Aftermath

The aftermath of the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting rampage couldn’t be uglier, more disgusting and any more telling if a bunch of people got together and made it their mission to dream up the ugliest, most disgusting and most telling reponse possible.

One would think that 26 dead would make the most hardened gun nut consider, whether changes might be necessary to what are ludicrously lax gun laws.  One would think, alas …

After a week of silence the NRA came out with what I consider easily the most deluded idea in decades by saying that the way of dealing with gun violence in US schools is to have armed guards stationed in schools.  Not in my wildest dreams would I have imagined anybody ever coming up with that.  I should have, they mean it.  There is so much wrong with this notion that I wouldn’t know where to start debunking it if I tried, in the end, I decided not to even try, because you can’t logically argue with deluded people.  One thing, though, is worth mentioning: it does not work.  Fort Hood, a military installation where in 2009 a gun man killed 13 and wounded 29 is the only proof I need for the effectiveness of armed personnel in a shooting (yes, the shooting apparently took place in a gun-free zone but you’d still expect the military to be able to muster some kind of response  quickly and efficiently).

The most deluded of them all, a certified nut case by the name of Wayne La Pierre, a Vice President at the NRA just made a laughing stock (although nobody is laughing given the seriousness of the situation) of himself on national TV by claiming that it would not have made any difference to the death toll if the shooter did not have a clip with 30 rounds of ammo, but only five.  My 8 year old can grasp that concept without difficulty.  Not so Mr. LaPierre.

So what are these mad men (and women) fighting for: allegedly the Second Amendment, that is the right to bear arms.  As much as I, as a bleeding heart European Liberal, think that guns don’t belong in the hands of civilians, complete gun control will not happen in this country, not in my life time and presumably not in the lifetime of my boy either.  So, and that is the critical point, nobody with any power in this country is pushing for a complete ban of guns.  What is under discussions are modifications such as:

• an assault rifle ban – assault rifles are those, that chamber a new round after each shot making it possible to shoot in rapid succession.  Those guns were developed by the military for combat situations when they realized that in combat situations soldiers did not aim very well (surprise, surprise) and just sort of shot in the general direction of the enemy.  Assault rifles solve that problem by giving the soldier the option to just blanket an area with shots under the assumption that one will hit.  And now can anybody please explain to me why a civilian would need such a gun?  For which purpose other than inflicting maximal casualty in minimal time??  Seriously, anybody has any suggestion?  And don’t say hunting because I won’t believe that the hunter’s goal is to make minced meat off the prey right in the wilderness.
• smaller ammo clips.  As mentioned above, to anybody with the intellect exceeding that of an average 3 year old it is clear that 30 rounds have the potential to inflict 6 times as much damage as 5 rounds.  It is the same with rocks, really, or Lego blocks used for tossing, or even pillow fights – the more ammo you have, the more hits you land, even if you don’t aim very well.
• Closing loop holes in background checks – yes, allegedly their are background checks but only if you buy the gun at a store, you buy from an unlicensed dealer, or at a gun show – no background check required.  In which universe does that make sense?  Maybe somebody should introduce legislation to the effect that drugs are only illegal when bought on street corners but if you sell them at an official drug show it is fine.

Shocking to me, also, is the ferocity with which people defend their guns and the paranoia into which they fall as soon as somebody as much as suggests that it might be time to start potentially considering certain small limitations to the all out gun craziness in this country.  Even on some of the liberal blogs I read there are those high-pitched voices screaming that the government is going to take all their guns away and that that would be the end of the world as we know it and civilization and that the enemy who lurks out there, armed to the teeth is just waiting for that moment.

I was thinking what possible could instill such paranoia in Germans and I didn’t come up with anything, really.  The closest would be a comprehensive speed limit on the Autobahn which would cause a huge outcry.  But the reality is, most stretches of the Autobahn have a speed limit imposed anyway, not even that comparison is valid.

So, I am still trying to grasp the psychological underpinnings of this gun craziness – and am utterly failing so far.

Self-Reliance

If I only had one word to characterize Americans “self-reliance” would be it.   It describes the heart and soul of America – as well as many of its (current political) excesses.

okay, a climber on a mountain top is plenty cliche but still expresses the idea quite well. Pic: skyscanner.net

Self-reliance is defined as “reliance on one’s own capabilities, judgment, or resources” and that is what I observe here every day and what attracted me to this country from the very start.  Back then it was more of a gut feeling, I left business school and just knew that the US would be the country which offered the better opportunities, that this would be the country where I could be successful and people would applaud me for it, not begrudge me my success.

As annoying the whole “everything will be alright” mantra is when heard too many times -especially in situations where things appear so hopeless that you can’t believe anything will ever be alright again – it is by far a better attitude then complaining, whining or surrendering.  As cliche the “glass half full” saying might be it is nevertheless true.  In America the glass is always half full, the sun will always rise again and – eventually, you just believe me – everything will be alright.

Overall this is an endearing quality that might come across as a tad naive to jaded Europeans when in fact it is just the expression of a very strong and fundamental belief that, indeed, everything will be alright.  It is not just lip service but in its core the conviction that everybody can get up and start over.

That is the good part of self-reliance.  The part that made it possible for this country to be settled by immigrants who crossed snow peaked mountains in rickety wagons and trekked across endless deserts with not much more than their determination to make it (leaving the discussion about how native American were mistreated aside for the moment).

Then there is a very dark side to self-reliance.  The one we are seeing now so openly and unabashedly displayed by the Republican party.  The point where self-reliance crosses the line to social Darwinism (interestingly enough often the loudest proponents of Social Darwinism by whatever name are the same people that call Evolution “The Monkey Theory” and insist their kids are taught creationism in school).

As much as I applaud self-reliance and the will to get up and try again one cannot cast aside everybody who for some reason or another is unable to do so as “unworthy”.  There is historical precedent for it and as I German – although even my parents where too young to have any part in that period of our history – I know a thing or two about it.

A society is only worth that label if it is willing to take care of and support its weakest.  Even after 200+ years history of living, breathing and preaching self reliance not everybody has the health, education, or strength to get up and try harder.   Not everybody can be an entrepreneur, investment banker (God forbid) or run Bain Capital.  And it is okay, we don’t need that many people who run Bain Capital but we need many people to do the ordinary stuff in life and we need to provide them with enough security that if they stumble and fall – which is entirely human – there is a cane to help them get up.

Self reliance is a valuable and admirable quality – taken to the extreme it is a vile and inhuman philosophy which, I had hoped, would never rear its ugly head again.

Hello world!

I have lived in the US for 15 years.  First in Boston, then in the San Francisco Bay Area.  I am German, my husband Austrian,  and our son, well a Californian with a US and a German passport, mostly Indian friends, a cute Austrian accent, and a distinct preference for Sushi.  We like to think of ourselves as Europeans and frequently wonder “Is it time to go back?”

With that question come a lot more:

• “Can I stand the foul weather in winter?” (being a spoiled Californian brat)
• “Will all the rules and regulations drive me insane?”
• “Will I ever get used to not shopping on Sundays?”
• “Isn’t German politics just to darn boring compared to the craziness we experience here every day?”
• “How will be be able to live without excellent affordable Sushi and authentic Indian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Mexican ,…. food?”
• “What if I order a tall latte with extra non-fat soy milk and a dash – but definitely not more – cherry syrup?  Will they send me to the loonie bin?”
• “Where can I buy a pinata?”
• “Can I get used to my computer talking to me in German?”
• “What will I do with all those holiday and vacation days?”

– wait, that last one is not going to pose a major problem.

On the other hand there is much we like about Europe, or should I say Germany, as this is where we would return to.  To name but a few:

• People actually walk or bike to lovely medieval towns with actual city centers where they sit down in a quaint cafe and have a decent cup of coffee – no syrup, ever.
• Most people stop working by 5ish.  Afterwards everybody seems to be biking, hiking, kayaking, picnicking, lollygagging, drinking beer, enjoying life
• People have 6 weeks of paid vacation, which, I have to admit, compares very favorably to the 10 days we get here.
• Politics is a lot less nasty
• Nobody cooks meat and potatoes like the southern Germans (no raw fish – ever!)
• Italy is close, so is France, Switzerland, Austria, come to think, in the time it takes me to drive to LA I can cross a bunch of countries
• It is very easy to get modern furniture and hardware (call me crazy but those faux vintage faux golden drawer nobs and ornate shelf brackets we get here drive me insane.  Let’s not even talk about the fountains that all seem to sport either Bambi or a concrete turtle or some faux broken piece of pottery)

After weighing the pros and cons for years the decision was made that we go back.  For a year.  A trial year so to speak.

This blog will chronicle our trials and tribulations in trying to achieve this, and, if we do, how that year In Germany will go.

I welcome your comments and certainly any useful tips.