Thread: To Kill an American

I thought I would share this article emailed to me by a close friend, enjoy!

Written by an Australian Dentist.

To Kill an American

You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was
actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper
an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American, any American.

So an Australian dentist wrote an editorial the following day to let
everyone know what an American is . So they would know when they found one. (Good one, mate!!!!)


"An American is English, or French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish,
Polish, Russian or Greek. An American may also be Canadian, Mexican,
African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Australian, Iranian, Asian,
or Arab, or Pakistani or Afghan.


An American may also be a Comanche, Cherokee, Osage, Blackfoot, Navaho, Apache, Seminole or one of the many other tribes known as American Indians.


An American is Christian, or he could be Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim.
In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan. The only
difference is that in America they are free to worship as each of them
chooses. An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that he will
answer only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming to
speak for the government and for God.


An American lives in the most prosperous land in the history of the
world. The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of
Independence, which recognizes the God given right of each person to the
pursuit of happiness.

An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every
other nation in the world in their time of need, never asking a thing in
return.

When Afghanistan was over-run by the Soviet army 20 years ago, Americans
came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their
country!

As of the morning of September 11, Americans had given more than any
other nation to the poor in Afghanistan. Americans welcome the best of
everything...the best products, the best books, the best music, the best
food, the best services. But they also welcome the least.


The national symbol of America, The Statue of Liberty , welcomes your
tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the
homeless, tempest tossed. These in fact are the people who built
America.

Some of them were working in the Twin Towers the morning of September
11, 2001 earning a better life for their families. It's been told that
the World Trade Center victims were from at least 30 different
countries, cultures, and first languages, including those that aided and
abetted the terrorists.

So you can try to kill an American if you must. Hitler did. So did
General Tojo, and Stalin, and Mao Tse-Tung, and other blood-thirsty
tyrants in the world. But, in doing so you would just be killing
yourself. Because Americans are not a particular people from a
particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit of
freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American.

Please keep this going!
Pass this around the World ?
Then pass it around again.
It says it all, for all of us.

**No link is available**

Nice article.

I wish I had the address of this Aussie friend, I would send him the most heartfelt thank you card I could find!We don't have many people willing to stand up for America and tell it like it is, I for one thank this man for what he wrote .

A little info on the great letter:

This essay was not written by "an Australian dentist," but by an associate law professor at Virginia's George Mason University. Titled "What is an American: A Primer," it was published in the National Review on September 25, 2001. The e-mail version differs from the original not only in attribution, but also contains several edits and editorial comments and omits the author's closing paragraphs.

http://www.breakthechain.org/exclusives ... ntist.html

I was a tad suspicious. I have an Australian sister-in-law and without a named author to go along with the text, well, I was unconvinced (seemed like a nice little piece otherwise though...).
I like the Australians I've met quite a lot. Very genuine, generous and funny people - from my experience. At the same time, I can tell you that we do catch our share of '...you Americans....' criticisms too.

Also, I was able to uncover at Snopes:
http://www.snopes.com/rumors/america2.htm

Yep, I heard it was a Canadian journalist! But I still like the article -- it does say it all.

nittygritty,

Thank you and CheyenneWoman. Regardless of who wrote or edited the original article or essay. The intention of my post was to leave readers with a positive feeling. We're bombarded on a daily bases with so much negativity. Why not something positive for a change?

Originally Posted by bearpaw

nittygritty,

Thank you and CheyenneWoman. Regardless of who wrote or edited the original article or essay. The intention of my post was to leave readers with a positive feeling. We're bombarded on a daily bases with so much negativity. Why not something positive for a change?

You are soooooo right!!!

CheyenneWoman,

Thank you. I also wanted to let you know that I too am American Indian and enjoy your posts. I like direct people and you're as direct as they come.

Originally Posted by bearpaw

CheyenneWoman,

Thank you. I also wanted to let you know that I too am American Indian and enjoy your posts. I like direct people and you're as direct as they come.

Thank you for your kind words.