treppenwitz

In the eye of the beholder

Just for the record... I maintain that yesterday's post did not violate my 'no politics for a week' promise.  I asked a perfectly reasonable question about parenting.  It's not my fault that nearly everything in this part of the world has political overtones.

Take for example the photos at the end of this post (no, Photo Friday didn't come a day early).  Depending on one's point of view, one might see:

a)  a symbol of Israel's sovereignty/freedom flying gracefully over beautiful meadows of red Kalaniot (Anemones) on a peaceful spring day.

OR

b)  a symbol of Israel's military occupation flying over a conquered land and oppressing even the beauty of nature.

On this beautiful pre-spring morning the sight of red kalaniot dappling the hillsides under an IAF helicopters is a proud, potent symbols of Israel for me.  It doesn't make me think of politics... but I can understand how for some, the helicopter - and even the hillsides full of kalaniot - are inextricably tied to politics.

[shrugs]

Sorry, but that's just part of living in Israel. 

The soldiers flying the helicopter are not political symbols.  They are early twenty-somethings performing their national service and dreaming about their lives after the army.

The helicopter is admittedly an instrument of war... but it also helps secure what passes for peace in this part of the world.

The hillsides and meadows under which the soldiers and helicopter flies belong to my physical and spiritual homeland... and I well up just thinking about my incredible privilege of being able to walk these hills as a free Jew... after 2000 years.

And the flowers.  What about the flowers?  Surely no one could possibly read politics into something as simple and beautiful as a red poppy, right? 

So I thought... until I was talking with one of my older coworkers the day after the recent passing of one of Israel's most beloved singers; Shoshana Damari.  He explained to me that when her trademark song, 'Kalaniot' became popular at the end of the British Mandate period, it was enjoyed by many as a derisive jab at the red berets worn by the English soldiers.  I had never heard that before (and frankly I wonder how sound his memory of that period is), but it demonstrates how even something as innocent as a flower can potentially be tainted by politics.

Some will look at these pictures and see only occupied land overflown by a symbol of Israeli occupation and tyranny.  I see members of the first Jewish army in two millennium enjoying a spring morning flight over the flower-strewn hillsides of my country.

Beauty (or politics) is all in the eye of the beholder.

[Helicopter photos are Copyright  2006 Israel Ministry of Defense - All Rights Reserved.  Last picture is mine.]

A completely non-political question

First a little background:  Let's say you live in a neighborhood, province or country where violent crime (shootings, stabbings, kidnappings, and worse), has become a serious problem.  Not only that, but the perpetrators of these violent crimes tend to belong to a particular recognizable ethnicity.  For the sake of this discussion let's say that they are Hispanic.  The dangerous members of the latino community wear no distinguishing 'colors' or insignia, so it is impossible to tell a potentially violent assailant from a man or woman who is simply out for a walk.

More background:  Being the product of an enlightened liberal upbringing, you experience a certain amount of internal conflict between your natural tendency to fear/avoid members of this particular ethnic/racial group... and the ingrained humanist lessons of your upbringing telling you that most latinos/latinas or not violent criminals, and it is therefore the worst sort of racism to shun, fear or label them all as bad.

One last bit of background: You have learned to live for many years with this internal conflict through a complicated application of personal compromises, torturous rationalizations and carefully considered decisions about where and when you travel locally.  However, your children are now reaching an age where they are demanding more autonomy and wish to spend more time away from home.  You have carefully catechized them in all the liberal humanist values you hold near and dear.  But in order to provide them with the tools to protect themselves from potential predators and/or dangerous situations you are forced to introduce them to some of the personal compromises you have made over the years with a pure humanist approach to your fellow man.

Finally, the question:  Where do you strike the balance between teaching your kids to be prudent/cautious without teaching them it is OK to instinctively hate/fear Hispanics.  Remember, this isn't some theoretical classroom exercise.  If you err too far in one direction your kids end up racists.  Err too far the other way and your kids may end up in the morgue.

Oh... one more tiny bit of background before you answer:  We're not talking about Hispanics.