YOU WERE ALWAYS SUCH A NICE BOY!(Revised)

Yep. As well documented in previous blogs,that was my Mom talking to me as I slid into my nasty 40's.

She was right.I had indeed changed substantially. Now, more than a few years later, my challenge is to make sure that pendulum doesn't swing too far either way.

That goal continues to be tested. An angry E-mail I recently received - and unfortunately responded to - confirms this.

Once more I'm reminded that I don't suffer fools very well. Let me try to clarify and put some things in context.

(1)Since the beginning of my voting eligibility I've been registered as a member of the G.O.P.

(2) In my small town where I grew up we had no blacks in residence - even those who might some day find out they were no longer black - but Afro-Americans.

(3)I was an unabashed hero worshipper of my Dad, a man who was not without his prejudices, particularly for almost anything or anyone Catholic or Jewish.

There was a lot of that going on "back in the day".

Like most kids, I got over my hero worshipping, my repeating of some of my Dad's philosophy and, at some point, got on with my life. Not everyone has.

Hopefully, the relevance of the three numbered statements will set up what follows.

Like many of us creeping along life's challenge lanes, I have not always made the best choices or espoused the right causes. However, I like to think my astrological Libra sense of balance has served me well.

I continue to make my retribution fueled contributions to society.

Now, I am one of the first to speak up (when my wife finishes, of course) as I see or hear some member of a supposedly enlightened generation who insists on making the same stupid mistakes I did.

My mantle remains, "first you learn - then you teach." It just seems to me to make much more sense than practicing the reverse philosophy.

You have to believe we can all grow up or grow out of those teachings from an earlier life. Right?

My political opinions have changed somewhat, but not enough yet to cause me to have any desire to register as a Democrat.

That may be why I become conflicted, and get the "pendulum sweats" when I find myself defending our President. I have done this in several blogs or in response to stupid e-mails. As you know, I have done so with considerable zeal and verbiage.

My target this time was a correspondent who is both a devout convert to judaism and a fanatical supporter for all things Republican. She is also extremely bright - which leads me to believe that much of her correspondence has been ghost written.

In brief, too many of the E-mails forwarded to me from her postings are vitriolic, completely inaccurate, and downright cruel.

Such was the most recent one I received attacking President Obama, with the de-emphasis on the term "President."

I have often felt that the really mean-spirited Obama targeted E-mails I receive - especially the cartoons and caricatures of him - have not one damn thing to do with politics; but a heckuva lot to deal with racism.

After reading this last one I responded,(perhaps too quickly): "It is fascinating to me that so many of us seem to see the subject of prejudice as a Chinese menu.

While we may quickly embrace a predudicial item in column "A" we're compelled to opt out of choosing any in column "B" or "C" - particularly those which malign us by inference."

As we all well know, there is a tremendous amount of anti-Jewish sentiment in this country - and around the world. As I alluded to in a recent blog, the criticism is so overwhelming it's puzzling to me given that Jews represent only 2% of our population.

The lead topic in the E-mail I received was not anti-semitic. It was an article my Jewish friend forwarded to me that was allegedly written by a man, reputed to be the Chairman of a conservative Black think tank in Washington DC.

The Chairmans target was President Obama - and he was obviously upset with the free world leader.

The piece included "comparative" wording such as "sharecroppers living in a trailer and hit the Power Ball - but, instead of getting new tires for their trailer, and a new pickup truck, they moved to Washington. And instead of making possum pie, with goats and chickens in the front yard they're spending and living large at taxpayer expense - - - - -etc, etc.

It then went on to criticize the First Lady for purchasing expensive wigs.I'd include more of these rancid comments but I'm starting to gag and need to finish this blog and get on with my life.

The rationale of the sender in forwarding this piece of garbage was that even a highly respected black figure now contends that Obama is truly a horrible person.

My obvious reply was: "So, if the subject is Afro-American (Black) and the critics are also "Black", then it's truly worthy to circulate this racist b.s.?. But, not send it if your name is Newt, Sarah, Donald or anyone of the White race persuasion?

No reply has been received. The ghostwriter is apparently out of town over the holiday weekend.

So, yeah Mom, perhaps I did lose that nice boy image, but remember- the guy I was defending here has Irish roots.