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Imagine The French are romantic. The Polish are dumb. Italians are known to be high strung. Germans are well-disciplined beer drinkers. People in Japan are smart and industrious. Mexicans are hot-tempered. All Americans are loud, brash and rich. Every Canadian and the British are boring crumpet eaters and pompous tea sippers. The godless Russians are barbarians and the Chinese are sneaky. Life is so much easier when we identify an entire culture or a nation with a word or two. For example, Dad tells Junior that "the Middle East is a training ground for the terrorists." Meanwhile, Mom is in the kitchen explaining to Suzie that Africa is made up of uncivilized subhumans. Junior and Suzie take their words seriously; after all, Mom and Dad could not possibly lie to them. Now the children can identify nearly a third of the planet with a couple of catch phrases. Easy peezy Japanesey. New Yorkers are impatient, obnoxious and rude. Guns, God and gay haters sums up those rednecks down South. Hicks, imbeciles and pig farmers are code words for Kansas, Nebraska, and Iowa. The West Coast is the land of commie liberal tree hugging long haired pot smokers. Nothing but sheep and farmers live in Montana and Idaho. Raw fish, igloos and firewood surround the shivering, backward northerners. Americans are known worldwide for their ignorance about other races, cultures and basic geography. Oddly enough, it is we Americans who tend to holler stupid remarks, unfounded accusations and broad-sweeping condemnations over a global megaphone so all can hear. Unfortunately, the ignorance doesn't end with our elected officials. Falsehoods, prejudices, intolerance and nastiness continues down the ranks of American society. Uninformed and uneducated parents spew foul stereotypes of peoples and countries over their knowledge-hungry and gullible children. Then the young ones repeat what they learned to playmates at school and on the playground. The cycle continues until the lie becomes truth and the truth becomes a lie again. Every Indian is a drunk looking for a fight. Blacks are violent, lazy and unemployed. Asians are sneaky job stealers. Hmongs spend your hard-earned tax dollars on new cars. The job-thieving Mexicans are taking over the country. Arabs can't be trusted. The Amish should have their horse and buggies run off the road, and, as we all know, the money-grubbing Jews run Hollywood. It is hard to deny that belittling someone or something helps many of us feel better about ourselves. Cursing an entire race and vaporizing regions of the world is casual conversation at many family dinner tables. Unfortunately, children absorb these absurdities into their sponge-like brains and are plagued with long-lasting false impressions and confusing contradictions. Islam is one big terrorist ring set on destroying the free world. All Jehovah Witnesses do is invade your privacy at home. Curse the Jews. Damn the Protestants. Every Catholic priest is a homosexual. Every Mormon is a weird polygamist. Buddhists bark at the Moon. Secular this. Anti-Semitism that. This god. That deity. My prophet's better than yours. Imagine a world without borders, fences, walls and mine fields. Imagine a world that could be explained by its rolling hills, prairies, mountain ranges, oceans, rain forests, deserts and wet lands. Consider a world without man-made identifiers like states and countries. Imagine a world without race. Think about all of the people in the world living side by side without judgment of one another simply based on his color or nationality. Imagine someone's character out-shining the pigment of his skin. Imagine our world without its many religions, sects and cults. Reflect for a moment on one's personal belief in a higher power. With or without a label, the higher power still exists in the conscience. Dare to imagine peace on earth. Barons, July 28 2005 email your responses to this story to: [email protected] |
