What kind of freedom were they fighting for?

Happy Veteran's Day!

To all of you who served or stayed behind as your son, daughter, husband, wife, mother or father served in our armed forces...THANK YOU! I am eternally grateful for your sacrifice.

To those of you who lost a loved one as they selflessly served our country, you have my deepest sympathy and respect. I can only hope you have been covered by God's abundant grace and mercy as you walked the lonely path of grief.

My father, Harold V. Haatainen and my step-father, Daniel W. Wagner, both served in WWII and for that, I am grateful.

On May 1, 1945, the USS Terror was hit by a kamikaze, resulting in 171 casualties: 41 dead, 7 missing and 123 wounded. Dan was among the wounded, earning him a Purple Heart.

But what exactly were they fighting for? What type of freedom is worth dying for?

Somehow, I doubt many were risking their lives so Americans could have the freedom to publish and sell garbage like the ebook I just discovered being offered for download by Amazon.com. The Pedophile's Guide to Love and Pleasure: a Child-lover's Code of Conduct, written by Philip R. Greaves II, is a filthy self-published guide offering advice to pedophiles. Since it contains no illustrations, it is not classified as child pornography, therefore, it is not considered illegal. Really?! Since when is any type of sexual relationship with a child legal? But in publishing a guide for pedophiles, there is an unspoken, but very LOUD, endorsement of this type of activity. And no matter how you look at it, "loving" a child in this way has to be classified as child abuse. Period.

Unfortunately, this is not the only book of this type being sold on Amazon.com. There are also the controversial books, Understanding Loved Boys and Boylovers and Could They All Have Been Wrong by David Riegel, more garbage condoning sex with children with arguments that sexual relationships between men and boys are perfectly natural and simply another expression of acceptable sexuality.

Interestingly enough, just three years ago, Amazon.com pulled a video game from their listings. RapeLay was just a bit too graphic for Amazon's tastes, I suppose. I mean after all, it is just not right to sell a video game where the main character rapes a mother and her daughters, now is it? Media and public outcry provoked a response from Amazon and the game is no longer available on their site.

So here is what I propose. Let us start a public outcry that garners some media attention and demand that these two books be pulled from the site as well. I am calling for a boycott of Amazon, who, until yesterday, advertised here on the blog. Close your accounts with Amazon, email them, email your family and friends, share this post, get your contacts on your social media sites buzzing and let's put an end to this nonsense.

Of course, I am not asking you to do this for me. I am asking you do this out of respect for those who sacrificed their lives for our freedom. After all, freedom comes with responsibility, and books encouraging the sexual abuse of children are nothing but irresponsible.

Now, before you start spouting off at me about First Amendment Rights, save your breath. There is nothing you could say to convince me that this type of garbage was what our forefathers had in mind when they penned the Constitution.

So, as you honor our veterans, both alive and dead, spend some time thinking about why they serve(d). It is about freedom, my friends. But somehow, Amazon.com is missing the boat, or in this case, the warship.

Thanking God for our veterans,

Hana

Taking candy from strangers

I'd start off by saying "Happy Halloween," but, quite honestly, it's not a 'holiday' I choose to celebrate. There are many reasons for this. I'd like to share with you the common sense ones.

For me, it makes no sense for parents to drum it into their kids' heads day after day, year after year, not to talk to strangers, but then on one particular night of the year they encourage them to knock on strangers' doors and take candy from them. Excuse me? Doesn't anyone else see the contradiction here?

Our little 'angels' are allowed to dress like little demons, or worse, like characters from R-rated movies they should know nothing about! Again, what sense does this make? Is it really cute to see an 8-year-old wielding a bloody ax? Really? Okay, I know not all costumes are fashioned after serial killers. "What's wrong with dressing up my little one like a Care Bear or Hello Kitty?" Absolutely nothing. Dressing up is fun for kids and I have no issues with that. My issues arise from introducing children to images of death and evil. To me, it's simply not acceptable.

Another objection I have to trick-or-treating is found in the name: 'trick or treat.' Again, we're encouraging our children to do something we would punish them for any other time of the year. We give them permission to threaten tricks on people if they don't get what they want. That's what the phrase "trick-or-treat" means, folks.

Halloween pranks seem to be an accepted practice for October 30th and 31st. Cars get egged, pumpkins smashed, windows broken, houses spray-painted, cats are tortured, yards toilet papered....woo hoo....Happy Halloween.

Then there's the money and time spent on decorating....sometimes, the yard decorations are cute, sometimes they're pretty. But more often than not, they are hideously ugly. Images of evil and death permeate neighborhoods. I remember the Halloween following my husband's death -- never before had I been so disturbed by front yard cemeteries and coffins used for decoration. I saw no humor in it, just painful reminders of my loss. Oddly enough, October of 2001 was void of similar yard displays. For one year people seemed to respect the mourning of a nation and didn't poke fun at tragedy as we were still reeling from 9/11.

One more word of caution to anyone taking their children out trick-or-treating -- a scenario for you to consider: A couple days after you've canvassed the neighborhood for Halloween candy with you child, he or she is walking home from school when a neighbor calls out, using his or her name (which he learned a couple of nights ago). He invites your child in for some leftover candy. "I'm not allowed to talk to strangers," your child protests. "Strangers?" he replies. "We're not strangers. Your parents brought you here on Halloween, remember? I gave you some chocolate and lollipops. C'mon, I have more candy set aside just for you. Your mom won't mind." What will your child do? You have unknowingly opened the door to a possible pedophile...and believe me, they do live in children's neighborhoods. They don't look creepy. They have nice homes and well-manicured yards, are members of the PTA, and are well-respected residents in the community. And they know how to lure your children in. Be aware.

I'm not suggesting you raise your children in fear. But using some common sense when it comes to Halloween can go a long way in keeping them safe. Don't throw your common sense out the window for the sake of 'tradition.' Things are different than when you were a kid. The world has changed. Maybe it's time for traditions to change as well.

Keeping it safe,

Hana