Serenity Now, by Michael Davis – Straight No Chaser #252
January 20, 2012 Michael Davis 11 Comments
I met a wonderful family a few years ago at the San Diego Comic Con. I’m lucky enough to still be in touch with them on a regular basis. They are fantastic people and just happen to be Muslim. A large part of my recent ire directed at the home improvement chain Lowes was because I know this family and the Lowe’s decision to pull their Ads from the TV show American Muslim because of some pussy Right Wing hate group made me mad as Hell because all the people I know of the Muslim faith are just good people and this family is simply the salt of the earth.
I received the following email thanksgiving week from a member of the family. It affected me in such a way I asked and was given permission to run it on MDW. My dear friend Rangzeb told me it was OK to use his full name.
I decided to only use his first name. I may be paranoid but I’d rather be paranoid than risk any crap no matter how slight the odds are happening to my friend or his family.
Besides, I’ve got this thing for his sister…
Good Morning Michael,
I’m Stateside for Thanksgiving with my Sister. I was taken in for questioning at Newark Customs & Immigration because of my surname but I was eventually allowed in. I saw a lady from Scotland in the office who was being grilled quite badly and she burst into tears. I felt really sorry for her because she was here in the States to attend a wedding. And then the officers interrogated a teenage girl from London even though her grandfather used to be in the USAAF and her mother was once married to an American Marine. The girl was physically trembling as the officer shouted down at her in full view of everybody. I love America and find it sad that for some people coming to the USA for the first time these border control officers will leave a bad impression in their minds.
I hope your Thanksgiving is going well (if you’re celebrating it) and you’re having a great time. Some stores are opening at midnight for the Black Friday sales! I feel sorry for the poor employees who have to sacrifice their celebrations and go to work. The spirit of Christmas and Thanksgiving has changed dramatically over the last few decades.
Thanksgiving is a time for families to come together and relax. It’s about people and communities coming and playing and giving a bit of love and spreading the message of hope.
I send you my best and warmest wishes and hope you, and all your family, enjoy a fantastic and beautiful day. May you be blessed with peace, prosperity and lots of love.
All the best,
Rangzeb
Rangzeb is my friend. His family are my friends. They just happen to be Muslim, I just happen to be African American WE all just happen to be people. He had every right to be angry but he wasn’t. Look at that, a Muslim being treated like a suspect and not being angry.
When I see the GOP candidates implying or simply SAYING clearly and without hesitation that all Muslims are terrorists, being Gay is a sin and an abomination and black families prefer welfare to a job it makes me crazy.
Watching the nearly all white all GOP audience give Newt Gingrich a standing ovation when he defended his ‘Obama is the food stamp President’ position on any other day would have made me livid. I was all set to go on a ‘Newt is a lying, cheating motherfucker who wants an open marriage so he can get some outside the home pussy, rant.
But somehow seeing those people standing up and applauding Newt’s clear to ANY Black person (except for that house nigger Herman, fucks around on his wife also, Cain) racist remarks reminded me of Rangzeb’s email and I felt calm.
Calm because Romney thinks that three hundred thousand dollars PLUS is not a lot of money and he likes to fire people yet he’s portraying himself as an average American.
Newt thinks that he can run as a family values candidate but he loves pussy so much he cheats on one wife and wants another wife to let him fuck other women.
Ron Paul? That crazy motherfucker? I’ll just say what the GOP said to Herman Cain when they pressured his stupid ass to get out of the race, nigger please.
I have Muslim, Gay and poor friends. Somehow belonging to any of those groups is bad according to some in the GOP. Bad for them and bad for the country.
Really?
I’ll take my chances.
Good luck GOP voters with your family values fuck around on his wife and average Joe who likes to fire people and thinks that a quarter of a million dollars is not a lot of money, candidate.
I’ll stick with the, put a bullet in the head of Osama pulled the auto industry out of a free fall ended the war in Iraq stopped a great deal of the world from hating us, health care for all, food stamp guy…and Rangzeb.
Bill Mulligan
January 20, 2012 - 4:48 am
MOTU, have to say that the thought of sending someone to DC who likes to fire people…does not fill me with a sense of foreboding. If there is any place that has a lot of deadwood…
Maybe they could start with the folks who are abusing folks at the border. And isn’t that happening on Obama’s watch?
Not saying Romney’s my guy, since I prefer my leaders to resemble animatronics AFTER they have been added to the Hall of Presidents, not before, but I think a lot of us see a willingness to clean house as a feature, not a bug.
Russ Rogers
January 20, 2012 - 6:51 am
@Bill, President G.W. Bush oversaw an increase in the size of Government by 1.8 MILLION jobs during his 8 years in office. He also oversaw a NET LOSS of more than 600,000 Domestic Private Sector Jobs. The idea that was foisted on us that Tax Cuts for the rich would lead to an increase in Domestic Employment has demonstrated itself to be a Crock O’ Crap. The only reason G.W. Bush saw ANY increase in jobs over his 8 years was because of how much he grew the size of Government with Deficit Spending.
By Contrast, President Obama already has a better record of Domestic Job Creation on his watch. In fact, more than 3.2 MILLION Domestic Private Sector Jobs have been added to Economy over the last 22 months. We had GROWTH in Domestic Manufacturing Jobs in both 2010 AND 2011. The last year we experienced net GROWTH in Domestic Manufacturing Jobs was in 1997. And during this time, Obama has overseen a SHRINKING of Government jobs by more than 600,000.
So, ask yourself: Which Executive in Chief is REALLY from the Party that promotes “Big Government”? Which Party is actually “Good for Business” and Domestic Jobs? More jobs were added to the Domestic Economy during Clinton’s years in Office than Reagan, Bush and G.W. Bush combined!
Obama REPEALED DADT, allowing our military to serve with honor.
Republicans mouth platitudes about Job Creation, Fiscal Responsibility and Smaller Government. When in reality, they grow the Government, refuse to generate enough revenues to pay for the Government and increase the growth of the deficit more than Democrats, and their policies DON’T lead to the Private Sector Job Growth that they promise. Either they are liars about their true goals, or far less competent about achieving them than their Democrat rivals.
To top that off. the GOP candidates hold divisive, discriminatory and condescending attitudes towards minorities, including Muslim Americans, Gay Americans, African Americans, Latin-Americans, Atheists (ah heck, you name it)!
You might think that a willingness to clean house is a good idea, but I’m afraid you won’t find anything but hypocrisy and empty platitudes with the Republican field.
Martha Thomases
January 20, 2012 - 8:20 am
What if Tebow was Muslim, and bending his knee to Allah after every successful play? Do you think he’d be getting so much positive attention?
Michael-Rene Prince
January 20, 2012 - 10:32 am
There was just a segment on the news last night saying that the U.S. loses over 600 BILLION DOLLARS ANNUALLY. Since 9-11 and the “heightened level of security screening” that has been put into effect. Here’s the kicker – people that want to come like 15 year old girls from Brazil have to wait over 3 months for a tourist VISA. So they and millions of other travelers around the world are opting to go visit other countries. 600 Billion Bucks would straighten up the American economy very quickly. These numbers have prompted the President to inform Homeland security to use some common sense.
Bill Mulligan
January 20, 2012 - 11:37 am
Well, Russ, those are great reasons not to vote for George Bush and you can rest assured he will not get my vote.
The cacophony of statistics on jobs often leaves me confused. can you clear up something–according to some stats i see the number of Americans in the workforce has dropped to a low not seen in 3 decades. At the same time you say we have added millions of jobs. And the unemployment rate is well and truly awful.
So I’m genuinely curious how we are adding jobs and adding population but have less people working. How does that happen? When we say millions of jobs have been added is that a net or just the number of jobs created without regard to how many were ended? So if 1 million jobs were created and 1.5 million were lost one could still make the claim that a million jobs were created, though the bigger picture is not a good or sustainable one. I don’t know if that’s the case now but I’d be interested to find out.
But Obama firing 600,000 government workers is definitely a plus in my column.
MOTU
January 20, 2012 - 2:18 pm
Bill said,
“MOTU, have to say that the thought of sending someone to DC who likes to fire people…does not fill me with a sense of foreboding. If there is any place that has a lot of deadwood…”
Bill, I understand not everyone liked the new DC 52 but firing a bunch people is a bit drastic. the books did do well.
What?
Bill Mulligan
January 20, 2012 - 7:06 pm
Nope. Fire the lot of them. Make you editor in chief. And then maybe you could toss me a bone here for the support, you know, give me the chance to write a reboot of DIAL H FOR HERO or the version of captain Marvel where he yelled “Split!” and, by God, he did.
MOTU
January 20, 2012 - 8:27 pm
Bill,
I L O V E D THAT CAPTAIN MARVEL!
Reg
January 20, 2012 - 9:22 pm
“…WE all just happen to be people.”
Amazingly sad that this powerfully simple Truth can never seem to take root in the hearts of humankind.
JosephW
January 21, 2012 - 2:50 am
“My dear friend Rangzeb told me it was OK to use his full name.
——–
Besides, I’ve got this thing for his sister…”
So, Rangzeb is one of those East Asian Muslims? (jk, jk)
Danny Donovan
January 21, 2012 - 3:33 am
Bill, they are already rebooting Dial H for Hero in the new wave.