An open letter to a lost friend

By Bill Fox/Columnist

For a long time, I have been meaning to write to you about my concern for your health and safety. You see, for almost all of my life, I have looked up to you like a big brother. You have always signified something I have aspired to be. Your charity towards the disadvantaged, those in danger and, in general, the less fortunate has always been a credit to your view of the world and what you could do to make this a better planet.

For the most part, you have always displayed a great sense of social justice and have shown it not just in financial ways, but also by being there for people who have experienced misfortune, whether it is because of Mother Nature, as in earthquakes or hurricanes, etc. or because of ruthless dictators and corrupt political regimes.

However, it recently has become more apparent that before tackling the problems of others, you need to get your own house in order first. I wish I could do something to help, but I’m trying to remain positive in the face of my own challenges.

What is happening to our friend, the U.S. of A.? Could it simply be the result of the lobbying and influence of money, greed, and the funding of the National Rifle Association? When did you turn away from all those values and lifestyles that we in Canada admired? You once had such great character, scholarship, humanity, etc.

I was lucky enough to spend quite a bit of time with the late author John Howard Griffin, who you may remember changed his skin colour so he could understand the plight of African Americans back in the late 1950s. As a result of that research, he wrote his best seller, Black Like Me.

Griffin began his book with “…the real story is the universal one of men who destroy the souls and bodies of other men (and in the process destroy themselves) for reasons neither really understands. It is the story of the persecuted, the defrauded, the feared and detested. I could have been a Jew in Germany, a Mexican in a number of states, or a member of any ‘inferior’ group. Only the details would have differed. The story would be the same…”

It is easy to see the motivation of Black Lives Matter. As I see it, the problem is that just as people in the past have stereotyped black people, the BLM group is now stereotyping all policemen. The recent murdering of police officers in Dallas shows how the misguided view of recent events leads to more violence and killings.

Make no mistake, as President Obama addressed it, reacting with the same horror as many Americans to a grisly video of a bloody, dying man in Minnesota who was shot by a policeman, begged the nation to confront the racial disparities in law enforcement while acknowledging the dangers that officers face.

All Lives Matter would be a group I would want to join. Anyone who faces discrimination, in any form, must have it addressed. People must surrender their guns and not have the ability to kill people with whom they have a disagreement with, or whom they see as a threat.

It is unbelievable now that, in some universities and colleges in the USA, students will be allowed to bring guns to school. “You don’t like your grade? Let the professor know.”

So, my friend, it is as though a terrible uncontrolled mental and emotional illness has taken over your life. I wish I had the medicine for a cure. Unfortunately, I must keep my distance for fear of this being contagious…but you can contact me at Bdfox@rogers.com