Nancy Doyle (Sudlow)

David St. Pierre Bantz

I get wanting to go about the day without confronting acute social and political conflicts; wanting to read about friends' activitites without encountering awkward issues of inequality, racism, or climate. Complaints in this forum mirror those in many social media forums and news feeds. As we accommodate that desire here, I hope we will consciously recognize that the ability to ignore politics and social issues is a privilege; a privilege we exercise to the benefit of oppressors and to the detriment of the victims of current political and social strife. 

"I swore never to be silent whenever wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must – at that moment – become the center of the universe."
The Nobel Acceptance Speech delivered by Elie Wiesel in Oslo on December 10, 1986

Holly Semiloff (Ciotti)

I guess I'm a lurker (but that word has a snarky tone to it).  If we are voting (which we are not), I vote for one message forum for all things people say.  Actually it's good to know my high school has people with cajones (sorry, I live in LA).  I worried for a while we were all latter day Ozzie(s) and Harriet(s) -- not sure about the plurals on that.

Want to hear a funny story?  I teach English at Glendale High School, and I'm the faculty adviser for the National Honor Society (not an organization I populated in 1964).  When students apply to NHS, they have to meet requirements of scholarship, leadership, service, and character.  I run the applicant list by the whole faculty for their ratings of the kids' CHARACTER.   (That isn't the funny part.)

This year, I GOT INTO POLITICAL TROUBLE.  I sent an email to the whole staff saying that the following kids had stellar GPAs, hundreds of hours of community service, and "enough leadership to show the President a thing or two."  WELL!!!  You'd think I advocated sodomy.  One staff member, a clerk in the office, complained to me in an email  THAT I WAS MIXING POLITICS AND SCHOOL BUSINESS.

I laughed.

What I found out, two weeks later, when my PRINCIPAL CALLED ME IN HIS OFFICE, was that she lodged a formal complaint with the school district.  And he HAD to formally tell me that she did so.  He could barely keep a straight face, and we both had a chuckle.

Well -- finally after 35 years, there is something meaty in my personnel file!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm still laughing.

holly

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

  "Holy Cow(s)!!!"

  Lots of "Holy Cow(s)!!!" flying my way...

  the most frequently used exclamation

  on the personal messages

  delivered to my website Inbox these days.

  What have we, Niles West Class of 1964, come to?

  We are left to be "latter day Ozzie(s) and Harriet(s)"

  "(a)s we accommodate the desire of our oppressors."

The Economist and YouGov conducted a poll from November 24-26 of 1,500 American adults.  A majority (53%) of Republicans believe Trump is a better president than Lincoln.

 Make America Good Again

Larry Metnick

Good story, Holly. Thanks for sharing.

Marvin Irving Blusteln

Yes Jack we can all get along.  Janis you are great even though you are "too" political.  Steve is Steve and admire that about him.  He was like that in h.s. wasn't he? So, why is anyone suprised.  The only people who are upset are those who use opinion and unsupported belief as fact.

Paraphrasing Jesus,  all of us are brothers and sisters and we each has an obligation to one another.  If we have more than we need, we are obligated to help those in need.  All religions of the world agree.

.  

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Nancy, it's approaching midnight CST.

I do not see majority support on the Forum for free thinking people to be removed from this space.

"I hope we consciously recognize that the ability to ignore politics and social issues is a privilege exercised to the benefit of oppressors."

If in fact we are a minority, our Constitution was written to protect the minority. 

That's why Congress ignores majority support for gun safety legislation.

That's how America elected Trump.

This censorship is about power in the face of political and social strife.

Recent Hackney's reunions have been open to any and all,

the Forum not so much.

We are watching a game of attrition -

one by one classmates will be voted off the Forum.

Will the committee meet to vote on every post?

I wear with honor the yellow star Steve spoke of.

Make America Good Again

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Holly Semiloff, you bring energy and good humor to the Forum, and Bravo! - to Glendale High School too.  I am impressed you're actively teaching.  Undoubtedly, you are surrounded by energy and good humor - it's contagious, it jumps right off the page.  We need to hear more from you.

David Bantz, we need to hear more from you.  You bring a depth of understanding and perspective that encourage me to strive to grow intellectually.  On this Forum, I have been cited as "humorless" - I accept the challenge to grow my sense of humor too.  I know how to laugh at myself.

You both bring a breath of fresh air to the Forum.  We are who we are.  We have the opportunity to learn from one another and to grow, and to enjoy the medley of voices.

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

   This is for Steve...

   "A society grows great when old men and women plant trees whose

    shade they know they shall never sit in."

                                                 Greek Proverb (altered)

Frances Garfield (Brown)

Let us talk about life in general, besides politics only. Discuss family, states, places to go, etc. 

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Good idea, Fran.  You have modeled balance on the Forum.  Your birthday is fast approaching, mine's not far behind... Over Thanksgiving weekend my 14 year old grandson and I hiked for exercise.  We walked to 'suicide hill,'  he told me he'd lead the way, I should lean on him and we'd make it down the hill together... I took one step down and said, "this isn't going to work, Hans."

Beverlee Ann Arpan (Marshall)

We got 2 1/2 feet of snow the other night, and it’s so cold we still have about a foot. Several roads and hwys. were closed due to snow slides, rock slides, and high winds, so Denver up to the high country was shut down.  The skiers couldn’t get to the slopes unless they got there ahead of the storm, and had to hunker down until the plows were finished 2 days later.  Today, the sunny sky is a beautiful blue, but too cold and icey to venture outside for very long.  I prefer a cozy indoor fireplace, and a good read. I will, however, refrain from any book reports.  Stewart has that department covered.

Enjoy your day, everyone!

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Epistemology: a branch of philosophy that studies how we know things, and what it means for something to be true or false, accurate or inaccurate.  The US, indeed the world, is undergoing a seismic event which is creating an abyss, not just in what we value or want, but in who we trust, how we come to know things, and what we believe we know, what we believe exists, is true, has happened and is happening.

Jack Edmund Bookwalter

Jack Edmund Bookwalter

Jack Edmund Bookwalter

Jack Edmund Bookwalter

Jack Edmund Bookwalter

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Jack, it is wonderful to hear news from down under with your message of optimism and hope.  You bring light and good cheer to the Forum.  Enjoy and be safe.  Please keep us posted about your adventures, observations, and touchstones on old stomping ground(s).  We're holding down the fort here.

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

I received a phone call and texts from my grandchildren in Oshkosh:

There has been an officer involved shooting at Oshkosh West High School.  The school is on lockdown.  A student, armed with a weapon, confronted a school resource officer. 
The student and officer were both injured and transported to local hospitals.  Lockdown remains in effect. 

Stewart Myrent

Holly, it was so nice to hear from you & I really liked your story.  (I also liked the fact that you are faculty adviser for the NHS at your school.)  The two best things about the story are: (1) the story has a happy ending, and (2) it gave you a great story to tell your old classmates.  There is obviously a 3rd benefit, after 35 yrs., there is something meaty in your personnel file.  Congrats!  I want to add another thing; I really did like your suggestion of "one message forum for all things people say."  Also, I agree that "lurker" does have "a snarky tone to it."  I think when I came off the sidelines, I said that "lurker" had a connotation that I wasn't crazy about.  And, David, thank you for the quote of the Elie Wiesel Nobel acceptance speech in 1986, over 30 yrs. ago.  However, for more seditious, snarky, conspiratorial & self-serving political rhetoric, please go to USER FORUM, Part 1 - "Current Events & Politics (New). 

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

I respond here rather than individually at the Message Center.

Oshkosh is fortunate that it seems we suffered no loss of life today.

Three gun shots at Oshkosh West High School, TWO were injured and transported to local hospitals - the armed 16 year old student and the school resource officer (there were versions of the story that grew beyond my report of 3 injured as I posted earlier).

The armed student confronted the officer and stabbed him in an attempt to get his gun.  The officer (who is a retired Navy SEAL) shot three times - the story is he shot himself in the hand, and he shot the student in the knee and in the chest... so much for arming teachers.  The student attacked the officer in a soundproof area in one wing at the school so very few in the school community heard the shooting.  The armed student's plan was to go on a shooting spree with the officer's gun.  Students and teachers in distant wings of the school fled the building on foot enroute to the nearby middle school and administration center.  Students in closer proximity to the shooting were evacuated on buses with a police escort.  Police were everywhere - a large area of Oshkosh was paralyzed by traffic congestion and parked cars.  Families hiked significant distances to begin a well organized and orderly reunification process which included verification of required identification to release the high school students.  There was food and water for the high school students who were assembled in the middle school gym to await release.  The high school campus and perimeter remains on lockdown.  Students who were in gym class at the time of the shooting were evacuated in gym shorts and t-shirts - their personal belongings are in gym lockers at school.  Unless students were in the music wing at the time of the incident their musical intruments remain in the music wing.  Because of the size of the campus many students do not use their hall lockers - their backpacks are their lockers and they carry their outdoor gear from class to class.

The administration has maintained regular communication with parents by email and robocalls. 

All the other schools in the Oshkosh K-12 district were immediately put on soft lockdown when the shooting broke out at the high school.

School is cancelled tomorrow for all students in the K-12 district.  Oshkosh West will re open on Friday.

At the regular time, my 5th grade grandson entered the house with the announcement, "There was a shooting at West."  He did not know his siblings were home.  He is happy they're OK and wondered if they heard the shots - further conversation was delayed 'til Mom and Dad were home... a day in the life of American school children and their parents and teachers.

Counseling services will be made available to the school community.

The student and the school resource officer are both in stable condition.

The incident has been turned over to the Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigation.

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

A school shooting is defined as when, "...a gun is brandished, is fired, or a bullet hits school property for any reason, regardless of the number of victims (including zero), time, day of the week, or reason." 

"Our country deserves leaders who are willing to step up and address the constant prospect of terror and violence when our children attend school or go about their lives in public space."

Stewart Myrent

Janis, I'm freaking out about your story on the shooting at Oshkosh West H.S., which I believe I saw on the news on Mon.  I did note, from your story, that the retired Navy SEAL was only moderately succesful in his attempt to ward off the student attack.  But, it's still got to be nerve-wracking to experience it in your own community, with your own children or grandchildren, despite seeing stories like this (on an almost daily basis) in other communities.  In your following post, you stated that "There have been eight shootings in Wisconsin public schools in the past three school days."  How is that possible?  The reason I've been freaking out, is that in my years as a student at Lincoln Hall & Niles West (or even during my career as a college student), I don't remember even one school shooting occurring, ever, or even hearing about a mass shooter at any other school.  So, it seems to me that, being a school student (at any level) today, is something I am totally unfamiliar with, compared to my own experiences.  It is difficult for me to comprehend what being a student today must be like, compared to the good old days, when I actually was a student.  Eight shootings in 3 days, & in Wisconsin?  It seems improbable & illogical.  Holy cow!

Janis Kliphardt (Emery)

Stewart, in the heat of the moment, conflated news reports were aired.

What is going on? Fears of school shootings hit eight Wisconsin high schools in three days.   Milwaukee Journal Sentinel  December 4, 2019

Gov. Tony Evers: "Though the threats in schools across the state weren't similar in seriousness - they are emblematic of the terror lurking as shooters continue with horrifying regularity.  It's impossible to ignore the fact that in addition to today's officer-involved shooting at Oshkosh West, the Sparta School District is closed due to security threats, and that this happened just a day after we had another school shooting at Waukesha South.  

"The last two days tells us that we can't keep pretending that this only happens in other communities or in other states - it's happening here, too."

The school shootings at Oshkosh West and Waukesha South high schools are among the threats in Wisconsin high schools that did not result in gunfire.  In all, teenagers in at least eight high schools across Wisconsin were stung with terror within three days this week (starting on Sunday).

The school shooting Monday at Waukesha South was the eighth school shooting in Wisconsin this decade; the school shooting yesterday at Oshkosh West, the ninth.