Dale & Dullard

This week’s Dale and Dullard will be interrupted by a more somber article, that was inspired by a piece of mail received at the office. The letter, conveniently did not come with a name associated to it, but as discussed in a previous article about “a society of complainers” (point proven), that is the way things work today. It was also very vague and did not point out anything specifically, except the size of the photos in the paper. Not sure if you’ve seen the past few issues, but they have been full of gigantic pictures with which one can feast their God-given eyes upon with gladness. I’ve also uploaded hundreds of pictures online, and they can be viewed by going to Facebook and using an index finger to click a button, or simply drag your digit across your glowing screen. The letter mentioned that “his column is not being read.” So, maybe nobody is actually reading these words right now…and if you are, consider yourself among the few, and the privileged. The Bible says in Matthew 7: 13-14, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Although, I have to add that I have received many compliments via phone call, emails, comments on Facebook and I have had people visit the office to say “thanks.” Apparently, they aren’t reading it though, which is a bit concerning since they must be fibbing. But then again, there are at least three different columns on any given week, so who knows what this mysterious scribe was referring too. I will share my favorite quote from the letter, “If he can’t come up with anything better than that silly thing – he is in bad shape – ridiculous!!!!” Yes, there were four exclamation marks, and it was hardly legible, so I hope I haven’t disparaged the efforts by misquoting something. Additionally, after the words “silly” and “ridiculous” appeared, I could only surmise that the cunning quill-driver was alluding to the much-beloved “Dale and Dullard.” And if so, then he/she/they are spot on! You get it! And also, how do you know it’s “silly” and “ridiculous” …unless you read it? 

In a world where people are constantly attacking each other and complaining about things, I chose to add a “silly” and “ridiculous” piece for the paper. We do not need to be serious and angry all the time so I figured a couple of old guys being dorks would be fun, and I’ve been told so by many that have enjoyed it thus far. But in the spirit of that letter, I decided to change it up this week (FYI: I will continue Dale and Dullard by the way. If I told Elon Musk that his Tesla cars sucked, I’m sure he would still build them. And to jump ahead of the next comment, no, I am not comparing the paper with Tesla. I’m comparing a hypothetical situation with this one. And Tesla with Dale and Dullard…there is no comparison, am I right!?).

Anyway, I previously worked for a small private university in California before coming here, and some of the employees were grumbling constantly. It was my turn to lead the monthly meeting, so I decided to explain how great we have it, and that it’s embarrassing the things we complain about on a daily basis. To preface this, it would make sense to include that I have spent a year in Afghanistan (Maiwand district, where the Taliban was birthed), I have studied Arabic along with terrorism for more than five years, volunteered with the International Rescue Committee (IRC), and have been to much of the Middle East to include Qatar, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Jordan (on the Syrian border), Morocco, and a few others. Unfortunately, I have encountered some inhumane things along with having been shot at by small arms fire, rocket-propelled grenades (RPG’s), and mortar rounds among others.   While volunteering with the IRC, I helped individuals who were fleeing from war-torn countries. Through these experiences, I have developed an understanding of what a real issue is, and I have grown to have a greater appreciation for the liberties that we have here in the U.S.A. One particular man that I worked with, was from Idlib, Syria (Go ahead and see the Google images of Idlib). During a conversation, he asked why I was volunteering to help with people in his situation. I let him know that we have it awesome in America, so awesome that we search for things to complain about and we take for granted all of the freedoms that we have. I told him that I have seen what the war does to families, and I choose to help people with “real” problems, instead of somebody who was up in arms because they were served the wrong type of flavored coffee in Starbucks.

After a pause, he took a hit of his hookah, and told me about a neighbor he had in Syria, (Paraphrased here): “There was a family that lived near to us. We were all scared to leave our homes for a very long time, but they were running out of food, so the father had to find something for his wife, son and daughter to eat. He left but did not return that day. Since it was far worse for women to be found alone on the street, the son tried to find his father. He was soon captured and forced to join ISIS (pronounced Daesh in Arabic) or be killed. Scared for his life, he joined ISIS and was then forced to direct them to where his home was. Instead of returning with food and his father, he showed up to his mother and sister with a group of ISIS fighters. The mother and daughter were then taken captive and used as sex slaves while he was still forced to fight for the same people who had taken, and most likely killed his family.”

I did not have a whole lot to say after this, and although I knew these things happened, it was difficult to hear it from somebody who had to witness it first-hand. As I have also researched and written about Syria, I know that out of the 22 million people living there, more than 11 million were forced to leave their homes. More than six million had to flee the country all-together. Yet, we have it so easy here, that we find time to make up laws (tax-payer funded laws) about which bathroom to use, constantly update which words are bad to say, and even to write a letter about how you don’t agree with everything put in the paper.

We should count our blessings, there are many. Imagine if you will, instead of reading this right now, you were huddled in the safest corner of your home, in fear of a missile crashing through your living room as the constant sounds of gunfire echo in the streets around you. Or, worse yet, your front door is broken down as you’re forced to watch your loved ones taken and/or killed. – Instead, you’re probably sitting in a comfortable seat in the air-conditioned confines of a safe place, sipping a beverage, and reading the paper (or not, if the letter is to be true). I’ve heard things like, “this internet sucks” more times than I can count. Why do we complain about something that we didn’t even contribute to, as we do nothing? “The thing you made for my entertainment isn’t working momentarily…” – That’s basically what we say every time. I’m guilty of this every single day. We just expect that everything is going to be perfect for what we like, whenever we like it. Let alone a complaint about the internet or a newspaper, have you ever heard of anybody from a war-torn country say, “Gosh, these stupid bombs keep crashing around us, it’s so annoying!” Me neither…Yea, we have it pretty good folks! Grateful over hateful.

P.S. As I have only been back in the area for less than three months now, I would love to hear any suggestions for future news stories, or other happenings that may be of interest. That would be very much welcomed. Also, I will gladly read any more letters that come my way, as they do not offend me one bit. On the contrary, they are humorous and bring a smile to my face. Thank you!!!!