R.T writes: "It's also very important for people to recognize Somalis in Minneapolis do not speak with one voice...nor should they be expected to. Of the 40 people in my office, there were about 27 different strains of emotion....not a lot different than there would be if there were 40 of any group of people." R.G These are my kind of people. They haven't been here long enough to be indoctrinated into the category the government wants to include them in. These people have the makings of good Americans. I hope the friends and family come out of this period of suffering with a better understanding that America is not a perfect utopia, that it needs citizens to speak up for themselves and what they feel is right. I sincerely hope they don't learn the lesson that they are victims and need to find leaders to preach victimology to them and their children. That said, congratulations to R.T. for making the effort to listen and hear more than one voice. Too often when stuff hits the fan politicians put on their campaign face showing great concern while in front of citizens that are talking, but they don't listen. They just wait for the proper time to start talking. Keep listening R.T. And don't be afraid to stir things up a bit when you are ready. There will always be those in society who suffer with mental demons we cannot understand, and how we treat them says much about us as people. Let's get our police the training and or equipment needed to better handle these situations. Lets think of our police as well. Does anyone truly believe the police involved in this death are feeling good about what happened? Lets also look at how this man fell through the gaps of treatment. Minneapolis can't bear all the responsibility for that but we can work with the county and state to make sure that intervention is available for cases such as this during the preventative stage. Bob Gustafson 13th |
