Over the past couple of years, I have relegated myself to the status of
"lurker" as Lois calls us. But, on this occasion, I wanted to add a thought
concerning the recent round of "in-fighting":
The next time someone makes a comment that makes you a little hot under the
collar, remember that we are all entitled to an opinion. And, be that
opinion in-line with or opposed to our own, it is the right of each
individual to have such an opinion that is one of the rights upon which our
great country was founded.
The diversity of opinions, faiths, and beliefs are the fabric that binds the
United States of America. It is that same diversity that has made us the
great land we are today. That diversity can be very clearly seen in the
cemeteries we work so hard to preserve and protect. The next time you stand
in YOUR favorite cemetery, stop and look around and think of the people that
are memorialized therein. People from different faiths, different
ethnicity, different walks of life that come together in a strange new place
to work together, live together, and die together for the sake of what
little they did have in common.
Just like a nation, any organization, group, club, or corporation will
thrive on diversity, provided that its members are prepared to accept it for
what it is: "A view from a different angle". If we are to succeed, indeed
if we are to survive as a group. We must be prepared to accept differing
views while we assert our own beliefs. A difference of opinion should not
make enemies of people. We should all be friends who, it just so happens,
don't all think the same way.
Your friend,
Scott