Fast asleep, in the comfort of my bed, and enjoying my dream of a parallel world, I was not faced with the tragedy of NASA's Columbia spacecraft's reentry and  flaming  loss of seven human beings.  Seven astronauts, who were bravely trying to bridge the real world, to a place where there is no homeless, no hunger, and no one man who thinks they know your path to eternity. It was also in my sleep induced parallel world I excitedly watched and listened to our president deliver his State of the Union address.  However, in  my parallel world, our president did not have to use prime time as an opportunity to have complete and unfettered access to the American Public. Perhaps in the real world this changing of the time was the decline of a constant, i.e.; people, regardless of their political affiliations, trusting their elected leaders to do the right thing, not suspecting the promotion of their personal agendas.

Of course, even in my parallel world, we have partisan politics. However, our elected leaders do not sell their own integrity, for the advancement of their personal goals.  In my parallel world, our democratically elected leaders state the facts, as they believe them to be, respectfully argue, compromise, finally arriving at a democratic decision, and standing as a united front, which is best for the country. In my parallel world we are not forced to choose between an ideology from the "left" caretakers, who claim to know what is best for you, or the alternative, the self- absorbed "right," with the philosophy everyone has an equal chance, regardless of his/her placement in life.  Personally, I find the hypocrisy on both these attitudes laughable in the real world. The truth is, very few members of both Houses of Congress, and the Executive Branch can relate to the average American. Most politicians come from financially secured backgrounds with paths started toward their destinations far before they begin to create their own personal agendas. The pretense of virtue in these leaders is unmatched in recent history. Never have so few, lied to so many, so often.

In the real world, the United States is faced with something it hasn’t confronted since the Civil War . . . and that is the possibility of blood being spilled again on its soil.  September 11, 2001 was only a look into what could be the future. There are people in the real world that does not want our country, or our citizens, to live with the freedom of choosing their religious beliefs. There are real world people who intellectualize about the different scenarios regarding the future, and the affects they might have on America. However, unfortunately, there are many more real world Americans who refuse to listen, hoping the problems will simply go away. In my parallel world, all Americans listen, ask questions, and most importantly use their common sense, as they want to stay a free and democratic nation, and hold their elected officials accountable. 

The real world has become smaller because of mass communications. The pretentious lifestyle of the rich and famous, coupled with Hollywood’s interpretation of reality, has shown the real world a way to gage the decay of morality. In my parallel world, this collapse of a country’s moral character does not exist. We do not allow a movie star’s opinion to carry anymore importance than the average hard working American. A filmmakers' role in my parallel world is to reflect life, not try to create a new hostile platform which will help to enable malcontents to vent. Consequently, in my parallel world, we do not feel morally abandoned and voiceless. 

In the real world, we have arrived at a time in history where countries, (the citizens) are not our enemy, but only their leaders, groups of  people with messiah complexes. History has proven to us that you can not negotiate with a crazed person, or a group, who believes their ideology is that of God, or whatever one might call it, the Divine creator, Master of the Universe, Omnipotent Being. These people believe their execution of terrorists' acts is their righteous passage to eternity. This unmistakably is a cold and calculating fact.

In my parallel world, our common sense sees Saddam Hussein for what he is, a terrorist that  would do anything to promote his agenda of domination, including giving weapons of mass destruction to other terrorists to help further his cause. To differentiate between Saddam Hussein and Al-Qaeda is like choosing between being attacked by a swarm of killer bees, or nest of rattlesnakes.  In my parallel world, we turn our cheeks only so many times, then the stings from the slaps become an unbearable pain. And, that pain is a signal to recognize the harm to come, and (taking away) of our precious liberties. 

In the real world, there are people who would like us to believe that life has become so complex that the majority of us simply don't understand it. We are constantly being bombarded, from the far "left," and the extreme "right," with people that can not identify with us. They look upon us as simply customers, aimlessly drifting in a herd of humanity.  Some of these people call out for us to accept the pain, while others beg us to spare the world the agony of war.  But, in my parallel world, the majority of our citizens still maintain simplicity of wanting to do the right thing, protect their family, and country.  They understand the difference between sincerity and sensationalism. 

In my  parallel world, our country is so respected, that simply negotiating with a group of radicals will cause them to stop. No death, no bloodshed, and no grieving relatives left behind. Saddam Hussein, Al-Qaeda, and all the other messiah driven leaders understand the sense for compromise, and revere the word, harmony. Unfortunately, in the real world, history does not prove that to be the case. In the real world, the stings of  a dictator's slap can become an echoing cry for humanity. 

 This past weekend, seven brave human beings died trying to bring this world a small step closer to humanity.   For most people, humanity and compassion for our fellow man is inherent in us.  However, only in an ideal parallel world do we not have to rely on God's other instilled instinct in us, and that is to defend, by eliminating the pain of those people who lack humanity.  

Suddenly, the loud sound of an alarm clock rings. I awake, and quickly discover that I live in but one world: the real world, and I had better completely wake up if I want to continue enjoying it. 

Our Country Is Like A Tree   11/7/02   by Morris Heldt

Hypocrites  8/16/02   by Morris Heldt 

When Is Why The Answer To Who, What, Where and When?  7-22-02 by Morris Heldt

The Ultimate Battle April 12, 2002  by Morris Heldt