by Marty Coleman | Aug 25, 2012 | Quote Authors |
I am brought back to summer vacation at Ditch Plains Campground in the town of Montauk at the very far eastern end of Long Island in New York. It’s July, 1969 and we are watching a very, very small portable TV, about 5-6 square inches big. It has been stormy and windy and the picture is grainy and blurry. We have a crowd of other campers gathered in our VW Campmobile and attached tent watching along with us.
That night, on a grainy small TV, in an isolated spot during a storm, we witnessed what all the world witnessed, a human landing, then walking, on the moon.
In 1972, a few years after the moonwalk, my father, who was the publisher of Business and Commercial Aviation Magazine at the time, and I were at an Aviation Expo at Dulles Airport outside Washington D.C. He was working, I was tagging along helping to distribute the daily newspaper he was putting out during the expo.
We were walking in a private back area when my father noticed a man coming towards us. My father called him by name and the two shook hands. He introduced me to the man who, at least for me, needed no introduction. Neil Armstrong was gracious and soft spoken in greeting me and giving me his autograph, which I still have.
Throughout the years we had watched every launch, knew every astronaut’s name and knew what and why they were taking that particular voyage. We had met a few of the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo astronauts over the years as well.
But meeting Mr. Armstrong was above the others. It was a moving moment for me because he represented something true. He represented something that can’t ever be taken away and can’t ever be seen as anything but what it was. This was going outside ourselves. This was our first imprint on the stars. I was amazed then and am amazed now at what mankind accomplished that night.
I got to meet the man who took that first step. That was, and is, a great honor. I have nothing but admiration and respect for Mr. Armstrong and I thank him for his work and courage on our behalf. My condolences go to his family and friends on his passing.
Nothing gives me greater hope in our future that this: if we can, and did, do that, we can, and will, do anything we set our minds on.
Marty
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by Marty Coleman | Aug 23, 2012 | Quote Authors |
I have been disappointed recently and it’s an odd feeling, not one I am all that familiar with. But it is here and I am evaluating it even as I feel it.
What causes you to be disappointed? Does it happen often? Where does the disappointment go? What do you do with it?
Drawing and questions by Marty Coleman of The Napkin Dad Daily
Quote by Martin Luther King, Jr.
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by Marty Coleman | Aug 22, 2012 | Anonymous |
Gossip
A girl named Jennifer, jealous,
A woman named Demi, distraught.
A man named Mel, hellish,
A woman named Carly, caught.
What did you learn from hearing those things? Did you grow, learn, progress, become kinder, smarter, healthier, more loving, stronger, wiser, happier, more compassionate?
I didn’t think so.
__________________
Drawing by Marty Coleman, who wonders what people say about him.
Quote by Anonymous
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by Marty Coleman | Aug 21, 2012 | Uncategorized |
Is it any wonder I chose to draw on this topic today?
The Danger of Dumb
We now know Rep. Akin of Missouri is ignorant of science and biology. We also now know he is on the science committee in the US Congress. We know he is unqualified to be on that committee since he currently believes (because some unnamed doctor told him) that women who are legitimately raped, oh sorry, let’s use the word ‘forcibly’, it’s so much better, have a magic secret army of anti-spermbots who keep her from getting pregnant. He also uses this untrue statement to back up his political agenda of banning all abortions in all circumstances, including rape and incest. In my opinion, there is no doubt he should resign from Congress because of this exposure of his warped and dangerous thinking, and if he does not, he should be voted out by his constituents in Missouri. I am also hopeful they would not vote for him to represent them in the US Senate, a seat for which he is currently campaigning.
Intent vs Effect
Now, I do not know this man personally. Yesterday, I heard from a personal friend of his for over 15 years who said he is a wonderful man and would never say or do anything intentionally to harm women. And yet, he is intentionally pursuing laws that would make it illegal for the raped woman I have depicted above to have an abortion. He is saying that the life of the zygote/embryo/fetus (depending on how far along the pregnancy is) and it’s possible feeling of pain and suffering is more important than the emotional, psychological, and physical pain and suffering the raped woman is feeling now and will most likely feel for many years to come. In this case it is a woman beaten and raped then made to testify at a trial at which she is herself accused of leading the man on, of having had multiple sex partners, of having worn something provocative, of having had something to drink, of having flirted, of, in essence, being responsible for her own rape. The defense attorney is trying to persuade a jury it was her fault. This is the woman we are talking about in many cases.
He wants to take away her decision about what to do about her pregnancy away from her and give it to the state. The same state he says should stay out of our personal lives. To me that is intentionally and willfully deciding to use his power as an agent for the state to increase the pain and suffering of this woman by denying her the right to choose what she will do with her body, her pregnancy and the zygote/embryo/fetus inside her womb.
What Would I Do
As the father of 4 grown daughters I would very likely advise one of them who got pregnant to carry it to term. I would not want one of them to have an abortion in most cases. But the final decision is not up to me. It is not up to Rep. Akins and it is not up to the state. It would be up to my daughter. No matter the circumstances, she is the only one, if we truly believe in liberty and freedom, who has the right to make the choice about what happens to her own body.
I know there are many who disagree with me politically on this. I am fine with that disagreement and consider those who do disagree intelligently to be worthy adversaries in the world of ideas and practices. But Rep. Akin and those who feel and think as he does are not just those of a different opinion. They are dangerous in their ignorant, anti-scientific and mean-spirited assault on women and should be stopped.
________________________
Drawing and commentary by Marty Coleman, an American.
Quote by Freda Adler
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by Marty Coleman | Aug 20, 2012 | Quote Authors |
What Words?
What word or words do you think can and should be used to describe people physically?
Fat is What?
For a while now it’s been bugging me to hear when someone says ‘She’s fat.’ or ‘Wow, that guy is really fat.’ It’s been bugging me because, even though it’s common usage to say it, fat is actually a substance, not a person. I understand that when someone says that they aren’t really saying the whole person is made up of the substance called fat. They are saying the person has a lot of fat on him or her. They are saying the person is overweight. But my issue comes from how that verbalization leads to a one dimensional judgment of the person. If you say ‘that person is overweight’ then yes, by inference you are saying they have extra fat on them. But you are not saying they ARE fat.
Using that definition has long been in the mainstream, so much so that an overweight person will very likely call themselves fat. They know they aren’t all fat, but they still say it. And what does that mindset do? It focuses and defines the person as being one thing, and a thing is supposedly not good.
But the truth is fat is good. We can’t live without it. We need to eat it, it protects us, nourishes us, gives us many essential elements to our survival. What is at issue is a body out of balance, with too much fat and not enough of other substances, like muscle, bone, blood, etc. It needs to be in some balance so the person, who is a combination of all of those substances, can be healthy and productive in life. A person with too much fat on them is in danger of being out of balance. Then again so is a person with not enough fat on them.
So for me, I continue to make an effort to not use that word when describing someone. Overweight, fine. heavy, fine. But Fat? Fat is a substance, not a person.
What do you think?
________________________
Drawing and quote by Marty Coleman
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