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Potpourri
By Rich Jefferson
Acting Beastly
A FEW WEEKS ago we received a let
ter from a person reacting to a feature ar
ticle I wrote about Charlie Lowry. Lowry
is a local rodeo impresario who says he is
a born-again Christian. The lady who
wrote the letter stated flatly that he
couldn’t be a Christian and be in rodeo
because of the way rodeo animals are hor
ribly mistreated.
Well now. On the back of the envelope
the letter came in was a sticker with the
name of an animal rights group, People for
the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).
ANIMALISTS, as Lloyd Billingsley
calls them in his book, ‘‘Religion’s Rebel
Son,” have a topsy-turvy view of people
and animals. One California animal rights
advocate is quoted in the book saying, “If
I saw someone hurting an animal, I'd kill
them.” Fighting for “animal rights” is
what brings an animalist salvation, and
because some animals are ready to kill for
this ideology, Billingsley rightly calls them
fanatics.
Billingsley’s research shows that in
America, animalists have threatened to
kill researchers who do such barbarous
things as testing experimental drugs on
dogs and monkeys. Obviously they would
rather humans suffer than animals.
Medical research on animals has yielded
immunizations for polio, diptheria, and
diabetes, as well as methods for coronary
bypass, joint replacement, kidney and liver
transplants.
NOT ONLY HAVE such discoveries
benefitted humans, they have helped us
take better care of farm animals. The on
ly conclusion one can draw is that these
people have set themselves up as the final
judges of human and animal worth, and
they have decided that monkeys and dogs
have a greater right to life than some peo
ple, particularly medical researchers who
use lab animals for tests instead of
humans.
PETA is more or less the political
branch of the movement, according to Bill
ingsley, and the Animal Liberation Front
(ALF) is for those who want action. ALF
has vandalized the homes of researchers,
and one time, as a token of their righteous
indignation, the vandals left a jack-o
lantern on the front porch, full of dog
hooey.
On The Funny Side
By Gary Solomon
Terror At The Varsity
THE SUMMER 1 spent working at a
crisis center in downtown Atlanta (now
midtown, not far from the IBM Tower) 15
years ago was one of many “‘firsts” for me.
Coming from the desert Southwest, I
traveled east of Texas for the first time.
I flew in an airplane for the first time. And
I experienced wet, smothering humidity
for the first time — something I barely
survived.
I WAS ALSO introduced to several
new foods. Krispy Kreme donuts were
heavenly. Mom made donuts from time to
time at home but always ended up selling
them as anchors to the U.S. Navy, so
those lighter-than-air Krispy Kreme treats
were a welcome discovery.
It’s hard to believe now, but I also ate
a Burger King hamburger for the first
time. When a co-worker from Atlanta sug
gested one day that we go to “‘Burger
King’ forlunch, I thought that was just
how southerners said McDonald’s.
Something about that first charbroiled
burger didn't sit well with me, though, and
it was several years before I tried another
one. Ry
THEN THERE was grits. I had my
first bite of grits in Atlanta. I also had my
last bite of grits in Atlanta. Before leav
ing home, dad warned me to watch out for
liars, muggers and thieves. He forgot to
mention grits. Bad stuff, ya’ll.
But most memorable was my first trip
to The Varsity. The experience came to
mind recently when that hallowed land
mark celebrated its 60th anniversary in
the fast-food business.
ONE AFTERNOON the same friend
that invited me to Burger King said,
“you've gotta try The Varsity. They have
the best hot dogs in the world.” With a
promise like that, how can you say no?
The minute we entered the joint,
however, aman behind the counter started
yelling, ‘“Waallyahaa! Waalyahaaa!™ over
ONE OF THE animalists’ ideological
fountainheads has written that ‘‘Some
members of other species are persons:
some members of our own species are
not ... So it seems that killing, say, a
chimpanzee is worse than the killing of a
gravely defective human who is not a per
son.”
Think about that.
The man who wrote that obviously
believes his perverse opinions are an ab
solute standard for choosing between right
and wrong, life and death. They are ready
to kill people for hurting animals; abortion
(killing babies in the womb), infanticide
(killing babies newly born), euthanasia
(killing old people deemed useless by
another self-annointed expert) and even
killing the retarded are all condoned. But
they'll pull your eyes out if you're a whaler.
TRULY COMMITTED animalists are
vegetarians. There have been other
fanatics who were also vegetarians, among
their number, according to Billingsley’s
well documented research, are Charles
Manson, a serious champion of animal
rights, and Adolf Hitler who loved his dog
more than his soldiers.
Imagine what would happen if these
people decided to become more openly ter
roristic than they have already been? To
protect animals and animal rights, they
could attack fast food places, because
eating meat is unethical. They could go
after farmers and grocery stores as well.
Ed Spatholt would have to hire guards to
watch over Summerville’s McDonald’s
and Leroy Massey would have to keep a
lookout for an animalist raid on Shinbone
Valley. God help them if they mess with
Leroy.
I DON'T KNOW that the lady who
complained about Charlie Lowry’s rodeo
is a fanatic like the people she bought her
PETA stickers from. She may not know
what kind of people she is supporting. But
she may want to do a little research
herself, on PETA, ALF, and maybe even
the Bible as well, before she goes off on a
tirade about who is and who is not a
Christian. :
I don’t believe she'll find evidence that
salvation is an earthly matter or that
salvation is secured by following PETA'’s
creed about the superiority of animals and
the inferiority of humans.
and over at me. I was stunned. Literally.
I just stood there staring at him, not sure
whether to apologize for unknown sins or
turn and make a run for it. “How have I
offended this poor foreigner?’’ I thought,
panic-stricken.
* * *
JUST AS I was about to beg
forgiveness, however, my pal leaned for
ward and whispered, ‘“‘He wants to take
your order.” It was then I realize the
counter man was actually barking,
“What'll ya have? What'll ya have?”’ Why
he was doing so at the speed of automatic
rifle fire, I have no idea.
“I'll take a hot dog with mustard —"
“One yellow dog!” he yelled to the cook
before I could finish the sentence. ‘“‘For
here or to go?” he said, shouting at me
again.
“To go.”
“Walkin'!”" he cried.
“Fries? Rings?’’ another man down the
line called loudly.
“Onion ri--"’
“Rings!" he bellowed, again cutting me
off.
Nk
IN A MATTER of about seven and a
half seconds I had my yellow dog and rings
ready to walk, and the employees were,
thankfully, terrorizing someone else.
I made it back there a couple of more
times that summer, and it was fun after
I figured out how things worked. I even
bantered a bit with the crew. But after
grits, Burger King, and my initial visit to
the Varsity, I almost sent for a box of my
mom’s donuts to tide me over. If the
freight costs hadn’t been so high on them,
1 probably would have.
A FORTHRIGHT VIEW
The };lt;sg ;f;l;l(;nt mediation board in
history is a determined mother with a
switch. — Brunswick (Ga.) Pilot
D
T
R
PR “\ \ n
N
B
Letters
To The
Editor
Agrees With
Jefferson
Dear Editor,
Re: Rich Jefferson's recent
column on cultural literacg'.
and E. D. Hirsch’s book of the
same title. Hirsch's book is a
part of my personal library,
and 1 would a(giree that it is
revealing — an disturbini.
I wmfid recommend another
book, which is also a part of my
personal library: “Tge Closing
of the American Mind,”” by
Allan Bloom. A professor,
Bloom contends that American
universities lack a sense of pur
pose, impoverishing students’
minds by encouraging creativi
ty, without encouraging
reasoning.
Bloom further contends
that in encouraging the open
mind — certainly desirable and
characteristic of the educated
person, students are further
impoverished. That is because
in pursuing openness, tradi
tional human values lose their
importance, tending to leave
one void of any real convic
tions. That, of course, is tragic,
for convictions are a vital part
of one’s sense of individuai)ity.
And in this world, it is so im
portant that one have a sense
of who one is.
As a minister, I am proper
ly concerned with the wKole
gerson —the mind, as well as
he spirit. Furthermore, I
understand very well that if
one is to really live, and not
just go through the motions,
one must be aware of what is
taking place around him or her,
for one cannot successfully live
in vacuum.
And here is where I find
people are the most frustrated
and cynical. Lacking either the
will, or the background, to
think for themselves, they turn
inward, and lead angry,
depressed lives.
"Formal education is not
everything, of course, though
the increasing importance can
not be denied. Nevertheless, we
fail miserably as an establish
ment if, for reasons of educa
tional or philosophical fad, we
do not provide young people
with the means of seeing life in
the context of the whole. In
this Hirsch hit the proverbial
nail on the head!
Rev. Jack Taylor
Wesley Chapel United
Methodist Churcg
Berlin, Ga.
Thanks
From
Thornberrys
Dear Editor:
Thank You!
If we can endure for this
minute whatever is happening
to us
No matter how heavy our
heart is or how dark the mo
ment, we trust —
If we can remain calm and
quiet with all the world
crashing about us
Secure in the Knowledge
God Loves Us
When everyone else seem to
doubt us
If we can just keep on
believing what we know in our
hearts to be true
That darkness will fade
with the morning and that will
pass away too
Then nothing in life can
defeat us . -
For as long as this
knowledge remains
We can suffer whatever is
happening
For we know God will break
all these chains that are bin
dix:F us tight in the darkness
and trying to fill us with fear —
For there is no night
without dawning and we know
that our morning is near.
Thanks to everyone for
their prayers and help over the
last seven weeks. We will con
tinue to need your prayers to
day, tomorrow and always.
The Thornberrys
J. P, Jo and Jerry
Knitting Is
Obtrusive
Dear Editor:
I have learned that it is not
wise to express your opinions
publicly in certain areas of the
county, but you know I believe
Solomon was right.
He said that 1/10 of 1 per
cent of all the men he had ever
interviewed had any wisdom
and that he had never met a
woman that had any.
It is also my opinion that
knitting is a very obtrusive
hobby.
Sincerely,
Ralph Kennemer
Summerville
See Additional
Letters To
The Editor
On Page 6-A
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