To all who have sent me "be careful" e-mail

[PDittie]

(Posted with permission from a friend.)

I've just received the umpteenth e-mail containing warnings about the dangers posed by victims of Hurricane Katrina. None has basis on first-hand experience, validated or verified information, or contextual significance. All suggest that I "be careful". Think about what you are sending or forwarding -- who it is from and what it really means. What is THEIR agenda?

First, truth matters. Gossip and third-hand accounts are simply not credible. If you remember the "gossip game" we played in school, you should know that by the third telling the original message is changed, and by the end, hopelessly distorted. Why do people who send these missives believe that it's okay to repeat these stories?

Secondly, the contextual significance of information does matter. Is there crime and what was the context, the circumstances under which it occurred? Numbers also have significance: when talking about crime, it is always necessary to examine whether there is statistical significance to numbers reported, e.g. are they more than the norm, or usual in a given locale; are the characteristics of the perpetrators significantly different from the "usual" perpetrators of crime? Why do the people who write these things believe they are qualified to issue warnings about "crime waves" when in fact all they have is questionable anecdotal stories? Why do they repeat these things?

Third, all of the missives contain lines like, "I know all 'these people' aren't criminals, but ..." And "I really sympathize with 'these people', but ..." Words do matter. The presence of the word "but" denies the words preceding it, so what is left after "but" is what the message really is. The term "these people" distances us from who they are: victims of a horrendous nightmare.

Fourth, none of these missives contains any hint of knowledge and understanding about what overwhelming, life-threatening trauma does to human beings. Katrina victims' worlds have been destroyed and the writers are focused on manners and decorum and civilized behavior. How little they know. Perhaps they should ask, "What Would Jesus Do?"

Finally, the warning to "be careful" is a code phrase. What do the writers mean? Avoid people in shelters? Avoid people whose cars have Louisiana license plates? Avoid people enrolling their kids in schools? How will I know of whom to "be careful"? Perhaps the writers believe evacuees should have to wear an armband identifying them to "us". Of more concern to me is that the implicit identifying characteristic may be race. Conversely, if the writers are basing the warning on their assumption (without evidence) that there is a crime wave present, why haven't we heard this from law enforcement agencies and other experts? Have the writers contacted the authorities to verify or allay their fears or to request protection?

If the writers are simply worried that I should be vigilant about protecting myself against crime, why are they voicing the concerns now? Why didn't they say this before Katrina? Obviously, because they do believe there is an increased danger from someone -- although how much, what kind and where the danger happens to be is vague, and the potential criminals aren't identified, except as evacuees from Katrina.

So to you who have written and expressed these things, I say stop it. All that occurs when these things are written is that vague fears are fed, distrust of "strangers" (US citizens, by the way, and human beings like you and I) is excited, attention is shifted away from the tragedies evacuees have suffered, and a mentality of hate, accusation, and blame placed in the forefront. My own suspicion is that racism is at the root of all these stories –- be afraid of and mistrust poor black people. If it is not that, then another explanation is that the story tellers simply don't want to care about victims of tragedy and will use anything to justify their stance. The kindest explanation is that the writers are simply thoughtlessly repeating gossip and stories because they're interesting and titillating. One wonders why they don't repeat stories of loss, physical suffering and emotional devastation as well as appeals for help and compassion. Isn't that the most important story?

If what I've written offends anyone, be aware that I have been offended repeatedly and don't want to hear the hate, fear, ignorance and thoughtlessness any more.

[doodadem]

1. Who is sending that crap out???

[PDittie]

2. Here's an example:

I don't know if this is real, however, with the evacuees that seem so desperate and the few who have terrible life styles to begin with, you might just be a bit more cautious!

HEED This Warning, Please ! !


A Warning From One of our Church Members. . . . . . . . . .

Everyone please go to the G.I. surplus store on College Street or 10-32
Supply on Neches by the City Bus Service Center and buy PEPPER SPRAY. KEEP
IT HANDY as you enter and depart your automobile. Our son-in-laws co-worker
was mobbed at 8pm in the Walmart parking lot last night. She had her 18
month old child in her arms and as she went to load everything in her car,
she was surrounded by 6 people and everything taken, her purse,etc.

Please be careful and let your friends know. Blessings
And also, my sister-in-law’s car was broken into in their driveway the
other nigh, everything of value apparently stolen. The police told
her that members of New Orleans’ gangs have made their way to our city and
they are very skillful at what they do. Everyone please don’t leave purses
and valuable items in your cars. But protect yourselves, too. Be very
aware that this crisis has brought out the best in human beings (and the
worst…"

[Union Thug]

7. Oh gawd... and don't flash your headlights or you'll be shot down..

What a bunch of alarmist crap.

[buff2]

8. That sounds like a FReeptard troll

You better be careful of what you open up from THEM. Too many FReeptards have DU memberships and they post in the thousands too. I've read their snickering posts at their hate site and they really get off "fooling" us. It's a game to them because they don't have anything else in their life to occupy their time. "Getting over" on us makes them feel superior and triumphant. The time they spend here and then the time they spend going back to hate land and reporting to the rest of the demons how stupid we are because we think they are one of us there is NO WAY they have time for a job....or even to clean house or take a shower. You can smell their stench every time they post.

[PDittie]

9. It's from one of my friend's church members

They probably don't even know what a 'freeper' is (and yet, they is one).

[Whoa_Nelly]

14. So many rumors, so much living in fear (thanks to A Rove-driven campaign

Live Life in Fear!
Karl's Motto

Ever since 9/11, BushCo AKA Rove, has driven home the message that we must live our lives in fear.

If you are offended re: those emails, then perhaps you could email back the sender saying something such as you appreciate updates regarding ___________ (you fill in the blank), and to please no longer send you fear-mongering emails.

I have found that if people persist in sending this kind of back-handed hate email, I simply repeat the original polite request, name the original sender in CAPS at the beginning and the end of my reply, and then hit REPLY ALL. That usually stops it as the original sender becomes embarrassed.

[TexasThoughtCriminal]

15. I hope you're not thinking PDittie is a "FReeptard troll"

Note that the offending text is in a box. This is the way to quote the email under discussion.;)

[MADem]

19. What a ton of horseshit

If "these people" were such master criminals, they would have stolen cars ahead of the storm and gotten the fuck out of NOLA. They'd be living large on someone's VISA, not wearing the same fetid underwear for a week at a time. And I find it astounding that the writer would assume that anyone who evacuated, assuming they did have a rap sheet, is going to come into a strange town, not knowing the lay of the land, what the cops are like, what the climate is like, and automatically start ripping people off...that would be DUMB. It would be the OPPOSITE of survival, and those poor people are survivors.

Gee, in my town there were a rash of motor vehicle break ins...oh, but WAIT--that was back in August. Suppose they could have been NOLA Early Birds??? And that the job market, and the economy, have nothing to do with it?

This is racist hatred, poorly disguised in a law-and-order wrapping. It is dispicable. Perhaps the only appropriate response to stuff like that is to tell the sender to take a badly needed course in American history and race relations, and, oh, they might want to fuck off, too!

[electropop]

20. Is this what the church folk are doing these days?

The question they need to ask themselves is, "Who would Jesus pepper-spray?"

[spinbaby]

5. Where DO they come from?

Does Karl have an email factory in the basement of the White House to churn out this crap?

[BiggJawn]

3. I recommend this for the Front Page.

"These People"....Why don't they have the fortitude to just SAY "N*****s" and remove all doubt about what they're trying to say....

I feel for those of you who have associates who think you agree with this crap. I weeded out my list of correspondents shortly after the 2000 election. After 2 months of me hitting "Reply ALL" with the appropriate Snopes link, I think they got the message....

[lonestarnot]

4. Me toooooo!

[hardrainfallin]

6. note, too, "terrible lifestyles". Uh. Poverty is NOT a lifestyle. n/t

[BiggJawn]

11. Whaddaya expect?

These are the type of people who believe that there is a "Gay Lifestyle", too...

Never hear much about that Hetero "Lifestyle", do we?

[crispini]

10. Amen!

I think it's pretty ironic that you are getting this crap because you live in Houston, and the Houston - NOLA connection has been widely publicized, whereas I am getting NONE of this crap. I live in Dallas, and nobody realizes that we actually got a lot MORE of the evacuees than Houston did. But this kind of stuff has no basis in reality, just image.

[intheflow]

12. "These people"

"These people" who send emails like this are ruining the country! :sarcasm:

You think they like it better when they are cast as "these people?" Not personally attacking you, dear PDittie, I'm just noting that what goes around, comes around. It's directed at the church people who propagate and perpetuate racism disguised as "warnings." You are so very right to call them on it.

[Richardo]

13. I spent yesterday afternoon hearing most of this crap

Otherwise enjoyable time at the Astros game, but the ride to and from with an SUV-load of in-laws was excruciating.

Five people who consider themselves good Catholics going on and on about 'them' and 'those people' and all but saying that the ungrateful n*****s should pretty much get over it. I've never been so ashamed on behalf of someone else.

(And no, it was not the time nor place to get in a big confrontation about it, so spare me any comments to that effect.)

Thanks for posting this, PDittie.

[Arkansas Granny]

16. Just for the record, I live in a town that welcomed many evacuees.

Our local news has not reported any crimes connected with the evacuees. There may have been some "bad people" evacuated, but since they are present in any population, I'm not too worried about a crime epidemic.

[progressivebydesign]

17. Definitely a mix of fear and ignorance.

yes, NO is a dangerous city, the statistics show that. It has a lot of crime disproportionate to the places where many people have been evacuated. The people are hearing facts here, rumors there, and any crime that may have been committed in their area anyway, is going to be attributed to evacuees. The gangs in NO are very real, just as in any city, I'd hope no one would deny that. And they are somewhere now... so that if fueling the fear and ignorance. I think people are overstating the number of gang members and criminals, as though thousands of them were dropped into their own neighborhood. The people you're writing about who have said and sent these things are responding out of a fear of the unknown, a fear of change.

Though they think they are not being racist, they are, through their ignorance and rumor spreading. Instead of finding out the facts, they pass emails along that get worse in every retelling. This is so unfair the the majority of evacuees who are devastated, and need help and compassion.

[hootinholler]

18. Please be careful

I've heard there are people all around NO openly carrying M-16 rifles. Some places on every corner, and other places not so densely. They have been marking houses with spray paint too!

-Hoot

[ComerPerro]

21. That "warning" email, advising to carry pepper spray, is disgusting

Hey, Churchgoers: BE CAREFUL.

Your boy Bush might be the antiChrist.

If Jesus catches you with Bush, you might go to hell.