Posted by pancho from host-148-244-221-37.block.alestra.net.mx (148.244.221.37) on Saturday, July 27, 2002 at 5:00PM :
Down here I was able to peek into aina...even post a few shots before they shut that window. It strikes me how different we all are...which is to the good...but how wonderful it would be if we could agree on some basic principle running through all of this.
We seem to divide over issues of revenge, racial hatred, religious bigotry. The Muslim verses Christian issue is a major one...followed closely by arguments about just where Assyria actually is...my backyard or yours.
Even just agreeing to help our ¨cause¨will get you nowhere...we have no cause except to make our cause the only legitimate one. SEEMS TO ME EACH OF US HAS TO DROP CONSIDERABLE BAGGAGE TO EVER BE ABLE TO AGREE ENOUGH ON FUNDAMENTALS...WE HAVENT ONLY BEEN SCATTERED GEOGRAPHICALLY...WE ARE TORN UP IN EVERY OTHER WAY.
Sorry about the caps...weird machine.
I still believe that the only¨cause among all of the ones we espouse that stands a chance will be whichever one that seeks to make much better known to the public at large. Anything short of that leaves us as vulnerable to changing fortunes as we always have been. This is not the first time in our modern history Assyrians have rallied among themselves to help each other out...and we always stop. We stop when a roof is built, when a village is restored to where it was..in other words...we keep setting our targets back up...so they can be shot down again. Just doing that, is such an impressive feat that we are satisfied every time we crawl back up from the hole someone threw us into.
It hasn´t been enough...it wont be enough now either...it just feels good, sounds good. We get off on the International scope of it...on the meetings with High Ranking Officials...the small corner of a limelight we can capture because for so long we have been obscure to non-existant. That´s the one thing we have to get over more than anything...more than anything.
If the AAS, and any other organization made it their policy to make us self-sufficient..and did it by bringing in other resources...it would go a way towards really helping us down the line. If we are instead going to keep it a secret...beg help from each other...keep it simple in order that egos can be inflated by vain titles and relatively minor accomplishments...then it´s more of the same...more of what got us here in the first place.
It is the part of Youth to be idealistic...all Humanity needs that surge of confidence...it isn´t supposed to last forever...but without it we´d be much worse adults.
I had my fling with it...I hope to God many young people also do, or we´re in big trouble. You guys go ahead...Ghassan and me will be the Elder Statesmen.
-- pancho
-- signature .