’s values and experiences in the world around us determine how we construct our world view. I think there have been times when I have wondered if I should have been more of a radical in the university. When one looks around at the injustices in this world and when one experiences them first hand, anger and revenge can become a motivating factor, Because I was raised by an American middle class family, doesn’t mean I haven’t considered more radical thinking. Fortunately I was raised to respect human life as a precious gift and believed that the answer to my problems was not to use violence; but to use anything but violence. This does not mean I would not have used it as a last resort to protect my life or the life of my children or loved ones.

However, life is not always that simple. I have found myself in situations where my life was at risk and violence would have been justified under the law. I made the decision, however, to retreat with honor. That decision may have been influenced by the fact, I am a woman and not a man. I do not have to defend my honor with violence to claim my womanhood. I do not have to buy into the myth of justifiable revenge.

Several days have pasted since I began this blog.  The oldest brother is dead and investigators are looking for reasons or motives as to why he would place a bomb in an area where women and children and innocents were watching a marathon.

The media states, the boys were radicalized into a less Christian or Islamic way of thinking through the internet. My thinking there, hogwash! Maybe the internet played a role in the shaping of their world view; but it is hard to believe they were self-radicalized. My guess is that this unknown other person Tamerlan Tsarnaev was familiar with helped shape his views. What a waste it is that this brother moved into a fundamentalist view of religion and did exactly the opposite thing a Christian or Muslim is called to do. Even worse, is the fact he dragged his little brother along, if that is the case.

I will be watching the news to find out how this whole incident unfolds. In the meantime, I will be praying the people who became his victims will be able to adjust to the huge changes in their reality because of this dangerous belief that it is justifiable to kill others no matter how innocent to right an injustice real or imagined.
“War never decides who is right or wrong…only whose left.”

Yesterday I watched in horror as the drama unfolded in Boston.  I have participated in more than one marathon and was horrified by what I saw in the tragic minutes during and after the bomb went off at the marathon’s finish line.

This morning the president declared that any act of detonating a bomb with the intent of injuring others is an “act of terror.”  To me, this was a true act of hatred. This translates to a total indifference to the suffering and injuries of others. The targets were any age group.  As a result a child as young as eight was among those that were killed. Once again, children are the targets of people who are bent on harming others.

While I am watching the news and reading everything I can about the incident, I cannot help but wonder if taking guns away from Americans will lead to the use of bombs, instead.  In fact, I wonder which of the two issues is more important, gun control or terror attack prevention. I heard on the radio that anyone can find the information on line to build a bomb with roofing nails, ball bearings and other small, body harming, material. Even though I believe in a free internet, this gives me pause.

I still believe that there must be a way to prevent disturbed individuals and groups from doing this kind of damage to American citizens. I also believe we are seeing the beginning of terror attacks that can be even worse. Or, it may be just a matter of time before these devices carry biological, chemical, radiological or nuclear materials.  I remember writing an article about this, in order to be accepted into a program of study at the doctoral level at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The only thing that has changed since then…is 9/11.

Many scholars have written that it is not what but when, something like this will happen within the borders of the United States. In an article written by Dr. Adam Lowther, Terrorism and the Weapons of Mass Destruction Threat to the United States, he states, “…Within the national security establishment there is a pervasive belief that the United States faces imminent attack from a terrorist network in possession of weapons of mass destruction (WMD). The question is not if, the question is when. Whether the attack will be chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear none can say, but few doubt that time is running out….”

I don’t know about you; but, this scares the you know what out of me.  We are a free society with open borders.  We could not possibly be aware of every threat of terror before it happens. Homeland Security, and other intelligence and law enforcement agencies are not God.  No matter how many “eyes in the sky” we have, we cannot stop every incident. I once had a sociology professor who stated, “…as we continue to have terrorist incidents, we will see many of the freedoms we now have disappear.” I think he was entirely right about that.

As citizens, we must be more vigilant when it comes to the freedoms we see being compromised. Our country was set up to function with the American people as the guardians of our constitution; and we were told to watch our government and question authority by our forefathers.  We are not a semi-sovereign people, if we continue to stay in touch with resources that tell us what is happening, in regard to our rights. I could go into great detail about the issue regarding rights after 9/11; but this is not the forum for airing those issues.

I am not arguing that law enforcement and federal agencies should not have what they may need to deal with attacks like this.  I am arguing that along with investigating and trying to prevent these gruesome attacks, comes the need to make laws that may take away the freedoms we have today. Scholars and citizens have an obligation to know what their government is doing and to question that activity.

Ever had a day when you feel like there are pieces of yourself you cannot find?  This usually happens to me, when people are critical about something I have done or not done.  I wake up each morning and bounce out of bed, with my whole ego intact.  Usually by the end of the day, my ego has been shredded.  This is the exact moment when I need someone who loves me to help me restore my feelings of being a capable, intelligent and rational human being.

Each of us feels the pain of being ego battered for lack of a better terminology.  In an blog entitled Kreative Living Koncepts, in an article entitled, “How to Bypass the Pain of a Battered Ego,” written by Kat King, the author states,”…let’s face it in our society we need to develop strong egos and those egos get battered in the line of duty.” 

Oh, how true this rings for me! No matter how strong your ego may be, when a situations presents itself and you find you have the feeling someone just hit you in the face with a dead fish, your ego feels battered. When this happens, it is always a bit of a surprise. By the time I get home, I usually have soothed the raging beast and restored my battered ego…but sometimes, I need help. 

I think we all have an intimate other we speak with.  When I reach out to someone I know has the time to listen to my rant or maybe just  listen to my concerns, the problem suddenly seems much smaller and my ego perks up and repairs itself. Kat writes that we can easily resort to negative thinking at these times.  For example, we may feel an accusations has been made and it batters the ego, when we think we are doing a good job and everything we can to the best of our ability.  In today’s workplace, one is a bit more sensitive to this ego battering; because finding a job is not easy task in this economy.  

This reminds me of the situation that occurred where my husband was working.  He was being bullied in the workplace.  He did not report the situation, because the man was going to retire in a few months. He was treated like he was in high school where he was called names and pushed physically by the person involved. He has a history of being picked on in high school where instead of fighting he just withdrew to the attic of his parents home and listened to music. My husband is not a man that will not defend himself. If he were to get angry enough, he would do some big time damage. Luckily the military taught him self-control. But he does have ethics and felt the situation would correct itself given time. I may not have agreed with him; but I understood he felt he was doing the right thing in this situation.

Workplace bullying is something that is far more prevalent then we realize. In the case of my husband, since he was a temporary worker, he did not think complaining to the company was the right thing to do.  He believed he would not have been hired if he complained about the abuse he was experiencing.  I think I can totally understand the fear. A company may say it is a ” no tolerance” company, but when push comes to shove this may not be the case. The result was, he has been hired.

Working as a temporary quite a bit in the past, I have often wanted to speak out against an abuse.  I realized this is not the thing you want to do; because there are negative consequences. I am convinced that older workers see this more often then younger employees. If I could do a sociological study, I think I could prove a correlation between being over a certain age and how they are treated in comparison to younger workers. Unfortunately, that study will have to wait. 

As the boomers become a real force in the workplace maybe someone will do a study on how older workers are treated today, as part of the American workforce. Until then, one may feel the flight or fight instinct; but acting on it may be the last thing you should do. This dilemma is a growing concern for many people coping with these situations. I do not agree with everything Kat wrote on the blog. Being aware of mistreatment and knowing how to handle it takes a lot of moxie. When we get hurt, our instinct is to revert to anger and this can motivate people to do the right thing under the circumstances. On the job it is difficult to remember it is their needs not yours that matters and even more difficult to do the right thing under the circumstances.

I have been closely watching the U.S. and how it is handling its relations with Iran.  I have known two Iranian men and one woman.  When I was in graduate school, my best friend in my international studies in political science was a young Iranian woman.  She was one of the most intelligent and self possessed women I have ever known.  I do not know what happened to her after I graduated; but I know she would have been killed by the Shah if she had returned to Iran at that time.

My next encounter was with a professor in West Virginia.  He quickly became a good friend.  He taught economics in a university in Salem, West Virginia. Granted his economics were socialist, and whether or not it was socialistic, I didn’t much care. I am a capitalist and can argue my point. We would get together and discuss the situation in his homeland. Once again, he could never go back to Iran, or at least not in the near future.

Finally working for Bellevue College, one of my teammates was Iranian.  We had long discussions on politics and just about everything political or scientific.  One comment he made sticks with me, “…who suffers when governments fight?”  It seems to me the victims are the people of the country we are not on good terms with. I totally understand why our government takes the political foreign policy position it does.  Nevertheless, many of the young Iranian people do not want bad relations with the United States and wish they could change their government.  As my Iranian professor friend said, “…you can divide material possessions; but you cannot divide mores, norms and/or personal or political ethics.”

In an article written in the New York Times, authors Thomas Erdbrink and David E. Sanger stated, “… oil exports from Iran have dropped by a million barrels a day, and that the free fall in the currency has caused huge inflation — a result of American- and European-led sanctions as well as economic mismanagement by the Iranian government.”  The article was dated February 6, 2013 and entitled,” U.S. increases pressure of economic war on Tehran. ” With all this in mind, I wonder how we can be our brother’s keeper when we are seemingly forced by our government to watch people suffer because of the foreign policy of said government. We can write Congress; but often that does little good. We can march and protest; but more often than not, we have to be the majority to change policy.

I cannot help fearing that this will fuel the fire for the Iranian people to revolt.  Unlike the United States they have no constitutional protects if they do.  On the other hand, there are elements in that society who relish the thought of promoting terrorist behaviors against the American government. It seems to be a sad situation either way.

I suppose I could try to analyze the politics of this situation; but I am more interested in the ethical aspects of the situation.  I wish they had a leader who could compromise and lessen the hardship on the Iranian people; but even our own Congress can’t do that.  While I am not fond of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, he is the president of the Islamic Republic of Iran and must be treated as such, whether we approve of his politics or not. As for any opinion on this Iranian president, I will let the Iranian people decide and reserve any comments.

I would like to add that he is a well educated person.  He was educated in the Iran University of Science and Technology.  Our universities are not any better than other countries universities.  Maybe to some degree they are even better. The pressures on this man must be horrendous and he does seem to invite more pressure by more of less kicking the U.S. in its knee caps. Or he loves to posture. I would have to say this behavior is counterproductive and doesn’t show the world how smart he is.

It has been said he is out of touch with the rank and file of the Iranian people.  I would think most leaders are.  For example, we could easily say this about our own Congress whose pensions and benefits are far beyond what the American people are experiencing at this time.  So maybe, before we throw stones toward Iran, we might want to look into our own back yard and fix what is wrong there. In the mean time, my thoughts and best wishes are with the Iranian people.

There seems to be a lot of unanswered questions as to whether drones are going to be used for the public good or against the public.  What it really comes down to is whether or not Congress has the proper legislation in place to protect the public’s constitution rights.  Maybe the question is to trust in authority with one eye open and question what it is doing when one sees a read flag.

I am confident Jessie Ventura and other conspiracy theorists have already begun to jump on the “band wagon” with all kinds of words of wisdom for the general public that will scare the %$@^#* out of them. I for one like to stand on the concept of innocent until guilt. Nevertheless, these people scare me!  One of the comments Jessie made to Piers Morgan in an interview was, he was glad Colorado and Washington voted to legalize marijuana, thus ending the war on drugs. Okay, there are a lot more drugs on that schedule.  How many are going to be legalized without the government agencies stepping in?  Where is the logic here?

On March 6, 2013 in an article, Barrack Obama has the authority to use drone strikes to kill Americans on US soil, by Jon Swaine, he states the Attorney General has stated Obama has the power to authorize the killing of Americans by drones on US soil. As the old commercial (young people may not remember) stated, I ask, “where’s the beef?” If my country is attacked by American terrorist groups or militia, I think this capability may be highly useful.  I think there should be legislation in place to stop the misuse of this type of weapon against the American people, on the other hand.  If Congress wants to listen to its constituency, this is the place to address this whole issue of drone usage. I may not always believe in the government; but I most assuredly believe in the American people, and not the big political interests who hope to benefit from all of this.

Thinking back to the words of Hitler and Jim Jones, those who have not learned from the past are doomed to repeat it (paraphrase). As Americans we do have rights under our constitution; but only the rights we are willing to fight for and defend. It takes all of us to get the powerful to do the right thing at times. We were given that right by our founding fathers. If we are willing to stand idly by and watch our rights taken from us, then shame on us.

By now the whole world knows the head of the Catholic church has decided to step down from his position as pope. After 600 years, this is a monumental move by the head of both the Catholic church and Vatican City.  The city is a nation-state and signatory to many international conventions. The Catholic church has come a long way in 2000 years. It went from being a baby housed in a humble stable to a rich  country with precious art, paintings, jewels and elaborate furnishings. In spite of the riches they believe they are the spiritual leader of the world, via the reigning pope.

Much of the what the church stands for are the ideals we as people need to strive for if catholic or christian. Plato’s ideals are very similar. These ideals are so difficult to reach, that even the church’s own priests and hierarchy cannot live up to them. However, the ideals make sense if one is a christian or claims to be. Then there is the idea of the infallibility of the pope. This is the hardest concept to accept. I am, however, according to the last pope a cafeteria catholic who picks and chooses what I want to accept as God’s teachings. I believe in free will. Now where do you suppose I got that notion?

I was raised both catholic on my mother’s side and protestant on my step-father’s side of the family.  Needless to say I am a very confused Christian! I am critical of the church and have decided I do not want to give money to a church that is paying for the human failings of priests who abused children for probably many hundreds of years. I guess you could say, I have watched too many Ancient Aliens programs and read too much Dan Brown. I wonder if maybe the church is hiding a lot of things in the Vatican Library that would shed light on the questions of the day. The church certainly is well known for the secrets they keep, including those of hiding perpetrators in the halls of the hallowed city and around the world.

I have to temper my comments on the subject of abusing children, because the church saved my life and that of my children. If it were not for the priests that helped me when I needed it, I would never have gone to the universities and gotten my education. I was in a program of study when the church was hiding draft dodgers during the Vietnam War era. Although, I am familiar with the Catholic left, I remained a conservative catholic, until I found the Liberal Priests organization in the 1970’s. I met many good and holy men who would have never hurt anyone much less a child. But hurting children is the scandal the church is dealing with today.

It seems odd to me that from that humble stable came a church that is mixing politics with religion. One cannot ignore the politics of the Catholic hierarchy in Rome and the effects of their politics around the world. My experiences are with the humble men who I met in the parish I once belonged to. Their gentle ways and forgiving attitudes have left a lasting impression on this person. They were intellectuals that were extremely kind, understanding and helpful.  My hero was a priest left the parish to become a missionary and work in the barrios of South America in Chimbote, Peru. He was and is my best friend, and always will be. I cannot imagine him breaking his vows or hurting anyone. If there was a person who could model the behavior of the man called Jesus, he is one of them.

However, I cannot condone the abuse of children by the clergy, even if they are the minority. The fact that they forgave and then protected these law breakers, makes me angry. Their conduct embarrasses me and as a result, I cannot walk into a catholic church and feel comfortable. Nor will I give them one penny of my money to pay for the law suits that have occurred. I truly believe one cannot mix politics and religion without tasting a form of power that is corrupting. Therefore, I am glad this pope has stepped down. Unfortunately, the possibility of the corruption of power still remains. Since the church is a very conservative institution, nothing much will change.

As for me, I am beginning to wonder if it isn’t better to search for scientific answers; and I will continue to watch Ancient Aliens on the television.  I have never been able to put down the ideas and arguments raised since reading the “Chariots of the Gods” by Erich Von Daniken, circa in the late 1960’s or early 1970’s. My scientific mind will not allow me to accept the theory completely and need the proof all scientists need to convince me of the reality of it all. On the other hand, I have the same problem with the Catholic church.

Many residents of the state of Washington are wondering about the new law to make Washington state the supplier of marijuana. Not only is it now legal to possess it and smoke it for recreational uses, but the state will be the number one supplier or so it appears.

Nothing shows my age more than my views on this new law voted on by the people of Washington state. I feel a bit uneasy about the fact that cannabis is on the Single Convention narcotics drug list as a schedule one drug.

I have never smoked and/or ingested this drug…how about that for old fashioned?  It was  consumed by my mentally challenged son on a military fort,  however. By age 19, he had committed suicide. So, I suppose I carry a bias against the plant.  While I was carrying this child, I saw the “pot heads” having a ball in California in the 1960’s.  I still remember thinking I’d rather be in possession of my wits, then dancing around high on a  drug. Silly me, I was too into Women’s liberation and children, rather than drug use and/or exploration.  Since in my twenties I had five children to care for, drugs were not in the picture.

Once I hit the ripe old age of thirty-three, I found myself in a university that did not allow alcohol or drugs on campus. As an honor student and a U.S. Army officer’s wife, I was against drugs, as was my husband who was the alcohol and drug control officer for the U.S. Army. That, however, did not stop my youngest son from obtaining drugs on the fort and in the school he attended in Salt Lake City. Eventually, as stated earlier, he took his own life while dealing with various problems, after we were reassigned to another fort.

While all this was happening, I was working on a degree in sociology with a criminology emphasis and working on my internship at the Salt Lake City Police department.  I was deeply involved in the international studies of narcotic drugs and the institutions established to stop the flow of the narcotics on the International Narcotics Schedule. Having done everything I could to help my son, I was greatly saddened by the communities inability to assist him. Since he had limited intelligence capabilities, he was not fully aware of the consequences of his behavior.  Most of the helping agencies at the time did not have the programs we have today.

Fast forwarding to 2013, I cannot help but wonder why you would want to eat the foods one can make from this drug.  Even worse, smoking the substance does terrible things to a users lungs. Watching my oldest boy wander into the drug scene and become addicted to crack while serving in the U.S. Military, I still cannot understand why the people of Colorado and this state would legalize the narcotic and/or why the federal government has not stepped in.

Just because the president of the United States has never been addicted to marijuana, does not mean children with various challenges will not be.  That being said, once we declared marijuana was okay by voting to legalize it…minors will get the substance and the “dumbing down” of our children will have begun. I think there is enough research out there to show the world that using marijuana tends to hinder the mental abilities of younger children and those with learning disabilities.

I do not want to work with anyone who is going outside to smoke a joint or eat a marijuana laced food.  I am becoming concerned about driving on the Washington roads, knowing there will be adults on the road who are high from the drug.  I suspect there will be more incidents related to this drug then we have now. Worse yet, I dislike the smell of the drug and cannot imagine working next to someone who smells from smoking pot. I guess I am in the minority on this one.

As far as the cartels selling illegal substances in the state, once marijuana is no longer a “cash cow” for them, they will simply sell to minors or find something worse to distribute. At least that is what they have done in the past. In the past, our children were the targets of other nation-states hoping to ensnare our youth and destroy this resource, so researchers and politicians told us. What better way to  harm our youth than making drugs available to children as young as grade school.

Furthermore, I have an intimate knowledge of chemo and the effects it has on the digestive system. I do not condone the use of this drug for medical purposes either.  I think there are other natural drugs like ginger that can help with the effects of chemo therapy. But ultimately the decision is not mine to make. The only choice I had was to vote against the bill. Should I ever have to make another decision about the use of marijuana to counteract the chemo drugs, I will choose other natural drugs over marijuana.  Why?  Old as I am, I still like my wits about me and my brain functioning without the effects of drugs working in my system. This is not to say, I would take away your choice to make those decisions for yourself.

Valentine’s day is almost upon us!  I have a new blog and have abandoned my WordPress for the time being.  I have begun a new phase in the world of Joy.  My schooling is done and my certificate has been earned.  I no longer have to report to my instructor and internship coordinator on a weekly basis.  I am searching for jobs in the field of online eLearning; but think without experience, I will have a very hard time trying to find work.

I quit my job at the college in September and have been working for Manpower Inc.(MP), Bellevue, Washington.  I am currently assigned to a high tech company in Kirkland, Washington.  It is a most interesting place to work.  I began in Seattle; but was moved to Kirkland a few months ago.  I work only a few hours a week.  Nevertheless, I love the job as a human resources assistant.

During the time I have not been in school, I found myself watching television and following the issues of the day.  As many of you know I have a masters degree in political science from the University of Utah and finished the course work in my doctoral degree program at the University of Wisconsin, in Madison.  My interest are in the field of criminology and international relations and politics.  I did not finish my doctoral degree, because I really wanted a degree in Criminology.  By the time I had it all figured out, it was just my orals that needed work.

My captured interest has revolved around the gun control issue and the second amendment of the United States constitution.  Being a student of the Supreme court and Constitutional law, I have been pondering the issue ever since the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary school.

In 1995-1997 the company I was working for Sagem Morpho Inc, in Tacoma, Washington, won a contract with a federal agency in Clarksburg, West Virginia.  We were to train the people in West Virginia to capture fingerprints off of finger print cards to update the federal agencies files. Unfortunately, the West Virginia militia thought we were part of the New World Order and they were determined to blow us up!  Militia groups like this are scattered throughout the country.  I can understand their concerns and know how much it means to them to keep their weapons for protection against the government, if need be, and for hunting.

I have been trained in the use of firearms by the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy while going to the University of Utah and St. Cloud State University.  I shot competition in the university with ROTC.  I have belonged to the National Rifle Association and believe I have the right to bear arms and have them in my home for protection.  The fact is, I do not have them in my home.  What I have is pepper spray and years of training in the martial arts and hand-to-hand combat.  I have never served in the U.S. military; but I have been a family member.  I hate violence and war.  I respect firearms and I uphold the constitution.

I think Americans have every right to their weapons of choice.  That being said, I cannot help but wonder about assault weapons.  I think it is wise to have them for protection, should our government ever turn against it’s people.  I think there are enough scenarios out there to scare us about take overs and the confiscation of firearms and weapons.  I believe the problem doesn’t lie in the bearing of arms and the holding of assault weapons; but rather, it is the people who have guns and assault weapons and have severe mentally challenging issues, as well. It makes more sense putting our money into mental health care for those that need it. I believe prevention is worth a pound of cure.