Recently, I learned that a Jack, I'd known, had died back in August. Turns out that he'd died 10 days before another Jack, I'd known, had passed away. Both died of cancers (of differing sorts, I believe).
They don't seem to have a lot in common, although both went by the name, Jack. I don't think they knew each other, although given their active pasts, I wouldn't be surprised if their paths had crossed.
Jack1 (the one who died first) seemed to have an avuncular fondness for me. I'm not sure why. But I didn't mind.
I sorta regret not having gone to a going-away dinner, over a year ago, honoring him and his wife. (This happened before they moved to California to be with children and grandchildren.)
They were honored for their role in enabling Japanese American redress. In the early 80's, they found documents in the National Archives (and elsewhere), that showed the U.S. government knew that Japanese Americans on the
West Coast weren't much of a threat during WWII. This was the "smoking gun" that allowed a legal team to overturn some key court cases that'd solidified the government's rationale for putting JA's in camps.
As for Jack2, he's much less known. I don't think his obituary can be easily found on the web, if at all. Although, I think that those who knew him found him to be a bit of a character. He liked to drive sporty cars. He'd been twice married, I was told.
He used to do a classical music show on the Harford community college station, WHFC (91.1 FM). He told me that he'd helped establish and operate the radio station at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute many years ago.
He spoke with a distinctive drawl. His words were all drawn out, and he chose them with care. (Sometimes you didn't know if he was going to finish his sentence.)
Because of this, I believe I may have encountered him well before I got to know him.
I had boarded a flight at BWI. It may have been sitting on the runway, waiting its turn to take off. And I got to talking with a fellow across the aisle with a heavy drawl. I thought that, perhaps, he sounded like he had a bit too much to drink.
The conversation took a curious turn when he mentioned he was going to China or thinking of going there to meet a potential wife. He thought that women in Asia (or did he use "Orient"?) were more caring of their spouses than those in America. And that the American woman doesn't know what she wants. He said this in a rather loud voice.
I was alarmed. I found his views about Chinese or Asian women to be rather stereotypical, somewhat outdated. Moreover, I was certain that any American woman within earshot was just itching to grab their nail file or other available sharp object and stab him a couple times.
So I replied with some obfuscatory remark about possible immigration legislation on Capitol Hill (based on something I may have read somewhere). That seemed to confuse him enough to halt his diatribe against American women. (Hmm, I wonder what he would've thought about Asian American women?)
Years after this, I was told about Jack2 having been twice married. I remembered the airplane conversation and wondered if that fellow and Jack2 were the same person.
I read a newspaper article about how the actor and comedian Bill Cosby spoke at a Compton (Calif.) community meeting Wednesday night. He suggested that people should strive to improve their lives, to work "towards something."
It's been reported in the press, in recent months, that Compton has been wracked by gang violence. The number of homicides (year-to-date) has already exceeded the total for last year.
One thing Cosby thought would be a good example for kids, was to hold a parade to honor the homegrown tennis stars, the William sisters (Venus and Serena).
Perhaps, this attitude of self-improvement and positivity could be applied to other places in dire straits. Palestine comes to mind, because it's been in the U.S. news headlines, of late. President Mahmoud Abbas came to Washington and met, the other day, with President Bush.
After the meeting, Bush urged Abbas deal with "armed gangs", referring to militant groups like Hamas.
(Maybe Bush should've heeded his own advice, when he flew to L.A. the following day. He went to a million dollar RNC fundraiser in Bel Air. He could've added a detour to Compton to talk about gang violence. (Yet another example that he doesn't care about Blacks. :-) ).
Getting back to Palestine... I recently discovered amidst my piles of periodicals, a college student publication, Aswatuna: Our Voices. i picked it up last year at UVa. It was published by the Students for Peace and Justice in Palestine.
One of the main themes was the oppression and victimization of Palestinians by Israelis. Such a message runs the risk of alienating unbiased readers, if it's not moderated or counterbalanced by analyses of problems amongst or by Palestinians, such as violence.
Not all articles in the zine stressed the victimology attitude, but I would've appreciated some lengthy discussion of positive developments in Palestinian society.
Like what? Well, I used to know a woman* who worked at a small NGO in DC that supported a dairy farming project by Palestinians. (This was many years ago, possibly, before the Intifada.)
Maybe it's time that Bill Cosby take his message to Palestine. (I can see it now, a television special titled, "Live in Gaza -- Straight Outta Compton")
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*And as I think back, I remember her inviting me to a party, one time, at her place where I met a State Dept. employee. I think he was at the Iraq desk. I remember expressing concern about the plight of the Kurds. (I'd read an article or pamphlet about their oppression and potential extermination, something I'd picked up at a college campus years before.)
He just chuckled, and said that the Kurds weren't in danger of disappearing and would be around for a long time. (I guess he knew something that Saddam didn't.)
Am ending my stay in the GTA, tomorrow... heading back home.
This morning, I looked for Mongolia, somewhere north of Markham, Ontario. I'd spotted it on a map provided by the rental car desk.
I got as far as Stouffville, which seems to be north of the mystery place, so I figure I must've passed it. (Or maybe someone put "Mongolia" on the map as a mischievous thought.)
I saw some horses, but no herds of sheep or yurts.
Oh, well... One thing I noticed in my driving around -- about ten or more housing developments. There is definitely a housing boom, here in the Greater Toronto Area.