I was born in Iowa in 1950. My father took a job as a real estate
appraiser with the Federal Government when I was six years old. With his regular career promotions and
transfers, most of my elementary school education took place with a year or so
spent in each location. I attended
Catholic schools. As the "new kid on the
block", the "new guy in school", I grew up as a favored target of bullies. In first grade, I took a real hit. A bloody nose. Next day, the same boastful bully bashed me
again. I realized as a first grader, that
as long as I was passive and fearful, this daily abuse would continue. I could take a head bashing every day. I am by nature peaceful, calm and not
violent. I actually abhor the gross
ignorance of violence. I realized the
best way to end violence was to stand up with courage. (Remember, courage is standing up, -even if you are afraid). As a first grader, I decided to use
intelligent, limited self-defense. I
would not accept the role of victim, but one "give it your all" return punch or
two was just enough to back off the bully, who is actually banking on intimidation. Most bullies lose their guts when
intimidation does not work. I had no
need to damage the guy, just give him a swift attitude adjustment. I learned an important lesson as a first
grader. That lesson has influenced how I've
lived my six decades.
My ace in the hole
when I was a kid was that I grew up among a cluster of cousins in a feisty
Irish Catholic family. Every single
cousin, as soon as they could stand and walk came under the kind tutelage of
our grandmother's brother, our great uncle, "Lightnin' George. "Lightnin' George" was very representative of
our family gene pool; gentle, kind, soft spoken, compassionate, considerate ... -but don't mess with me, Jack! The immigrant Irish need to fight for
survival was still very fresh in our family blood, culture and demeanor. Loving, Happy, Non-violent, -but no victims
here, baby.
Lightnin' George had
no formal athletic training, but this scrappy, scrawny Irish farm kid could
throw 100 pound hay bales on the family farm all day, grab a quick dinner with farm
hands and come back to work until it got just too dark to see the hay rows. When another cousin, Ralph Hayes fancied
himself as a promoter and trainer in small town Iowa, he took his cousin George
to the big city of Cedar Rapids for bouts in the annual Golden Gloves
tournament. The city kids did not have a
chance. They would spend a few hours in
a smelly gym with stale air. George was
fully oxygenated and vital from the fresh country air, and he'd tossed as much
tonnage around in a day, as the city guys pressed with bar bells in a month. George was a smart, defensive boxer; he danced
like Ali, to avoid the punch. No need to
take any more punishment than necessary. George liked his face.
George had a great
strategy" let the brawny, boastful big city thugs wear themselves down" then
with thoughtful care and a kind knowing smile, George would deliver a well
placed knockout punch. George also had
mental and physical stamina honed from a hard scrabble life on a Depression era
farm. George had what coaches call "Heart"
in spades. He was undefeated in Iowa, so
cousin Ralph took cousin George on the train to Chicago, where George gained
the accurately descriptive moniker "Lightnin' George"; as he moved so fast that
no one could hardly plant a punch on him.
Then, when the burly dudes had worn themselves out, George would land
his signature one/two right and left. They all went down. George was undefeated. He was the National Golden Gloves Champ of
the United States of American in 1938.
George never went into
a boxing ring again. He came back to his
hometown of Creston, Iowa with a few shiny trophies and a duffle bag full of
old boxing gloves. George was a gentle
man, but he knew there was no reason for any one in our close knit clan to play
the role of victim. Every cousin got the
basic training; keep movin', keep your
eyes wide open watching the opponents every move, -let the big guys wear
themselves down, then land that signature one/two, and another one kisses the mat.
Our Iowa/Irish/Catholic family had
"equal opportunity" training two decades before the women's movement. None of the boys in town messed with any of
the lovely and lively Irish girls in the family.
After my first grade
bloody nose, I never again suffered any damage at the hand of a bully. Usually they stayed away, because their
attempts to intimidate me met a friendly, yet fearless shield. Every grade or two, a bully took a
swing. I simply summoned the spirit of
Lightnin' George, and one good punch was all it took. I despise violence in all forms. I could count my actual bouts on one hand. I am 62 now. My last street fight took place when I was
eighteen years old. In a scene out of an
old fifties movie, like "Rebels without a Cause", a flashy hot rod full of
bullies from a nearby town roared into Creston to crash the local town
festival, break beer bottles, harass girls and frighten old ladies. When the
Knights of Columbus kicked the ruffians out of the festival beer tent, on their
way out they poured a full pitcher of beer over the head of my old grand dad
who had just suffered a stroke. That was
intolerable. I punched one bully, -and
four jumped in. When I delivered the
"George" treatment to the second bully in line, he took a really hard fall; and
slobbering drunk, he slid down the brick wall of a downtown storefront. The elderly Knights of Columbus erupted in
spontaneous applause. The other cowardly bullies jumped in their car. With a
volley of beer and testosterone fueled obscenities, the bullies split fast.
I've stood up to
bullies my entire life. It seems like
we have more of them now. Maybe, that's
just because some are in powerful adult positions where we all see them. Bullies are the same, on the playground or
the battlefield. Bully behavior is very
immature on all fronts. So, why do we
behave as a bully nation? If we
converted our use of violent force to real strength, respect and influence in
the world, we would be a lot much better off as a nation. A lot of innocent victims, a lot of
"collateral damage" and the sick, insane violence of war could actually come to
an end. We cannot presently claim to be a
civilized human society. When we learn,
use and share with the rest of the world the well defined principles of
non-violence and intelligent conflict resolution, we can finally enter the
adult phase of human history.
So" that's a little
personal history. I've encountered and
dealt with bullies all my life. Recently,
I decided to challenge the growing war economy of the Military Industrial
Complex, in its local incarnation, Rockwell Collins in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. I ran
into a few bullies again that night.
Preaching the Gospel of Global Military
Domination at a Peaceful Catholic College
Rockwell Collins CEO,
President, and Chairman of the Board (yes, this is one person) Clay Jones was the
honored guest speaker at a local Catholic institution of Higher Learning on
March 20, 2012. This was the President's Lecture, billed as an
annual speech by a community leader that represents "the values and mission of
the Sisters of Mercy". I found this
selection of speaker extremely perplexing.
Mount Mercy touts its commitment to non-violence on all of their
glossy PR offerings in print and on line.
How then does a corporate executive of a huge military manufacturer illuminate
the stated values of non-violence, caring and concern for our global
brothers and sisters that is voiced by the Sisters of Mercy and their
University?
I decided it was
appropriate to provide the students and faculty of Mount Mercy University with
an alternative perspective.
Four local concerned
citizens that have honed their commitment to peace with a lifetime of standing
strong with courage and dignity to face an often hostile world stood with
me. We were there to peacefully
question this extremely obvious inconsistency in stated values.
David,
meet Goliath.
As a courtesy, our
small group of 4 dissenters notified the security force of the college that we
would be present to stand in silence as a peaceful protest, and quietly hand
out a short one page information flyer.
We learned that open inquiry is no longer allowed at this University.
The Security Men were out in force to maintain conformity. They knew full well
that we posed absolutely no threat to order. We notified the university
security office in advance that we would maintain silence. We simply were there to present an
alternative point of view in the form of a one page information flyer.
We are in an era where
our nation is rapidly becoming more and more closed. Security men now stand guard at almost all
gates of "learning". But do we have real learning and critical intellectual
inquiry any longer? There is evidence
that the Mount Mercy University campus has now been reduced to another training
camp for conformity. The obvious mission in evidence here is to prepare and
indoctrinate compliant cogs in the corporate machine.
Mount Mercy has 1600
students and 150 faculty members. One courageous faculty member who has spent
many years on campus stepped forward to explain to me the conformity and
hierarchical control of this institution.
A second faculty member told me that "perhaps six people on campus" will
even understand why you would protest this issue. That is an extreme shift in one
generation. During the 1960's I attended
both Regis High School and Regis College, an 8 year Catholic academy operated
by the Jesuit Order. As a high school
freshman that entered Regis at age 14, we learned the skills of critical
thinking and incisive intellectual inquiry.
Latin and Greek, as well as the advanced study of great philosophers
from classical, enlightenment and contemporary schools of thought were studied
as "core curriculum" for all students.
We learned how to think, we learned how to question. Now, do the students at Mount Mercy University
in 2012 just learn how to follow orders? What could be so threatening to welcome four
quiet, peaceful neighbors at this lecture to share a flyer about an alternate
point of view? At Regis in the 1960's
we had courageous speakers such as the Berrigan Brothers visit campus. Our faculty and students alike challenged the
Viet Nam War. A lot has changed since then. War now rages on unchallenged.
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