One Voice: Who Do You Listen To?

I don't talk much about controversial subjects, mainly because I don't want to hear people gripe and complain. But a few weeks ago I had an experience that changed my outlook, and maybe it will change your outlook, too, although, being a pessimist, I don't hold much hope for that.

My spouse and I took a short vacation, and during that vacation I learned that sometimes one person can influence the actions and beliefs of others. I won't go into great detail about my experience, but I discovered one voice can make a difference-it can open up hearts and offer perspective. I discovered that being that one voice isn't always easy and sometimes carries with it huge responsibilities, but it is worth it. And I remembered how one voice ignored can lead a nation to its ultimate downfall.

In the days just after 911, I saw a video clip of a woman who husband died when the Towers fell. In the news clip, filmed just as possible causes for the tragedy were being explored, she pleaded with the American public to not do anything rash. Nearly hysterical, she described her husband's nonviolent outlook on life and begged the American people to not engage in any retaliation out of anger against those who perpetuated the attack, as it would only make the situation worse. Through her sobbing, she related that her husband had lived a life of peace and would be devastated if anyone who sought to avenge his death caused more destruction or loss of life. She told viewers that her husband would not want this to happen. He would not want things to end this way. He would not want his life to be lived in vain. She begged viewers to not respond to the terrible violence with anger and fear. These were her husband's last wishes.

But nobody listened, did they?

Oh, we had all kinds of excuses. We couldn't let Osama almost been Important get away with killing all those people, could we? We couldn't let the enemy possibly strike again on American soil, could we? We couldn't stop for a moment and think of a really good strategy to counter the violent, irrational mindset of our enemies, could we?

No, we could not.

We dove, fully clothed in our patriotic armor, right in to the erratic sandboxes that are Afghanistan and Iraq and now we are mired in a disastrous war from which there is no easy exit. We didn't listen to that one voice, echoing from a woman whose name I will never know but whose wise words, spoken even in a time of her greatest distress, will haunt our country forever. We have paid dearly for our selective deafness. Sometimes it is the voices we don't listen to that have the most impact.

But then there's voices like Don Imus; voices that important people who should know better give too much credence to. For those of you have been hiding under a rock for several years, radio host Don Imus came under fire a month or so again (who remembers?) because he flippantly used the phrase "nappy-headed ho's" to describe the Rutgers women's basketball team after they lost a tournament to the Lady Volunteers (yes, that's really their names). I don't know what his motive was or why he said such a stupid thing. I really don't care. All I care about is that millions of people couldn't hear a beleaguered widow begging for clear thinking and the heeding her dead husband's last wishes for a peaceful response to a terrible injustice, but they can hear Don Imus make an offhand remark and engage in all the tired rhetoric it has inspired Worse yet, no one acted on the 911 widow's sentiment. The only 911 widows you hear about are always parading in front of Congress in an effort to get a benefit or change a law or the like. However, practically everyone around the world knows that Imus made a stupid remark and that now there is a national debate about race relations because of it. Imus met with Reverend Al Sharpton. The Rutger's basketball team met with Imus. National TV network reporters want to meet with all the players in this little saga to gain ratings numbers and ensure job security. Unfortunately, nobody even knows the name of the widow who implored the American people to face adversity with forgiveness and logic. Nobody, I venture to guess, even remembers the lady who, in her hour of greatest sorrow, beseeched those around her to seek peace among the turmoil to save themselves and others like them. Sometimes it is the voices we should to listen to but ignore that define us as a nation.

Which voices do you listen to?