There was good news today. Roxana Saberi, an American freelance journalist, who was imprisoned in Iran on espionage charges, was freed. Hallelujah. Praise Jesus, Allah, Yahweh, and our girl Hillary Clinton. In the press conference, our sleepless Secretary of State looked like hell, so I assume she’s been working non-stop to make this happen.
I told my kids about Roxana, the half-Iranian/half-Japanese American reporter. I told them how she studied journalism in school –just like Mom did. She became a freelance journalist –just like Mom did. She moved to a dangerous part of the world to report for the BBC and CNN –while mom moved to the Silicon Valley and set about convincing wealthy suburbanites to invest in liposuction and Botox.
I told my kids that Roxana was in an Iranian prison, accused of being a spy for the United States and she was convicted without a real trial, without a lawyer to defend her. Well, that seems awfully unfair, the kids said. Life isn't always fair, I told them channeling the words of mothers through the generations.
(As an aside, isn’t it amazing that kids have the notion that they are entitled to fairness. Last week my middle son had a day off from school thanks to the swine flu scare. My eldest demanded he be given a day off as well. It was only fair, he said. Who teaches kids that life is fair? Or are they born with some innate notion of fairness? That’s a topic for another blog.)
So, Roxana was put in jail for being a spy. Was she a spy? No. But people are put in jail all over the world for doing a lot less than spying, I explained. In many countries, simply saying things that the government doesn’t like can land you in jail. HERE was the lesson I wanted to share with the kids. And I apologize for taking so long to get here. They are so damn fortunate to live in a country that allows us to disagree publiclly. Hell, we are encouraged to disagree. My kids, who are so fond of saying George Bush was a moron (wonder where they got that idea…and who could disagree with that?) …my kids enjoy unlimited freedom of speech. My 8 year old even told me to suck his butt this evening just to prove it. (His punishment by the way was...I did it.) And because this freedom of speech has always been a part of their lives, they have the privilege to take it completely for granted. Well maybe not today…because of Roxana.
A few things:
ReplyDeleteYour kid is smart. Must be taking after someone…
That GPS thing you mentioned is just something kids (especially kids of the male persuasion) have naturally, but I'm sure it is reinforced tremendously by self confidence gained only in a good, supportive familial environment.
Misplacing an individual from the litter can be quite scary I guess, but it seems to me you were able to handle it composed enough and smart enough to make up for whatever you seem to think you need to beat yourself about.
And last, but not least, as for your concluding question – my virginity, and no, I never found it again (but than, who the fuck cares).