Letters to the Editor December 29, 2004 I appreciated the juxtaposition of items in the layout of the Back Page of the August 2004 issue of the Republic (being late in reading back issues from summer leads to an enjoyable activity during the short days of winter). The photo of Stacy Fritz's idealistic and satiric exposure of Bush B & Bs (Billionaires for Bush) adjacent to Mark Schubauer's satiric and timely prose were refreshing when read in the post-election atmosphere, in spite of the outcome of the election. And the carry over of the ideology bullets from the Libertarian platform on the bottom of the page jointly espousing "freedom and responsibility, right of the people to determine their own governing body, enforceable property rights" and "abolition of all government regulatory agencies", although challenging to one's assessment of Libertarian logic, was a nice reminder of the diversity that exists in the perspectives existing in that component of society that currently is not all that supportive of the present status of our government. Keep up your exposition of the weaknesses and strengths that characterize our society. Dave Klein 1/2/04 When football teams lose games they don’t sit around the locker room crying about how mean the other team is. Rather, they look at the footage of the game to figure out their own weaknesses and those of their opponents, then make some changes so they can win the next match-up. With that in mind, I’d like to comment on the guest opinion by Mel Gilles which appeared in the December issue. Gilles, an advocate for domestic violence victims, wants to apply the lessons of this work to the recent election. Right off the bat it should be noted that domestic violence occurs in family and group living situations which are (or damn well should be) cooperative. Politics, on the other hand, is a highly competitive contact sport. Football players beat the tar out of each other, and so, metaphorically speaking, do those involved in political campaigns. For those who may not have noticed, that’s politics. Gilles chastises liberals and progressives who are wondering why they are unpopular, comparing them to victims of abusive spouses who blame themselves for their predicament. This is ludicrous. Clearly the message of the left isn’t registering with the American people. If it was, Democrats would be winning elections. Gilles is asking liberals to live in denial. Leaders like Nancy Pelosi are doing their jobs. They’ve recognized that the left needs to be more inclusive if it wants to start winning. Gilles’ advice that liberals refuse to change or compromise is a guaranteed losing strategy. (Perhaps she’s a stealth Republican.) Gilles wants liberals to recognize themselves as victims. I watched footage of real victims jumping from the hundredth floor of the World Trade Center. No, liberals aren’t victims, they just lost the game. Now Gilles wants them to be sore losers. Gilles wants us to believe that conservatives are haters. Well, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard or been emailed the snide little joke about Red State America forming the new Republic of Dumbfuckistan. Sounds pretty hateful to me. Last I checked the right didn’t have an exclusive team franchise in Hateville. The mindless drivel of conservative radio hosts (and liberal leaning book reviewers) is certainly obnoxious and adds nothing substantial to the national debate, but real hatred is the act of turning jetliners into torpedoes and killing 3000 innocent people. Does Gilles recognize this? Do liberals? Not if they heed Gilles’ advice and sink deeper into a state of self-imposed, navel-gazing victimization. So, it’s time to reexamine the playbook and bench the weak players (Michael Moore, MoveOn, et al.). They had their chance and they lost. If the left sticks with its present game plan, as Gilles counsels, then eventually they’ll be starting from their own end zone and punting every four years. And the only winners will be the Republicans. Oh, and also therapists like Mel Gilles who will keep telling bewildered leftists that “it’s ok, it’s not your fault, you’re just a victim of some really, really mean people.” Your Illiterary Book Critic, A call for help In November of 2003, a friend and I spent one of the most wonderful weeks of our lives on the remote island of Ko Pra Tong, on the western coast of Thailand near the Burmese border. There were three small fishing villages on the island, and only one public accommodation, at Golden Buddha Beach. The island is very difficult to reach: there is no bridge, and no dock. Visitors have to take a 1 1/2 hour boat ride to the island, and wade through knee-deep water to reach the guest houses. The community there resembled numerous small Alaskan villages, complete with local pride, simple, subsistence lifestyle and generous hospitality. In many ways, it was a noncommercialized paradise on earth. We have stayed in touch with the residents of Ko Pra Tong (Golden Buddha Island) since our visit, and had intended to return as guests this spring. But on December 26, the tsunami destroyed two of the three villages and the guest houses we loved so much. Several guests, employees, and innumerable villagers were killed in the disaster. In one village, every single child, and all but a handful of adults survived because they managed to climb trees. Some of the villagers saw the wave coming and instead of climbing a tree they got on their motorbikes with their families and tried to beat the wave to the school where they could turn left and move away from the sea. None of them made it. My heart ached at the news. Now, rather than planning a vacation there, my friend and I intend to return to Ko Pra Tong in early February to donate a month's worth of labor to help rebuild what was lost on the day after Christmas. The whole world has been asked to donate money to help the victims of this disaster. Many of us however are concerned about high overhead costs of well-known foreign aid organizations, and we never really know where the money goes, or how it is distributed. Fortunately, a 501(c)3 non-profit association in California has agreed to accept tax-deductible donations on behalf of the residents of Ko Pra Tong from inside the US. This relief fund has been established to aid tsunami victims living in the villages near Golden Buddha Beach. It will directly contribute to the wellbeing of locals who have suffered from this disaster, and will not go to pay inflated executive salaries. In the short term people on Ko Pra Tong will need clothing, food, water, and medicine. In the long run, the villages on this island will need support in re-establishing their livelihoods: primarily new homes and fishing boats. It is not the intention of this relief fund to simply hand out money to people. Instead, the fund will be used to invest in the future of these communities, in a way that allows local people to retain autonomy. Care will be taken so the fund can help people to help themselves. I would like to make a personal request of all Esteroids to consider a donation, however modest, to this fund. If you would like to donate, or to learn more about how the tsunami affected Ko Pra Tong, please visit the fund's website, www.goldenbuddhabeach.com, or mail your check to the nonprofit US representative of this fund: Business for the Environment Tsunami Relief Fund Contact me directly at barefoot [at] alaska.net, or 455-4338 if you have questions or wish to make donations of a nonfinancial nature that we can deliver personally, or if you would like to help sponsor our transportation to this remote location. Lastly, please keep us and our friends on Ko Pra Tong in your prayers. There is a lot of work ahead of us, and every little bit helps. Chris Barefoot Editor’s Note: the following background information on this island was provided in an 1/6/05 update at www.losthorizonsasia.com/tsunami.html: There are three villages on Koh Phratong: Tapa Yoi, Bak Jok, and Tung Dap. Of these, Bak Jok and Tung Dap have been completely destroyed. Other severely affected villages in the area include Baan Talae Nok and Hat Praphat. The villagers have lost not only homes, but their fishing boats—the main source of food and income for most families. These families rely almost completely on the sea for their survival, there is very little farming, cottage industry, or tourism in the area. Apparently the tsunami victims all now have some access to food, drinking water, and clothing. However, they are all huddled in the temple, and will need better housing soon. There is also concern about the mid-term, and long-term wellbeing of the villagers, as many of the aid agencies may pack up and leave soon. Presently, some needs of the communities are known, and other cannot be assessed until the chaos has subsided. In cooperation with long-time local residents, such as Lory Folledor and Khun Sompot (of the Hat Praphat Research Station), we will identify and address the most pressing issues, with attention to the long term wellbeing of the communities.
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