But ... having frequently seen the Rattle-Snake, I ran over in my mind every property by which she was distinguished. I recollected that her eye excelled in brightness, that of any other animal, and that she has no eye-lids. She may therefore be esteemed an emblem of vigilance. She never begins an attack, nor, when once engaged, ever surrenders: She is therefore an emblem of magnanimity and true courage. As if anxious to prevent all pretensions of quarreling with her, the weapons with which nature has furnished her, she conceals in the roof of her mouth, so that, to those who are unacquainted with her, she appears to be a most defenseless animal; and even when those weapons are shown and extended for her defense, they appear weak and contemptible; but their wounds however small, are decisive and fatal. Conscious of this, she never wounds 'till she has generously given notice, even to her enemy, and cautioned him against the danger of treading on her.
Benj. Franklin, An American Guesser
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The Old Bastards Were
Right My father married the most beautiful woman at the USO dance, then went off to fight World War II in the Aleutians. He came home with a Purple Heart and a commendation for wiping out a machine gunner’s nest. Daddy never talked about the war. I only know what the medals were for because I eavesdropped on adult conversations when I was supposed to be way too young to understand such talk. I remember the most awful nightmares I ever had were about my father, with bayoneted rifle braced against his shoulder, taking aim, screaming, "I won’t die, you Goddamn Bastards!" Only, as I got older, I realized that I wasn’t dreaming. My father woke up the entire household with his own nightmares for long after I was born in 1953. (more) Two Weeks Later
Well, here we are just a little over two weeks after the attack on the WTC and the Pentagon. My emotions have calmed. I am not nearly as obsessed as I was the first week. As a matter of fact I am bored with all the patriotic hoopla. Isn't that awful? (more) Letter to the Ministry of
Truth Last night after The Simpsons our local ABC news anchors came on the air for a thirty-second station break to read the preamble statement posted on http://www.supportournation.com/. Following is a copy of my letter to their news director and anchors. (more) Hey, Tom Petty Won't Back
Down! Friday night called for another escape, for me to leave behind my opiate DSL connection and teevee news to retreat to my in-laws' lake house. After a meal of some of the best barbecue I've ever had, we packed up the dogs and drove through the night. (more) Rant It's been almost two weeks since the attack. Yesterday I joined a peace circle in a park in my small town. Last night at a party we formed another peace circle while our hostess read a wonderful quote from Lewis Carroll about imagining the impossible. Today's service in our non-denominational church also focused on peace. These small gestures have helped but my thoughts and feelings are still a pretty sad, depressed muddle. (more) Thoughts I work for a publishing company and am a small press publisher. I'm a poet, a writer, an artist, and love music. My whole life has been a spiritual journey with eleven years in a convent, thirty-three years of marriage, mother to three sons . . . The following are, more or less, short diary entries of perceptions and observations. (more) Success Story
One of the first cases I got as a criminologist for a small-town defense attorney was a seventeen year-old kid in a lot of stupid trouble, who also wanted to get into the marines. The attorney worked like a dog to get him out of hot water and restore his eligibility. (more) E-pistle from a Cramped Bombay
Internet Cafe (private e-mail reprinted with author's permission) Dear Brothers, I love and miss you all and wish most of all that I could have this conversation in person, but it seems that it will have to wait. (more) Well Done, Saddam. We'll Be
Sure to Look for the Check in the Rubble. About a half-hour ago, CNN reported that Saddam Hussein had offered to open his checkbook to send humanitarian aid to the U.S. He still considers us enemies, and wants to be clear that this is for the people, not the government. (more) Why Be Normal?
Having been emotionally and psychologically paralyzed for a week has had some pretty ugly consequences, and I'm finding out I'm not the only one who could stand to take twice the recommended dose of kava kava these days. Things are far from normal. (more) Sons of Ishmael
I was out working in the yard yesterday when my wife came home from work. She has to drive to a big parking lot and take a bus into work, not because of rubble, but because she's a scientist and works on a college campus. She often has stories from the bus, and told me a doozy yesterday. (more) Collected e-pistles of the
Metaphysical Mom Why do I think God lets bad
things happen to good people? News from a
Newsroom It is about noon on Saturday, the 4th day since terrorists launched their attack on America. For literally the first time since the attack, I have a moment to sit down and reflect. I am the IT Manager at the FeedRoom (http://www.feedroom.com/), the Internet’s leading streaming video news network. Our corporate headquarters are located in Manhattan at the corner of Canal and Hudson Streets, just a few blocks from the World Trade Center. The WTC is the next stop after mine on the subway I take to work every day.(more) Briefly, from a
Mother A couple of unconnected thoughts from a time-challenged mom: (more) Tough Talk Do Americans need to be reminded that we shouldn’t want to kill innocent Afghani children or beat up pretty Syrian college girls or shoot Sikh gas station attendants? God, I hope that even the most staunch Berkeley hippie communist would know that even the most staunch Texas fratboy president wouldn't have that much stupidity and evil behind his rage. (more) 911 The horror of September 11, 2001 is now part of our National identity. To be an American now carries the burden of understanding that man’s capacity for cruelty and inhumanity is seemingly fathomless. We have witnessed it. We have suffered at its hands. We have been permanently scarred by it. And yet, we will survive. (more) IntroductionJohnny Pence, Sublimating 12:05 09.17.01 On September 11, 2001, the world of comfort and happiness in which I lived, and for which I silently thanked God every day, became nightmarishly different. Before I'd even had a chance to get some coffee in me, the attack unfolded live on television. (more)
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The Rattler Is a journal of opinion, essay, and emotional release founded on September 15, 2001. Mission Statement The Rattler is founded on the notion that it's better to talk and scream and cry than to hold it all in and go insane. It does not aspire to journalism or literature. It is a product of angst. Inasmuch as we are able to vent the steam building up inside us, we may be able to serve a defensive function in the attack on our homeland. By first defying the psychological warfare, and then beginning to heal our hearts and minds, we defend ourselves against fear -- terror. Rant now, please.
General
Guidelines: Do not submit forwarded e-mails or chain letters. They may express your feelings, but they're not in your own words (there's also copyright, libel, and other issues that we haven't bothered to research). Submit your own writing, even if you're not comfortable writing. We might be able to help. Submissions will not be censored for profanity, wrongheadedness, adherence to the realm of "facts," or anything else. Content may be edited at our discretion, but editing is not censorship. Not every submission will be posted; don't take it personally. Come back tomorrow. Please understand that we will post your name unless you tell us not to. We also ask that you give a few words about your profession, parenthood, political bent, or your love of gardening -- some way to sum up who you are.
The crude image of a rattlesnake in the masthead is taken from the "Gadsden Flag," the battle flag of the Continental Marines of the Revolutionary War. This was the "Don't Tread on Me" flag you've seen. The Latin motto Nemo me impune lacesset means "No man will provoke me with impunity." Everything on this page and pages within the throughthemoon.com domain is copyrighted, A.D. 2001 by Through the Moon. You are not allowed to copy it without permission, but I'll probably give you permission if you ask. |