July  1995	Women & Guns

	Parting Shots...

	Plus ‡a change, plus ‡a mˆme.

	The more things change, the more they stay the same.

	Two years ago I wrote that I believed that the chance of
concealed carry passing in Texas and being signed into law was greater
than Saddam Hussein chance of receiving the Nobel Prize for Peace.

	Some things change. Gov. George W. Bush, the son, signed a CCW
law in May.

	Two years ago, I wrote about the brutal atrocities of
Bosnia-Hercegovinia.

	Some things stay the same. While some low-level Serbian
military officers have been charged with rape, torture and murder, the
brutalities continue. The country is awash with blood and the number
of deaths has quadrupled.

	In Texas, women now have some choice in their options for self
defense. In Bosnia, women still have no choices.

	Guess who said: "My father used to say all the time 'Do as I
say not as I do' and I used to think 'Oh please.' But adults need to
be careful what they say around children and what they portray to
children.

	"I'm all for bringing back some old-fashioned hypocrisy. I
think the kind of dysfunctional behavior that we are subjecting out
children to gives them no role models, gives them the feeling that
anything goes, that they can do anything with no consequences and get
on television which, my goodness, validates everything."

	The choices are: A. Roseanne, B. Marge Simpson, or C. Hillary
Clinton.

	The correct answer is C. Hillary Clinton.

	Her statement was quoted in a Reuter/Variety report dated May
16, 1995. It contained remarks from the First Lady's appearance on the
Oprah Winfrey Show.

	I read the story through a couple of times. I read it out
loud. I looked for typographical errors. I looked to see if I was
missing or rearranging words.

	"Do as I say, not as I do."

	"...bringing back some old-fashioned hypocrisy."

	It seems to me that saying one thing but doing another causes
more destruction in society than just doing the wrong thing.

	Simply stated, it is a convoluted phrase to justify lying.

	I took my two eldest with me on a trip to Washington, D.C. I
decided that they were old enough to appreciate the beauty of our
nation's capital and comprehend some of the magnitude of its impact on
their lives. They also are tall enough to avoid elbows in eyes and
don't, usually, ask to be carried when their legs get tired.

	There is something about being in the shadow of the halls
where great men and women have made hard fought decisions to ensure
our freedoms that brings out the most outrageous prose in me.

	Entering the city at night, the Washington Monument was
mirrored in the Reflecting Pools and the moon highlighted the marble
expanse of the Lincoln Memorial. Our eyes were drawn to the majestic
dome on the Capitol. It is an awesome vista.

	In daylight, Washington, D.C. appears to be in a state of
siege. Boarded up buildings abut majestic, granite skyscrapers. Black
and red graffiti screams out with anger on brick walls, concrete
barricades, marble entrance ways and sidewalks. Weeds grow between
cracks in walkways and litter collects at curbside.

	As I shepherded my two children toward the Hill, I walked on
the outside, urging them to move ahead smartly.

	We reached our destination, where we stood in quiet awe. The
Capitol is the structural embodiment of the spirit of freedom from
which this country rose. The expanse of steps leading to the entrance
is a fitting challenge to the maintenance of liberty that is fought in
the House of Representatives and United States Senate.

	Half-way up the steps, an older man was enthroned on a
makeshift chair of carpets. A well-weathered sign of his opinion of
our government was at his side with a scattering of coins at his feet.

	I told my children to look, keep their opinions to themselves
and continue the climb. When we reached the entrance, we took our
place in line and waited to enter and begin our sightseeing.

	After answering "Did you see that?", I explained, "Yes, he can
really do that. While this is the Capitol, it is our Capitol. The
First Amendment is precious and need be as secure here in this place
as in any other place.

	Upon entering the Rotunda and looking up at the inspiring
frieze that attempts to define the roots of our country, one is again
struck with the immensity of the revolutionary government that our
Forefathers designed. One is also most startlingly reminded of the
importance of individual citizens and their rights when you wander
past the statuary placed by the States.

	I started this column with three words on a scrap of paper:
Bosnia, honesty and rights. In my humble opinion, we need to realize
that our responsibilities and rights have not changed. Honesty is
crucial in the relationship between parents and children, government
and citizens. All citizens and all their right must be protected no
matter how out of place they may seem at the time. Adieu.


Julianne Versnel Gottlieb
Publisher

Personal Parting Shots . . .

Happy Birthday to Roo from Kanga!

AJG, good luck at school. To the mademoiselles, je vous aime.
Entre-nous, je t'adore.R.S.V.P. jhvg@saf.org.