Page 4 - The Wiregrass Farmer, October 8, 2008
Editorial & Opinion
The WIREGRASS FARMER - Established 1902
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Letters
A heartbeat away
Editor
If any of you have ever read my other letters to the editor, you
know I am a big NASCAR fan, so this one will probably surprise
you. Especially Mr. Baker.
A heartbeat away... that can mean so many things to so many peo
ple. To me, it means an unborn child being so close to lie and bring
ing ultimate happiness to that special couple who can't conceive a
child of their own...until the woman who accidently got pregnant
with an unwanted child has it aborted!
I am gonna pull a Charles Perry with some "did you know".
DYK- that in America, every 22 seconds an unborn baby dies
from a legal abortion?
DYK- that 93% of abortions happen because the young woman
wanted to do what got her pregnant, but didn't want to deal with the
consequences. Only 7% of abortions happen because of rape or
incest or for health reasons.
DYK- that I was able to tell at just 15 short weeks after concep
tion, that I was pregnant with a baby boy! Although it is legal to have
an abortion even after the 24th week. I have a friend who delivered a
child at 24 weeks. Born just over one pound, she is one of the sweet
est little girls you'll ever meet!
DYK- that an unborn baby can feel pain after just nine weeks in
its mother's womb?I have heard so much talk about gas prices and
taxes and how much things cost.
DYK- that the average cost of an abortion is around $400 but can
be as costly as $6000. Do you realize how much money that adds up
to since 1973? 47,000,000, that's forty seven million times just the
average cost of $400. It comes up to a little over seventeen BILLION
dollars. That doesn't count the abortions that cost thousands of dol
lars.
I believe a lot of people need to get their priorities in order. Yes,
gas prices are high. No, the economy is not in the best shape right
now. Yes, it will get better if you believe.
Many abortions are state funded and many insurances pay for
abortions, however, they didn't pay for birth control pills.
Have you ever wondered how in the world we have sent man to
the moon? How about computers, ipods, cell phones... think about
how far humans have come in just a few short decades. Do you ever
wonder why we haven't found a cure for aids or cancer? Maybe God
tried to send us those people...only people like Barack Hussein
Obama think it is okay for an irresponsible woman and her doctor to
play God. When Barack Obama was asked the question (by pastor
Rick Warren) at what point is a baby entitled to human rights? All he
could do was dance around the question. Do you want to know what
John McCain said?..."At the time of conception" End of story!
I challenge all of the Obama supporters to go to www. abortion-
no.org. Look at the pictures...look at the video. I dare you! Just
because you don't see it doesn't mean it doesn't happen!
I think to Barack Obama, a heartbeat away means he is that close
to spinning our country out of control.
People, please think about what you have just read before you
cast your vote. It should not matter the color of their skin, or another
pretty face. Think about their values and what they stand for and
their beliefs.
Do you really want a man who thinks it is okay to kill an inno
cent human being running our country.
Some say John McCain is taking away a woman's choice by mak
ing abortion illegal. Are they serious? He didn't have to tell her to do
what causes a woman to get pregnant! I believe a baby is truly a gift
from God. He allows a woman to get pregnant when the time is right,
even if it does not seem right to the woman. She should not be
allowed to do away with what God gave her.
If you don't agree, fine. Tell me why you think it's okay, make me
understand.
PS. I got my statistics from many different abortion websites.
Check them if you like.
Very sincerely,
Amanda Cook Perry
Paying the piper
Dear Editor:
The mortgage-lender collapse which led to the need for a
$700-billion federal bail-out rests squarely on the shoulders of
liberal Democrats, who forced banks to make home loans to poor
people with shaky credit. They argued that every American family
(even illegal immigrants) should have the right to own its home.
When millions who could not afford them got houses and
couldn’t keep up with mortgage payments, the banking system
collapsed. Now, we are in a national recession which could last
for years. All of us are going to have to pay the piper for this one,
and pay dearly... for a long time.
Jim Wynn
A plea to Christians
Editor
We are deeply concerned for our country, so we are approach
ing our concerns as neither Republican or Democrat but as a
Christian. Our country was founded on Christian principals.
Many would not agree with this but those who do not, need to do
some research. In our early schools the Book that students learned
to read from was the Holy Bible.
Growing up in earlier times, we are appalled at how much
things have changed. We have fond memories of teachers who
would read to their students
(See LETTER Page 7)
Generals and successful ladies
The armistice had been
signed to end the Korean War,
so on July 4, 1954 Corps
Artillery’s Commander, a three
star general, had scheduled his
baseball team to play the Corps
Arty’s team. Corps Arty was
much larger in service person
nel than Corps Artillery, which
was strictly a tactical headquar
ters’ unit with very few men
assigned to it. Corps Arty was
much larger with perhaps 18
battalions consisting of over
12,000 men.
The Corps Arty
Commander was a two star
general who took his baseball
very seriously. He had a full
time team made up of mostly
professional players who were
drafted into service by Uncle
Sam. Corps Arty was the visit
ing team.
Corps Arty had fallen far
behind by the bottom of the
first inning. They had given up
lots of hits and had run out of
pitchers. Their catcher who
was a sergeant tried his arm at
pitching but to no avail.
The sergeant left the mound
and approached the Corp Arty
Commanding General. He
wiped the sweat from his face,
stood at attention, saluted, and
in a loud voice said, “Sir,
request permission to call the
game on account of snow.” The
general stood up, returned the
salute, and in an equally loud
voice said, “Permission grant
ed.”
Let’s take a look at a lady
who was born in Brussels,
Belgium to American parents.
Instead of finishing high school
she studied art in Europe. Later
Who were the ‘Harlem
Hellfighters’? During World
War I, there was one unit of the
American military who served
in combat longer and received
more decorations than any
other: the 369th Infantry. The
369th was made up entirely of
American men, but it did not
join in the fight beside fellow
Americans for one reason:
they were black. Only the
French Army would accept
them and they stormed to the
front under the French flag.
The men of the 369th were so
tough that they were labeled
“Hellfighters” by the Germans
on the other side of the line.
The regiment was formed in
1913 in New York. They
trained on the streets of Harlem
and in an empty dance hall. In
1916 the unit was designated as
the 15th Infantry Regiment of
the New York National Guard
and in 1917 was proclaimed to
be large and strong enough to
fight.
African-Americans previ
ously had served in the
Spanish-American War, in skir
mishes along the frontier, and
fought for the Union in the
Civil War. However they had
never been allowed to serve in
state militias. At the time of
the First World War, blacks
were barred from the Marines
and the Coast Guard, but were
allowed in the Navy only as
mess men. The U.S. Army
From Where I
Sit
she became a fashion designer
and worked for several years in
the Garment District on
Seventh Avenue in Manhattan.
For many years she argued
that her company was not
meeting the changing needs of
the fashion market. Her efforts
to convince management that
style preferences should be
expanded were ignored.
She became frustrated at the
failures of the companies that
she worked for to provide
clothes for working women so
she started her own design
company. It became an imme
diate success with sales of $2
million in 1976 and $23 mil
lion in 1978. By 1988 her com
pany had acquired one third of
the American women’s upscale
sportswear market.
Liz Claiborne, Inc. became
the first company founded by a
woman to make the Fortune
500 list.
Although not as well known
as Liz Claiborne, another lady
who was born and raised in
Southeast England near
accepted black volunteers for
certain regiments, but quotas
for blacks were filled within a
week when the U.S. entered the
war.
As America’s entry into
WW I neared, the 15th Inf.
Reg. asked to be assigned to
the “Rainbow” Division, but
was denied. Nevertheless, in
1917, the unit headed overseas.
Rejected by the U.S. Army, the
troops performed labor duties
until allowed into
combat...assigned to the
French Army. Now called the
369th U.S. Infantry Regiment,
the unit was welcomed by the
French who desperately needed
help in holding back the
Germans.
The members of the 369th
didn’t let their commanders
down. The ‘Hellfighters’
became the first Allied unit to
reach the Rhine River. They
served for 191 continuous days
on the front line...the longest
time of any American unit in
the war. Most impressive, the
369th never lost a man by cap
ture or a single foot of ground.
Amazing!
One particular ‘Hellfighter’
stood out in his endeavors. His
name was Henry Lincoln
Johnson. He was a railroad
porter from Albany, New York.
Sergeant Johnson was the first
American soldier in World War
I to receive France’s highest
military honor, the “Croix de
Brighton in 1942 did very well
for herself. Her Italian immi
grant mother and American
father ran a cafe where early in
life she was instilled with an
intense work ethic.
Later in life after her hus
band had left her with two
young children to raise and
support, she concocted cosmet
ics in her garage and open her
first shop in Brighton. She sold
fifty percent of her company
for $6,400 in order to finance
her line of nature based cos
metics. Initially, she had only
15 products which she pack
aged in five sizes so it would
look like she had at least one
hundred.
After she opened her sec
ond store customers began to
ask if they could start their own
branches. She set up a system
of franchises and The Body
Shop now has more than 1,500
stores. When Anita Roddick
passed away in September
2007 she was worth more than
$200 million making her one of
the wealthiest women in
England.
Remember that if we expect
the best we will be the best. We
all need to learn to use one of
the most powerful laws in the
world and that is to change our
mental habits to believing that
we can accomplish something
rather than wondering if we
can. We need to learn to expect
and not to doubt. In doing so
we will bring everything into
the realm of possibility. Bet
you that Liz Claiborne and
Anita Roddick followed the
above philosophy.
Guerre”. By the end of the war
171 officers and enlisted men
from the 369th were awarded
the “Croix de Guerre”. The
unit as a whole was cited
eleven times for its bravery.
Following the surrender of
Germany, the ‘Hellfighters’
returned to New York to partic
ipate in a victory parade on
Fifth Avenue. During the years
between WW I and WW II, the
369th settled into new quarters
in Harlem and produced the
nation’s first African-American
General...Benjamin O. Davis,
Sr. His son also rose to the
rank of General in the U.S. Air
Force and was the leader of the
famous “Tuskegee Airman” of
World War II fame.
In 1940, the unit was again
called to active duty. Part of the
369th Regiment was sent to the
Pacific theater where they were
decorated for their help repuls
ing the Japanese at Okinawa.
In the Korean War, the 369th
Infantry again was decorated
for its service.
In 1997, 80 years after they
first established their reputation
as ‘Hellfighters’, members of
the 369th were honored by the
French government with a
monument. The 369th is still
working to erect a similar mon
ument in Harlem to honor the
‘Harlem Hellfighters’. Until
next time...
Wishbone, Backbone, & Funnybone ... by Charles B. Perry
Baker’s Dozen
Dangers of
Chinese food
I like Chinese food. I real
ly like the places with buffets.
But there are some dangers in
Chinese food dining for the
unwary.
First. Don’t dine in large
groups with the intent of shar
ing. Every person in the
group, but one, is going to be
normal and order regular food
like pepper steak, wonton
soup, shrimp fried rice and so
forth.
But, the 1 person who
claims that he doesn’t like
Chinese food is going to be
the oddball. Instead of getting
something sane, like double
egg rolls, this person orders -
fried whooping crane beaks.
Second. Don’t send some
one else to the buffet place to
pick up your meal.
Again, instead of filling
the take out tray with normal
food like wings, ribs, egg rolls
and the lo mien noodles, this
person is going to start think
ing.
“Hmmm. I just don’t know
what Ben (using my name
because it’s easier) would like
to eat. I know he eats all kinds
of weird things like rat
tlesnake and coon. Hey!
There’s something new. I’ll
just get him that,” the person
says to himself making the
rest of the patrons at the buffet
line take a step back. No
crowding this person!
“That” is the Chef’s spe
cial of the Day. The Chef is
probably a culinary whiz at
oriental cooking, but he’s got
a thing to learn about
Southerners and Southern
food.
Instead of getting a take
out with things I like, I get a
double-family meal portion of
octopus eyes in a light yak
butter sauce. (I have a real
problem with eating some
thing that’s looking back at
me.)
Third. Say for some reason
the planets were in alignment,
the stars uncrossed and Bill
Clinton actually wasn’t presi
dent and the person actually
put stuff on the tray you eat.
Fine and dandy, right?
Nope. Not by a long shot.
The purpose of a buffet is
to eat until you have to be car
ried out in a wheelbarrow.
Take-out buffets should be
carried out in a wheelbarrow.
Now this person who’s
getting your order for you,
suddenly has an attack of con
science. Instead of heaping
the tray, the person gets 1 egg
roll, a half spoon of rice, 1 lo
mien noodle and a chicken
wing tip. Can’t even get the
good part of the wing, has to
get the tip.
You are now on a diet
whether you wanted to be on
one or not.
Fifth and finally. This is
what scares me the most. The
fortune cookie.
There’s nothing actually
scary about the cookie. Most
of ‘em are rather good in fact.
Also, the fortunes other peo
ple get are often quite amus
ing.
It’s the fortune I keep
pulling out.
Without fail, every time I
crack open a cookie and read
it, it states: “Help! I’m trapped
in a Chinese fortune cookie
factory.”
One of the newspapers
which occassionally runs my
column to threaten people
into subscribing (they run my
column again if people don’t
subscribe) suggested doing
this when reading a fortune
cookie fortune.
Read the fortune. Then,
add the words “in bed” at the
end of the fortune, no matter
what is written on the little
piece of paper.
