Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Zero Intolerance
Both my parents died young and they were both saints. I never heard either one say a bad word about anyone. Don’t get me wrong they weren’t born again, oh we’re all gods’ children morons, because there are assholes on this planet, it’s just I never heard them instantly dislike someone because of physical appearance, religion or orientation.
My mother had a pretty consistent philosophy about making friends with people who weren’t exactly like you. I remember there was a midget in my first grade class and I came home and said, ”There’s a midget in my soup—I mean class.”
“Please don’t do midget jokes, ”she said. “Make a midget your friend and they’ll be your friend for life.” I don’t know whatever happened to that little guy but I went out of my way to be nice to him whenever I could find him on the baby booming playground.
Gays weren’t even discovered until the gay pride parade of 1967-I’ll never forget the placard- “Better Blatant than Latent” but years before that when I realized that Mr. Rodgers down the street was “Queer” my mother said, ”Make a queer your friend and he’ll be your friend forever.”
My father, who was in a wheel chair, laughed so long and hard I think he hurt himself, but he never said anything.
There were “Colored People” in and out of our row house and they never seemed to notice that my dad’s arms and legs would spasm and shake. They were just friends as in friends forever.
I went to Temple University and never before had contemplated Jewishness but the 11 story dorm was filled with Jocks on scholarship and Jewish guys from Long Island. I remember asking these two little guys in a room down the hall. “Hey, either of you guys have a stamp?” Stamps at that time cost $5 cents.
“Yea, I’ll sell you one, ”this kid said without hesitation.
I answered, ”was that a Jewish joke?”
“Trust me, it’s no joke,”he said He knew Philly Catholic boys don’t borrow stamps they take them and use them up. It’s like someone borrows a sandwich then you expect to be paid later, it just isn’t happening.
Having said all this I must cop to being a liberal lefty type political person because now that I have many Hispanic friends for life so the Bush administration decision to take focus off the war by fucking with 11 million “illegal Hispanics” rankles me slightly.
Finally, there is the whole Arab turban wearing thing and the fear they cause when on the same flight as you but right after 9/11 I was in the parking lot before a Ravens game and I saw this 6’7” Raiders of the Lost Ark muscular turban wearing Indian/ Pakistani looking mother fucker in a Ray Lewis jersey and I thought, ”Is this a great country, or what?
Thanks Mom
Big Baby Freddogg
My mother had a pretty consistent philosophy about making friends with people who weren’t exactly like you. I remember there was a midget in my first grade class and I came home and said, ”There’s a midget in my soup—I mean class.”
“Please don’t do midget jokes, ”she said. “Make a midget your friend and they’ll be your friend for life.” I don’t know whatever happened to that little guy but I went out of my way to be nice to him whenever I could find him on the baby booming playground.
Gays weren’t even discovered until the gay pride parade of 1967-I’ll never forget the placard- “Better Blatant than Latent” but years before that when I realized that Mr. Rodgers down the street was “Queer” my mother said, ”Make a queer your friend and he’ll be your friend forever.”
My father, who was in a wheel chair, laughed so long and hard I think he hurt himself, but he never said anything.
There were “Colored People” in and out of our row house and they never seemed to notice that my dad’s arms and legs would spasm and shake. They were just friends as in friends forever.
I went to Temple University and never before had contemplated Jewishness but the 11 story dorm was filled with Jocks on scholarship and Jewish guys from Long Island. I remember asking these two little guys in a room down the hall. “Hey, either of you guys have a stamp?” Stamps at that time cost $5 cents.
“Yea, I’ll sell you one, ”this kid said without hesitation.
I answered, ”was that a Jewish joke?”
“Trust me, it’s no joke,”he said He knew Philly Catholic boys don’t borrow stamps they take them and use them up. It’s like someone borrows a sandwich then you expect to be paid later, it just isn’t happening.
Having said all this I must cop to being a liberal lefty type political person because now that I have many Hispanic friends for life so the Bush administration decision to take focus off the war by fucking with 11 million “illegal Hispanics” rankles me slightly.
Finally, there is the whole Arab turban wearing thing and the fear they cause when on the same flight as you but right after 9/11 I was in the parking lot before a Ravens game and I saw this 6’7” Raiders of the Lost Ark muscular turban wearing Indian/ Pakistani looking mother fucker in a Ray Lewis jersey and I thought, ”Is this a great country, or what?
Thanks Mom
Big Baby Freddogg
