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December 21:
Bah Humbug!
Allow me to present a book review, a small one of a small book. 87 pages I’ve taken time out of my busy holiday schedule for every year since 2000: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.
Call me many things, but never
predictable. Despite all the excellent film portrayals- Bill Murray’s
Scrooged included- one has not truly experienced Scrooge, Marley, Tiny
Tim, and the ominous Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come until you have read
the book.
Even if you are not a Dickens fan or don’t have the Department
56 Dickens’ Village light up houses like I do, Carol defines everything
the holidays are about. Despite his future success, Dickens often
wrote about life in debtors prison and his 1843 portrayal is spot on in
relation to today’s over zealous commercial shopping season and bottom
line obsessions. And Scrooge? He will never become cliché,
no matter how many performances glorify him or send him up. Why?
Because at some point, everyone has had a little bit of Ebenezer in them,
regretted the fact, and redeemed themselves.
We all know the story of Scrooge’s ghostly visitors who show him the true meaning of Christmas. In fact, A Christmas Carol was name one of the Top 100 horror stories of all time. Carol’s past memories of happy childhoods gone by and its bittersweet memories of those enjoying life around you are sappy enough to make even Scrooge warm, but the gothic and frightening images of Arrogance, Want, and The Future yet undetermined can indeed scare anyone back to goodness. Yet I still recommend this as a family read this holiday season.
As deep and mature as Dickens’ Tale is, children gathered around the fire each reading a stave might be the best gift you give them this season. Potter reading children will take the good versus evil story at its basic value. Bob Cratchit and Tiny Tim had no material things of value to begin with, and less than that in the future’s horrible vision, yet the family is grateful. You’re never too old for a lesson in gratitude, redemption, and awareness of the world around you.
Reading A Christmas Carol this holiday will remind you and yours of all the good things about the Season. The things that can be bought, or even seen. Enjoy!
You can read A Christmas Carol and more about Charles
Dickens online at http://www.literature.org/authors/dickens-charles
Weymouth Road is an important highway for area residents. Known by many names and numbers from Cowtown to The Black Horse Pike, speedy drivers are abusing Route 690, and those with the address of Weymouth-Malaga Road are not happy. Not knowing the speed limit is hardly the problem. Buena Vista and Hamilton Townships have adequately posted the 45 and 50 miles per hour speed zones. But are you meant to go 10 below or 10 above? Anyone going below 50 is quickly facing exhaust, and if you're going 59, you can see the eye color of the driver behind you.
So far, police have done little to curb the speeding on Weymouth Road. Occasionally, a car is parked near the Black Horse Pike, but usually police cars are within the traffic trying to keep up. Buena Vista Township is trying to crack down on speed freaks going 60 or better in its residential 45 mph speed zone. Many unhappy residents are insisting the township take action from Route 54 to the Hamilton Township line. Hamilton Township, however, may have the bigger problem. Not only is the speed limit 50, but passing opportunities are many.
Buena is suggesting removing the passing zones in its stretch altogether. I myself drive Weymouth road on a regular basis, and the street lines are quite faded. Repainting clear, distinct lines would be a plus. While driving through Hamilton Township, I've seen many an angry hot rod pass, not one or two, but up to 10 cars at a time. As much as I would love to give license plate numbers, ethics withhold me. The same vehicles time and again only come into the proper lane if there is an oncoming car. Speed is of no matter. I experimented and went over 60, but was still passed.
Maybe it's the appeal of the open road or just road rage taking over from a long day's work, but if drivers know they can't zoom into or through Hamilton they will be less likely to speed in Buena. What can we do? It may or may not be a wise idea to add a third passing lane in less populated areas. I myself cannot abide big trucks with perilous equipment hanging off and bits of everything hitting my windshield. Many cars pass commercial trucks and vehicles regardless of speed. Again it may not be wise to upset commerce, but perhaps a size or weight restriction should limit trucks on Weymouth. Hamilton has several odd fingered road crossings that are prime locations for stop signs. Speed mongers won’t be able to disregard an intersection and pass if they know there is a big red octagon ahead.
Both Buena Vista and Hamilton Township need to work together and crackdown on road rage run amok on Weymouth Road. Most of the crazy driving is not done by Porsches and Corvettes, but regular Hondas, Toyotas, and minivans! Changing or painting the passing lanes and road lines; adding a stop sign or two; and monitoring the highway better are not only cost-effective, but necessary. Residents of Weymouth-Malaga Road should not have to wait for an accident or death before action is taken.
To voice your opinion, visit buenavistatownship.org or
townshipofhamilton.com.
November 9:
Veterans Day Needs Some Love
This fall some schools have off for Veterans Day. The fact that this year, Veterans Day happens to fall with the NJEA Convention and in-service giving students time off is pure coincidence I’m sure. Did you know National Veteran’s Week is November 6th thru the 12th? Me neither.
Why is it the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month gets no respect? Bless Memorial Day and its honoring of our fallen heroes, but it’s more important to the X/Y Generation as the unofficial start of summer. Armed Forces Day? I love it and it’s recent surge to bring honor to our entire military. So why is it the veterans who have the no small task of coming back from service and reintegrating into society get no attention unless school technicalities or voting days fall within November 11th’s reach?
I always took off for Veterans Day when I was in high school. I made sure to make some noise about my small protest, even asking teachers for work I might miss. Some were angry and claimed I had no right to cut on Veterans Day. I told them it is a national holiday, my father is a veteran, and I dang well could.
I’d like to know if the day’s prior incarnation
as Armistice Day was treated so harshly? Is the poor attitude towards veterans
due to the fact that now we are coming into aging Vietnam and Gulf War
veterans, as opposed to Korean, World War I and World War II veterans that
have passed on to Memorial Day? I’ve yet to meet an elder person who will
question a poppy or reading of In Flanders Field, yet if you wear a flag
on your lapel in November, I’ve had people ask me what it’s for.
With the increasing number of servicemen
and women our country is creating, the lack of love for Veterans Day cannot
continue. Not only am I a huge proponent of writing, but also of volunteering.
Everyone knows a veteran and will have military service effect their lives
at some point in some way, so there’s no time like the present to do something
about it. Letter campaigns to politicians about bigger and better 11/11
ceremonies and educations or donations to current troops are a great way
to educate your kids about the unique relationship between civilians and
our military protectors both past and present. Right here in Vineland charitable
organizations and volunteers can do hands on work at the Veteran’s Memorial
Home.
Yes, yes I know, ‘How many charitable things is Kristin going to ask us to do?!’ you say. These things take time and money I know. But it’s more important people know gratitude. The Government’s Veteran Affairs page (http://www1.va.gov/opa/vetsday/) proclaims, “The restoration of the observance of Veterans Day to November 11 not only preserves the historical significance of the date, but helps focus attention on the important purpose of Veterans Day: A celebration to honor America's veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good.”
So if you do one thing this Veterans Day, let it
be to tell a Veteran thank you. Thanks, Dad!
October 26:
Why Do We Love Halloween?
Children of the night! Things that go bump in the night! Candyman, Candyman, Candyman! It is silly things like these and more that have littered the end of October for decades. What was once the religious holiday of All Saint’s Day today is nothing more than low budget films with teen sex, gore, and Paris Hilton.
Why then do we love Halloween so much? Even during the rest of the year, fans crave Stephen King and Anne Rice; petitions online still beg for the return of Angel; and the fashion magazines have hailed black is the new black. Perhaps the bigger question is this: Why is such an upstanding country and people obsessed with all things frightening?
I am no psychologist, but I’m sure there
are some Freudian theories on ‘the communal experiences of everyone screaming
in a theater at the same time’ or having ’the thrills and adrenaline rush
without real pain’ may have some truth. I think we just like fantasy.
Even though anybody who was anybody cringed at
the words ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ when I was a kid, The Lord of The Rings
has had mucho success in recent years. And how many committees made
up of educators and angry parents have been created to spread the word
on how evil Harry Potter really is?
We like all things scary because they walk the fine line between escapism and true self. Is there such a thing as magic? Black magic? Voodoo? To some, yes. Are there serial killers the likes of the fictional Hannibal Lector? Yes. Even today’s popular mainstream shows like Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, CSI, and Prison Break tackle the issues of society’s underbelly. Real life horrors that need to be brought to light- in a shocking yet FCC safe way.
Of course, questions do come to mind. Are children becoming desensitized to sex and violence because it is so common place in the media? Do we need to ban Halloween, strike A Nightmare on Elm Street from all film libraries? I don’t think so. Some parents don’t celebrate Halloween and don’t allow their children to watch sensitive material. Some may disagree, but I praise a parent for taking action and showing interest in their kids. They seem to be a dying breed with busy single parent or working households making an absent parent commonplace.
My eight year old niece recently wrote a vampire story, complete with garlic, drinking blood, and sunlight saving the day. My parents jokingly blamed me for the inspiration. It seemed my nieces and I watched Dark Shadows one too many times. Is she too young to be thinking such things? Maybe. Is she too young to be creative and develop her imagination? No. When it comes to all thinks spooky, parents need to decide how far their child’s imagination can go. Is it better to keep ghosts and goblins in the realm of fantasy? When should you be concerned that little Billy is painting his room red and calling it blood? Just like parents will inspect candy before their kids can eat it, Mom and Dad should keep an eye on what scares and inspires Junior.
Horror, gore, murder, and mayhem will always be popular in art, movies, television, and books as long as people have something to be afraid of. Whether that fear is real or imagined or trick instead of treat, I leave up to you.
Just remember to keep your real life spooks separate from what’s on TV. No going to a cemetery at midnight on Halloween this year!
October 5:
Was Katrina Our Second 9/11?
3,000 Louisiana National Guardsmen were sent home from Iraq not to assist in hurricane relief, but because an estimated 80% of these soldiers are victims of Katrina. What does that say about America? What do we look like to the rest of the world when the people who graciously risked their lives in service to our country are called home to equal desolation, death, and destruction? A year in Iraq and what do these soldiers get in return? Their homes are gone, regular jobs and securities lost, even loved ones killed. I've seen the international newspapers at Borders. Sure there are other things going on in the world, but Hurricane Katrina was second page news in all but one Italian newspaper. I don't know which is worse; how bad America looks, or that the rest of the world seemingly doesn't care.
All the news and media juggernauts feared a second
attack like September 11th and have questioned if color codes are the answer
to preventing terrorism and catastrophic destruction.
All the news and media juggernauts feared what would
happen if a tsunami hit the United States. Infrastructure lost; death
tolls in the double-digit thousands; the plagues and illness developing
in dirty water; starvation; the smell.
Katrina was both.
Whether it was natural or man-made Hurricane Katrina was everything Americans in the post-9/11 world feared. Death; destruction; loss; social and political damage; the booming gas prices. We knew Hurricane Katrina was coming. We were unprepared, and there was nothing we could do to stop her.
Bureaucratic heads are rolling, including FEMA director
Michael Brown's resignation. A Newsweek poll showed a 38% approval/62%
disapproval of President Bush. Again I ask, what must the rest of
the world be thinking? What must terrorists be thinking?
Everyone is focusing on New Orleans. The
flooding and destruction of nearly 80% of the Big Easy would not have happened
had the levees been reinforced and not broken. Katrina has been our
wake-up call (Not that we needed another one.) While we were snoozing
our enemies just got some pretty good ideas about where to hit us next.
The Hoover Dam? The Lincoln Tunnel? Some nameless city teetering
helplessly on the Mississippi River?
Like they say in sci-fi, the little green men don't land on the White House lawn-they come in the back door. Right now our back door is wide open, and I find myself ashamed, disgusted, and weeping at this fact. I don't think the correlation between Katrina and 9/11 is the timing. Both events rippled through our country from top to bottom. Where are we as a country when the victims of this hurricane were already below the poverty threshold and celebrities use charity telethons to say our president didn't help because the victims were black?
With the tsunami and now this hurricane, I tried briefly to think positively. The people affected weren't having the best life as it were, and now that bad life was washed away. In the tsunami case, the people the world had forgotten can begin anew. The world is a big place, people can slip through the cracks. That is why we are supposedly in Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, Bosnia-to help the people society left behind. In the back of our minds, we know disenfranchise people exist in the US. Homelessness we can see in its worst way in darling Camden. Even the homeless within our area’s midst are not at the forefront of our mind. I lose my optimism when I realized Katrina's victims are the people America had forgotten.
I'd like to think they can begin anew. Thousands of people now have something they never had before: opportunity. However, more and more America's strife is reminding me of Rome. Rome, ironically, is popular on TV again. All roads led to Rome as the world looks to us now. Maybe people will tune in to The History Channel and learn Rome was not destroyed by outside barbarians, but by internal corruption. With the thousands, maybe millions, of displaced Katrina victims, we're just now witnessing what Rome’s homeless rates were like.
Are we destined to be destroyed from within rather than by our enemies? As evidenced by our lack of preparedness on 9/11 and with Hurricane Katrina, I am left with one thought: those who do not know their history are doomed to repeat it.
September 14:
The Ambiguity of Charity
Today I’d like to talk about the ambiguity of charity. July 2nd Bob Geldof's ambitious Live 8 united nations around the globe, including several million in Philadelphia. No money was requested, and celebrities worked for free- sans $12,000 gift baskets. Live 8’s goal was to raise awareness of the plights in Africa and to get the big eight world powers to get their butts in gear about it. Not to sound callous, but why are we interested in Africa? Is it really for the starving children or wanton diseases run rampant? Or is it the continent’s untapped wealth of oil and gold?
Why do we turn away from our own local destruction, sneak it under the rug? Philly is not always the best place to be. Mayor Street has faced questions of corruption himself. Yet on that sunny Live 8 Saturday Philly was the picture of Brotherly Love, and Street claim to have written his bicycle on the promenade!
How can we take on the ambitious tasks of forgiving African debts, creating solid infrastructure, building economy, creating a middle-class, and weeding corruption and dictatorship from 50 warring nations when New Jersey cannot solve its own problems with the US's most dangerous city, Camden?
Bless Live 8 and its quest to open our eyes and make people aware of the world's problems. But the media and celebrity bandwagon trying to heal the world often blinds us of the problems in front of our own noses. Big names and pictures move us to do something, like last winter's tsunami outcry. I myself supported tsunami charities, but now reports are coming out about aide never reaching the South Pacific. The charity organizations on the ground have become more interested in petty turf wars than helping those in need. I find myself asking, “What was accomplished?"
Several months ago, our local Post offices united in a Mail Carriers Food Drive. I kept the brochure on my refrigerator for two weeks so as not to forget. I even got up early on a Saturday to insure my goods were at my mailbox before my postman. Imagine my horror when only two other houses on my block had goods beside their mailboxes. I'm for charity of the senses. When you can go to where the charity is needed, or physically send supplies, or build with your own hands. People pinching money is one thing. Money is tight, sure, but not putting a pack of Ramen Noodles in your mailbox is inexcusable.
Right here in Vineland we deal with a fritzy economy, the erosion of the middle class, warring infrastructure, displacement and homelessness. If we won’t help each other, what hope is there for the world? It would take a whole nother essay for me to properly express my anger, shock, and disappointment in our government’s failure and utterly pathetic delays in aiding Hurricane Katrina's victims in their most desperate hour. If every person in Vineland put a pack of noodles in their mailbox, how many people in the Gulf could we feed?
What is one to do then? Take action! Pick the cause closest to your heart and stick to it. Everyone has their hands out, and before you know it everyone is in over their heads. I know you can’t do it all. Research a respectable organization, sponsor a child, or pick a time of year to donate. Pick a local organization and volunteer once a year. The Vineland United Methodist Church holds a soup kitchen year-round, or take your gentle spring cleaning leftovers to Salvation Army or Goodwill. Encourage your children to get involved. Support school drives and take your kids to community benefits, such as a walk-a-thon. These little things can fit into any busy family schedule, and the rewards on both sides are paramount. Again I say we must teach our children that there are more important things than money. It doesn't have to be the Holidays to give, and it is truely better than receiving.
August 10:
Big Brother Reads What You Read?
My sister used to make fun of me because I said
librarians are the most powerful people in the world. A librarian
knows everything you’ve read, your deepest interests and your darkest secrets.
Unfortunately, the government agrees with me.
Imagine my curiosity when Book TV on C-SPAN aired
a June 15 debate by the House of Representatives arguing an amendment to
the Patriot Act section 215, allowing the government to observe library
circulations, records, book store sales, and their pertaining web site
libraries-without reason or probable cause.
Naturally if this amendment would indeed be used to track terrorists and their heinous plots, I wholeheartedly would agree. However, who decides who is a terrorist? What type of subject matter, books, or web sites need terror flags? If a student does a book report on Orwell’s 1984 would that send red lights to Washington?
The perspectives on this topic are many, including
if you’re doing nothing wrong, you have nothing to fear. But if this
amendment is passed, then what would follow? The regulation of the
Internet? Books being banned and slowly disappearing? Magazine
and newspaper censorship? This very article being stricken?
What makes America so great is our freedom.
The First Amendment of our Constitution has stood for over 200 years.
Today’s circumstances should not be able to alter our strive for penne
ultimate freedom of mind, body, religion, and voice.
At what point would monitoring turn into censorship,
then control? More people are reading and publishing books than ever
before. Why would we try and take away knowledge-both good and bad-from
our children?
Have we learned nothing from our history?
How is our government’s trying to control our society’s literature in order
to thwart terrorism any different from Nazi Germany’s book burnings and
Jewish scapegoats? We can make the world a safer place without forgetting
our Constitution.
I have been thinking of writing about voting and people using their rights for some time. Instead of checking up on what people read and enforcing the “Big Brother is watching you” effect, we should be educating the next generation on right and wrong, doing the right thing, and speaking up about what you believe in.
Recently the House delayed the reconsideration of this part of the Patriot Act for another 10 years, but President Bush and his administration continue to support this act. Republicans themselves are displeased with the President’s stance, and critics and the public are voicing their unhappiness as well. There is, however, something we can do about this. Use your First Amendment rights. Research and write to your local congressmen, senators, and other politicians. Ask your local bookstore how they feel, perhaps they’d be interested in posting a petition, or organize a meeting at your local library. Remember, we have the right to peaceably assemble. Better yet, read The Crisis by Thomas Pain. We should all brush up on the American Revolution.
July 20:
Could you boycott Baseball?
I decided long before the Congressional Hearings that I would boycott Baseball this summer. Maybe I’m not as into sports as I used to be, but I though I could walk away from the MLB again. (Remember the 94 strike anyone?) I am however having a tough time sticking to my personal disenchantment. How could a sport chock full of so much bad be everywhere and still be so popular?
Putting all the money, cheatings, egos, and attitudes aside, my main reason for trying to boycott baseball is steroids. How many parents have tried so long and hard to teach their children honor and self-respect and positive work ethics only to be shot down by blown up heroes on TV? Anyone who has an old McGuire or Bonds baseball card can tell you they are inflated, to say the least. How can we talk about winning and going for the record books when we can never really know for sure how many new records are tainted by steroids? There is a hundred years of good baseball history, but steroids have forever marred the modern game. We as fans, parents, and consumers have the power to restore baseball to its original glory. Fans who fill the seats and watch on TV give players the riches they need to spread drugs and owners look the other way when winning teams fill their pockets. When we pack seats and cut into newscasts to watch hard earned records fall via clear creams, we are telling the baseball powers that be that it’s okay to win at all costs. Why should baseball fix what isn’t broken for them? A few players will get slaps on the wrists for steroids, yet Shoeless Joe Jackson was banned for life and Roger Maris record stood only with an asterisk. Go figure.
I know its easy to sit back and be an arm chair critic, but I keep thinking of what I would do if I found out my child was using steroids to get ahead in a sport. By watching baseball, going to game, buying its merchandise, and raising its TV ratings are we condoning steroid use? Are we telling our kids its okay to cheat, do what you have to do to get big numbers, wins, and money? How can we admit that steroids equal success, and that’s it’s no big deal?
Why is there such a low price on sportsmanship? Baseball is only a game. It’s not a business when parents take their kids to Little League. I like baseball, sure, but a young athlete’s knowing the difference between right and wrong is more important to me. Fans see the big hits and wins, but wide eyed teenagers trying to get scholarships fail to see the mind and mood changes that steroids can bring. Altered hormones, personality changes, depression and suicide. Can we tell children that’s okay? Of course not. Not only are steroids illegal, but pro baseball players are allowed to be above the law. Would we pay to see our kids rob a bank? Of course not you say! But you would pay to see a ballgame. Nowadays I have to ask myself, what is the difference?
So even though the Yankees resigned my beloved Tino Martinez, I must change the channel. I refuse to condone steroids as a good thing. This spring, turn off the television and go out for a catch instead. Tell your children money and wins aren’t everything, and that success can’t be found in a pill. Maybe low ratings and empty seats will lure owners and players to take its fans’ integrity more seriously. Who is with me?!
March 16:
Internet Safety A Must
If you’re my age or maybe a little bit older, you may remember a time when the computer was not the central nerve of anyone’s household. The Generation X and Y twenty somethings that pushed our current computer technologies into the mainstream are now having to deal with the consequences-our kids are online.
My seven year old niece is currently obsessed with all things on the Information Super Highway. Instant messages, games, all those cute icons that jump up and down. How young is too young for a child to be online? No matter how mature your child may be, how sure you are in a secure chat between another school friend, how sure you are that website’s game is not too violent, The following fact remains: there are predators who seek out and exploit children sneaking in a chat or game when their parents aren’t looking.
As the psychology goes, you forbid someone from something, they only want it more and will seek it out with renewed vigor. Parents can’t be online with their kids at all times, but they should indeed utilize common sense and built in precautions if traveling virtually is a must for their child. Many internet service providers have blockers or restriction packages. Block unfriendly websites, names, or keywords. Looking into this is a must.
Indeed let your child use the computer, but for education purposes only. Games and chit chat can be had with age. Encourage the encyclopedia for homework, art programs for inspiration, and music and photos for creativity. Try creating a reward system. Your child typed his or her report on the computer, reward them with a thinking game such as chess or solitaire.
Parents should also begin building a previewed website portfolio. Sit down with your significant others or other parental figures and search for safe and positive websites. Once you’ve declared the site acceptable for your child’s likes and limitations, create a favorites folder where only the kid friendly sites will be stored. Be sure and set aside a time where the family can enjoy these websites together.
Limiting times on the computer is also a must. Be sure all your child’s responsibilities are met before they get to the computer. Chores, homework, practice must be completed before computer time arrives. Parents with younger children should keep the computer in a family central area, not in a back office or guest room where kids can sneak online at odd hours of the night. Just like the TV, adults are usually online later.
There are ways to check your computer to see who
was on when, and check the messenger history to see if any handles you
don’t recognized tried to contact your child. Unfortunately idealism and
the benefits of technology are not always found on the computer.
If you find someone has contacted your child with offensive material, contact
your service about what authorities to contact.
We can’t keep technology away from our children
forever, but instilling respect, proper computer etiquette, and caution
is a must for this next generation who can’t live without computers.
February 9:
Appalled By Local Animal Violence
It used to be that some horrible SPCA shakedown
was only seen on the likes of television. Some shocking news story
in the big cities or an orchestrated event on Animal Planet. I have
to wonder, is anyone else sickened when these headlines top our local newspapers?
Animal cruelty has gone from being absurd and in
just to being apparently the popular and hip thing to do. How sickening.
I was not surprise to find a teenager behind the Cumberland Mall’s first
bout with Seagull Massacres. Was it a dare? A substance induced notion?
The cause is not the point. What is the point is that this stupidity
is contagious. Where is the mind of someone who imitates running down seagulls?
Let us not forget the reports of two young girls bludgeoning kittens and giving them mock burial ceremonies in shallow graves. I can’t explain how our youth have come to this. Have we no quality books, television, games, sports to entertain them? Do we have such a low quality of life community that children have to destroy animals to get attention? These are ills that unfortunately can only be healed by family time and good fortune.
However, the community can do something. Be
animal friendly and use some good old fashion common sense if you are giving
away or selling animals, or if you witness something suspicious.
There is a happier way to save animals, of course.
If you are able to support a four legged family member, do so. Teach
your child the proper way to respect and be responsible for an animal.
Be sure and choose an animal that fits your lifestyle. Outdoor dog
if you fear for your furniture or an inside cat if you have a mature minded
tween. Incorporate your new pet with the family. Go online
and read up together, watch Lassie together, or get out that old frisbee.
The American SPCA’s site http://www.aspca.org/ is a great place to start
researching how you can educate your child on proper animal etiquette.
Saving the life of an animal doesn’t have to be expensive and can be rewarding
to you and your family.