To Kill an American... who or what is an American?

In the past when I've spoken out against our very unwise President Bush's foreign policies, even calling himself "the war President" at one interview, I've been accused of being somehow less than patriotic.  For those of you who feel it is unpatriotic to question our leaders motives, I would like to answer with this very well written apparent letter the editor.

-Mark

Apparently there was someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American, any American.  Supposedly an Australian dentist wrote the following response to let everyone know what an American is... so they would know when they found one. (Good on ya, mate!!!!)

An American is English, or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian or Greek.

An American may also be Canadian, Mexican, African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Australian, Iranian, Asian, or Arab, or Pakistani, or Afghan.

An American may also be a Cherokee, Osage, Blackfoot, Navaho, Apache, Seminole or one of the many other tribes known as native Americans.

An American is Christian, or he could be Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim.

In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan. The only difference is that in America they are free to worship as each of them chooses.

An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that he will answer only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for the government and for God.

An American lives in the most prosperous land in the history of the world.

The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes the God given right of each person to the pursuit of happiness.

An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need.

When the Soviet army overran Afghanistan 20 years ago, Americans came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country!

As of the morning of September 11, Americans had given more than any other nation to the poor in Afghanistan.

Americans welcome the best, the best products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best athletes. But they also welcome the least.

The national symbol of America, The Statue of Liberty, welcomes your tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the homeless, tempest tossed. These in fact are the people who built America.

Some of them were working in the Twin Towers the morning of September 11, 2001 earning a better life for their families. I've been told that the World Trade Center victims were from at least 30 other countries, cultures, and first languages, including those that aided and abetted the terrorists.

So you can try to kill an American if you must.

Hitler did.

So did General Tojo, and Stalin, and Mao Tse-Tung, and every bloodthirsty tyrant in the history of the world.

But, in doing so you would just be killing yourself. Because Americans are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit of freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American.

Author unknown

Media Coverage/Interview of My Wheelchair Accessible Airplane Project

I was contacted and did a phone interview with Alex Hummel from the "Oshkosh Northwestern" newspaper this week (June 7, 2005).  Every year they publish a magazine for EAA Airventure and they're doing an article on some of the more " down to earth" hurdles and obstacles that are being overcome in the area of aviation to contrast Burt Rutan's recent private flight to low Earth orbit.  Apparently, Alex found references on the Internet to my project, so far dubbed the "Sky Chair-iot", to design and build an airplane which can be flown independently from a wheelchair. 

 

For those interested, their EAA magazine will be published in mid-July and can be found at www.theNorthwestern.com

 

-Mark