I've created a special feature for the print media and broadcasters ("Page Nine" regardless of where or when it runs), that covers stories afresh, not the way news rooms typically flavor things. It would help reduce the distrust so many news consumers feel and could be the most avidly followed item you carry -- if you carry it. It certainly is well received by my audience.
Here's a casual sample. It might make you say, "We'll NEVER run that!" but Page Nine is being built around ad revenues from clear-thinking mainstream businesses.
Alan Korwin, Author
Gun Laws of America
"The Uninvited Ombudsman"
--Tell your friends--
(Sign up and blog info at end)
Permission to circulate granted
PAGE NINE
The Uninvited Ombudsman Report, No. 44
by Alan Korwin, April 14, 2008
1- Sarah Brady Hospitalized
2- Nobody Minds Shootings
3- Candidates' Positions Unknown
4- Holster Shoots Gun
5- Solarpanel Trumps Trees
6- Government Workers Superior
7- Preposterous Border Fencing
8- Campaign Finance Deform
9- Study Attacks Newspapers
10- It's Not China
11- Decades of Trial
12- Special Guest Columnist Eric Cartridge -- "Taking Gun Virgins for a Desert Shoot"
STARTERS:
Sarah Brady hospitalized, so husband Jim is a no-show at national "gun violence" symposium where Alan Korwin is flown in to face 10 gun-control advocates and provide "balance"; complete eyewitness report here: https://www.gunlaws.com/newstuff.htm
D.C. v. Heller - Eyewitness Reports - Complete Postings are now up, linked from the Supreme Court Gun Cases blue button at gunlaws.com. Final observations, insider scoops, Gura v. Dellinger review, "news" media's coverage assessed, plus the pre-game, post-game, on-site analysis and four photo galleries --
Bob Levy, who funded and represented Heller in the case, will be in Phoenix for a Federalist Society debate on it, 4/16/08 (11 a.m. $5), and at the Goldwater Institute on 4/17/08 (5 p.m., free) to discuss his new book. I'll be his debate partner on 4/16 (they couldn't find a suitable anti to face him!), I plan to be at the 4/17 event as well --
RSVP Federalist Soc.: 480-558-8300
RSVP Goldwater Inst.: 602-462-5000 ext. 223
1- Sarah Brady Hospitalized
Gun-violence symposium proceeds
The lamestream media told you:
Nothing.
The Uninvited Ombudsman notes however that:
The National Symposium on Handgun Violence was held at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh on April 9, 2008. Ten of the leading gun-control advocates in the nation were scheduled for a coordinated review of "reasonable" limits on the right to keep and bear arms, led by Jim Brady himself, David Hemenway of Harvard and others. News of the event and its surprise ending (covered at the end of this report -- Jim was a no-show because of his wife's sudden medical emergency) has not made national headlines.
A courageous decision was made to provide "balance," which meant the organizers eventually found me (thanks to a referral from Alan Gura, Dick Heller's attorney in the D.C. gun-ban case). They got me last-minute non-stop tickets from Phoenix, a room, and 15 minutes at the podium. Ten against one. Hah. I had them outnumbered.
I've been studying persuasion skills for a long while and here was an acid test. Was it possible to address an audience like this and not get booed off stage? Could I manage civil discourse with the participants at the luncheon beforehand, maintain composure through the staging, and end up sociable at the afterglow dinner at a fine restaurant?
It's my belief that the words exist in the universe to convince anyone of anything true, regardless of their predispositions. The trick is in finding those words, in the moment, and delivering them in a way that works, with the proper aplomb. You may not always find the words, but the words are always there. Think of it this way. What would Jesus say. The words are there. Could I find enough of them?
More than 26,000 people gathered at the world-class 1,600-acre Ben Avery Shooting Facility in Phoenix last month, for a family-oriented outdoor expo, and despite constant volleys of gunfire, no one fainted or was scared, no crimes were reported, no one was injured, and no deaths occurred. Lamestream media missed the event.
Crowds were biggest at the machine-gun range, where a small fee got you trigger time on a belt-fed tripod-mounted .30 caliber, hand-cranked authentic replica Gatling gun, and a shoulder fired AK-47, proving the long-known adage that you haven't had fun till you've fired a machine gun. The lamestream media missed the event.
Well-dressed suburban soccer-Mom types strained to get photos of their precious little daughters learning to shoot a bolt-action .22 for the first time, under the watchful eye of well-trained professional instructors. Every type of upscale, downscale, fat, thin, tall, short, attractive, ugly, neat, unkempt, very young, young, old, very old, bright, dull, average, male, female and other type of person plunked down nominal fees to fire cowboy guns, high-power rifles, shotguns, scoped rifles, handguns, practical pistol, and new models from famous American firms like Ruger and Smith and Wesson. Many of the shooting opportunities were free. The lamestream media missed the event.
More than 100 vendors were hawking goods and services, closing sales and making new friends over the distant roar of constant gunfire. No injuries of any kind were reported. No guns went off by themselves. No crimes were committed. The lamestream media missed the event.
In other news, shooting sports outpaced golf in 2006 to capture the number two spot in consumer spending on sports equipment, second only to exercise gear. The lamestream media apparently didn't get the memo.
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3- Candidates' Positions Unknown
The lamestream media told you:
"Voters Unaware of Candidates Immigration Positions: New Poll" according to a report circulated by the Associated Press.
Guest Columnist Craig Cantoni notes however that:
The headline could have read: "Voters Unaware of Candidates' Positions on Everything."
Or: "Voters Unaware of History, Economics, Law, Foreign Policy, Math, Spelling and the Foundations of Our Classical Liberal Republic."
Repeated calls for voter testing have been turned down by many of the same people who are calling for testing for gun possession.
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4- Holster Shoots Gun
The lamestream media told you:
The investigation into the cause of a gunshot on the flight deck of a US Airways plane is ongoing, will look at every possible facet of the incident, and may take a while.
"This is an extremely safe and reliable weapon, " said Greg Alter of the Federal Air Marshal Service. "It's not going to discharge on its own, is the bottom line."
The Uninvited Ombudsman notes however that:
Someone needs to tell the expert quoted above by Mitch Weiss of the AP, and Weiss too who failed to question the expert, that no gun of any kind discharges on its own. If that's where the investigation is going, taxpayers can brace for another multi-million dollar, 300-page study that is a waste of slain trees.
Saving taxpayers and government experts the time, everyone with a web connection has already seen my friend Paul Huebl's video of the likely cause -- hopelessly faulty design by bureaucrats doing everything they can to scuttle and impede the program.
Here's the problem -- the lock and holster design, required by TSA, and the rules for using it, are an accident waiting to happen. Here's Paul (of crimefilenews.com) in Calif. with the FFDO rig, showing how it can fire when the lock is attached. Congrats, Paul, on the zillions of hits your simple video has garnered. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqOLjEli6yY
Richard Treanor and Carolynn Bissett of Sunnyvale, Calif., were criminally prosecuted because their redwood trees cast a shadow over their neighbor's solar panels. They lost the case and had to have the trees chopped down, after the judge in the case ordered them removed. The trees had been planted before the solar panels were installed, but grew.
The Uninvited Ombudsman notes however that:
Just when it seems Californians cannot get any more bizarre, they prove me wrong. I apologize for being so naive.
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6- Government Workers Superior
The lamestream media told you:
"People turn out to pay last respects to deceased firefighter." Civil servants and others line route as fire truck carries the casket of the fallen Captain. The color photo ran large, above the fold, on page one of the Local news section. Similar stories run in newspapers nationwide with some frequency. http://localsearch.azcentral.com/sp?aff=101&keywords=capt
The Uninvited Ombudsman notes however that:
By glorifying the death of a single government worker, newspapers reinforce the idea that we are not all equal. Any death can be tragic, but a reason to promote one over another is hard to justify, unless unusual bravery and extenuating circumstances exist.
Merely publicizing a death because the person was an official on a government payroll, instead of an average citizen who pays those bills, violates several ethical principles. The employee in this case was waiting for a second kidney transplant, and died at his desk.
Reporters, who generally do not divulge this fact, are encouraged to "use "official sources" in gathering, compiling and verifying "news" stories, believing it is somehow superior to other sources. This often leads to government pronouncements, edicts, and glorifications appearing where the news is supposed to go. Other funerals were reportedly held the same day. The obituary section was two pages long and packed with small type and small grayish photos.
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7- Preposterous Border Fencing
The lamestream media told you:
Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff is being attacked by critics for using his authority to bypass "37 environmental-, historic- and cultural-protection laws" that stand in the way of building a partial fence along the U.S.-Mexico border.
In other news, high-tech fencing planned by Boeing and others is a complete disaster, with extensive deployments failing to operate as promised. Spokespersons have indicated it will take another three years to make the system work and get it up. Sen. John McCain called it, "a disgrace."
The Uninvited Ombudsman notes however that:
Say what? There are how many laws interfering with the defense of our border? These laws were enacted by who exactly? It's going to take how long to make a camera-and-sensor system work that physically blocks no one? What private business would tolerate a three-year delay in any project of any kind, let alone one that affects national security?
The reporter on the story above, Sean Holstege of Gannett's Arizona Republic, reports two days later that the Minutemen are on the border for their April muster, and the two groups are relaying detailed accurate information to Border Patrol agents, using store-bought walkie-talkies, and a new technological marvel called a cell phone, a sort of phone that works entirely without wires.
"The small scale operations may seem quaint," Holstege writes, "but the border groups maintain that their cameras, which transmit wirelessly to the web, have led to the arrest of hundreds of border crossers in recent months." The Border Patrol welcomes the non-intrusive, non-confrontational assistance of the citizen volunteers, according to the story. Officially, the government doesn't approve of actions it does not control, and which make it look bad.
"Federal officials said they haven't seen the volunteer cameras and couldn't comment," two obvious lies, carefully reported by Holstege.
Anyone with a fast web connection can volunteer to work the remote cameras from their homes, anywhere in the country. A similar Homeland Security plan, "Project 28," was delayed for eight months by technical glitches with satellite uplinks.
The lengthy story, full of interesting details, fails to identify how a person can volunteer, but does point out that a full Minuteman deployment on the 1,950-mile border could cost as little as $40 million, while the government system, which doesn't work, is estimated at $1.2 billion, before cost overruns, additional delays and routine snafus.
Barack H. Obama raised $40 million in March, as he "continued to display unrivaled prowess for fundraising," according to unbylined wire-service reports. This is double the amount raised by Hillary Clinton, and lower than the $55 million raised by Obama in February. McCain raised $11 million in February, and "more" in March, with actual figures not yet available.
The Uninvited Ombudsman notes however that:
No corrections have been issued concerning the Campaign Finance Reform Act, widely promoted in the "news" media for its ability to remove money from politics. Instead, "reporters" are covering money-raising like it's some kind of horse race, leaving no room for questioning candidates on their positions. The source of the multi-millions was not disclosed.
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9- Study Attacks Newspapers
The lamestream media told you:
"Newspapers faulted for errors, dramatizing"
"To regain public trust, newspapers need to do a better job of editing out misspellings and misquotes, curb the use of unnamed sources, and resist the temptation to sensationalize, a study suggests," reports Deb Reichmann of the AP.
The American Society of Newspaper Editors released its study on why newspaper credibility is on the decline. "We've got to cut down on the errors," ASNE president Ed Seaton said. The study is part of a three-year project to find out why the public has lost confidence in newspapers.
The Uninvited Ombudsman notes however that:
"It ain't about spelling errors," says one unidentifiable newsman. "And what's a 'misquote'? Is that where someone says something, and the paper says something different?"
The report, uncovered in a deep stack of clippings at the Uninvited Ombudsman's office, is from Dec., 1998. Hmmm.
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10- It's Not China
The lamestream media told you:
China is having a crisis over the Olympic games to be held in China this summer. Chinese officials denounced pro-Tibet demonstrators saying the internal affairs of China should not affect the games.
The Uninvited Ombudsman notes however that:
Communist China is having a crisis over the Olympic games to be held in Communist China this summer. Pro-Tibet demonstrators denounced Communist Chinese officials saying the brutal suppression of Tibet should directly affect the games.
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11- Decades of Trial
The lamestream media told you:
"Jury starts deliberating today in 1984 Tempe murder case." Robert Ortloff is accused of bludgeoning and strangling the woman before burning the body. The case rests heavily on testimony of a "famous jailhouse snitch," a former Atlanta prosecutor.
The Uninvited Ombudsman notes however that:
"In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial..."
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12- Special Guest Columnist Eric ".44 Magnum" Cartridge on --
"Taking Gun Virgins for a Desert Shoot"
My line of work as a producer of advertising, photo shoots and television commercials brings me in contact with people from all over the world. They come to Arizona all winter for our consistent sunshine and great natural beauty. Many of my clients are from New York, California, England, Canada and other places not known for their tolerance of guns and gun owners. The right to keep and bear arms is legendary in the American West but equally alien in less enlightened parts of the world, and often the subject of guns comes up in conversation while we are driving around the state looking at filming (shooting?) locations.
A couple of weeks ago I was working with a New York City-based client on a fashion catalog, and the photographer said, "Eric, what's the deal with guns out here? I hear lots of people have guns in Arizona." I replied, "Of course we do, don't you have guns in New York?" (knowing full well that most New Yorkers of course don't).
He responded that he didn't have a gun. Then he carefully asked if I did.
"Well of course I own guns," I said, feigning surprise at the question.
"How many guns do you have?" he asked, with eyebrows raised, and I nonchalantly told him I had about 30 or so, but I hadn't exactly counted them in a while.
This got everyone's attention, and he followed up with, "Why do you need 30 guns, Eric?" I responded by asking the photographer why he needed 30 shirts in his wardrobe -- "Obviously, I don't want to wear the same gun every day," I responded somewhat sarcastically to his somewhat insulting question.
At this point, the wardrobe stylist (a nice woman from London) asked me if I had any handguns. I replied that of course, I had a half-dozen Glocks like the police carry, several revolvers like the police used to carry, and of course many rifles and even a couple shotguns.
She was amazed at this and correctly pointed out that in England, nobody has been able to own a handgun for as long as she could remember, and only a few old farmers had rifles and shotguns for hunting. She then asked me if it were legal to own all those guns, and I had to laugh. She got a belly laugh in the face at that question. I said, "If it were illegal for me to own all these guns, would I be admitting that to a carload of clients?"
I explained that all my guns were indeed legal, and that anyone except convicted felons and other serious malcontents could own and use firearms and go out shooting in the Arizona desert.
Everyone's ears perked up, so I did what any intelligent pro-rights activist would do -- I asked the obvious question, "Who would like to join me for some shooting out in the desert?"
I told them I could bring a variety of cool guns; I would insist on showing them how to handle them safely since they all but admitted abject ignorance, and we would have a blast shooting at cans in the desert. The gal from London was very interested, and squealed with delight that she had never even held a handgun, much less shot one. When people are availed the opportunity to act like free citizens, and shoot firearms, they accept the offer without hesitation. It's a freedom thing. Some people just don't understand.
In the end, I got four absolute "gun virgins" (three women and one man), none of whom had ever fired a gun before, to join me in the desert for a shoot. It's so regular for free citizens, and so unfathomable for repressed ones. I brought four guns for them try: a Ruger .22 target pistol, a Glock 9mm like police carry, a Smith & Wesson .38/.357 revolver, and a semi-auto AK-style rifle.
When I took the guns out of their cases and we started setting up the tin cans, the questions started flying. "How many bullets does that gun hold?" "Is that the kind of gun the police use?" "Which one is the most powerful?" and the rather obvious question about whether the AK was a "machine gun." Media propaganda had worked its work on these unsuspecting individuals, but it was easily dispelled by, well, simple reality.
I dutifully answered these and a hundred other questions about calibers, hollowpoint bullets, the difference between semi-auto and full-auto weapons, why citizens might need guns for self-defense and why nearly everything about guns they have seen in video (both on the news and in the movies) was completely wrong.
As I explained the safety rules and we began shooting (one shooter at a time, of course, and I stood next to each to ensure safety), I did my best to inspire confidence in them. The firearms I brought were nothing more than common household firearms which any man, woman, or child could handle safely with a modest amount of training.
We started on the .22, low power and easy, the right way to start virgins, and I pointed out that I had shot guns of this caliber when I was eight-years-old at summer camp. When we moved up to the 9mm Glock, I explained to everyone that this was my wife's personal gun, and that if she could shoot it, so could any of them. "Your wife's gun? Your wife has a gun?" "Well sure, doesn't she need to be as safe as anyone else?" These people were so snowed under media propaganda it was hard to absorb. The .38 revolver was a hit with the smallest gal there because it had very little recoil. It's heavy.
By the time we got to the AK dusk had descended upon the desert, and all my former "gun virgins" were both excited and confident. One gal expressed some concern that the semi-auto AK would be too powerful for her to handle, so I explained that it was the most popular rifle in the world (even though it wasn't made by U.S. imperialists), and that it was the choice of peasant women and even young boys during the Vietnam War.
I put the sleek, natural wood, beautifully engineered rifle up to my shoulder and blasted off about ten quick shots just to demonstrate how truly cool this gun was. Since it was dusk, you could see a two-foot flame leapt out of the barrel. I could hear the oohs and aahs of my new shooters. All guns have flash. Only nighttime shooters get to enjoy that.
Everyone got a quick turn with the AK before it got too dark, and we packed up the guns and headed back to their elite, civilized, air-conditioned Scottsdale resort (that is, a normal room as most people experience on a trip). As we were packing up, I was showered with heartfelt thank yous and even some hugs from the gals. I could tell that I had given them an experience they would never forget. An experience it was sad they had never had before.
As soon as we got back in the car, one of my clients clicked text messages madly to her father and her brother about her first gun experience. She kept asking me about what guns and calibers we shot so she could be sure to tell all her friends every last detail. How differently the world would look if the "news" didn't hide this reality so.
The gal from London was writing down which guns we shot on the back of one of my business cards so she could tell her friends and family in England later. Everyone asked for some spent brass as souvenirs, and I of course obliged. So typical of new shooters, "Can I have the empty casing?" I did warn them however, to please put the brass in their checked luggage when they returned to New York, as airport Fatherland Security might be concerned about the great dangers an empty shell casing could pose on an airplane. I forgot to tell them to wash their hands to get by the puffers.
Although my clients clearly had a "blast" with their first shooting experience, they didn't have more fun than I did, proudly explaining America's fine tradition of empowering the individual with firearms and standing up to "authorities" who were in reality elitist snobs bent on convincing them they were unworthy underlings.
I had instructed them in the safe and proper use of routine firearms. I was proud of my new students for their open mindedness and confidence in learning that "guns are good!"
Perhaps they will take the seed of this lesson and spread it to their little corners of the universe where the seeds of freedom are so sorely needed. I encourage you to do the same. Invite someone, especially someone fearful or ignorant of the noble and decent values of firearms, to go shoot some holes in some cans.
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Thanks for reading!
Alan Korwin
The Uninvited Ombudsman
Alan Korwin
Bloomfield Press
"We publish the gun laws."
4848 E. Cactus, #505-440
Scottsdale, AZ 85254
602-996-4020 Phone
602-494-0679 Fax
1-800-707-4020 Orders https://www.gunlaws.com alan@gunlaws.com
Call, write, fax or click for free full-color catalog
(That's out info as of 1/1/07)
If you can read this, thank a teacher.
If you're reading this in English, thank a veteran.
"No one could make a greater mistake than he who did nothing
because he could do only a little."
--Edmund Burke
================================
Comments help keep me going. Alan.
================================
CORRECTION:
I've just learned that some people complained about this line from P9 #33 (8/24/07):
"Asked why the change was made, an insider with knowledge of the case suggests, "D.C. has switched to Heller probably because Parker is an African-American female and Heller is a less sympathetic figure as a white male. Our side will probably keep the name Parker when responding to the D.C. cert petition, and ultimately, it'll be up to the Supremes."
My info came from a reliable source but it shows my own lack of understanding. While the reason above has a certain appeal and describes an ugly and not uncommon politic, it had nothing to do with the case as I later learned and never got around to posting. Parker was found to not have proper standing, her fear of threats was held insufficient. Heller however had applied for and been denied a handgun permit, and was thus sufficiently aggrieved to bring the case. The name of the case then took D.C. first, since the practice is to name the petitioner first. This once again proves I'm human, despite the rumors to the contrary.
Tons of comments on my Heller Case Eyewitness Reports are posted at the blog: http://www.PageNine.org
Alan, I just finished reading your reports from the Heller oral arguments. I was captivated. Your writing was brilliant. I intend to post everything that hasn't already been posted on Freerepublic. I am so glad that you took the time and effort to attend Heller, and I applaud you on your diligence and creativity in doing so. I just finished teaching another CCW class in Yuma. I look forward to seeing you again, hopefully before the September Gun Rights conference in Phoenix, but certainly then. Thanks for all of your efforts. I suspect that your observations will become part of the history of the Heller case. --Dean W.
very fine edition; thanks... much to read and re-read and to ponder; I enjoyed your personal analysis; loved this phrase (re: the Gura "ugh" list):
"- There's no problem with a required license depending on the terms (...but there's no way a writer's license would ever pass muster is there; and a license implies an immediate (and then expanding) tax, test, regulatory framework, registration, privacy denial, criminalization for failure to have papers, bureaucracy and (double ugh) expiration dates -- all totally unacceptable in the proper operation of a right. Open carry where I live requires absolutely none of that and it's fine, because it harmonizes perfectly with laws outlawing criminals. I might lose that freedom?" warm regards, -Michael G. S.
Dear Mr. Korwin; I've been receiving your newsletter for some time and just want to thank you for providing your insight. It is a welcome breath of sanity amongst all the tripe and obfuscation we get on a daily basis. There is none of the media, even the so-called conservative media, that can can be trusted for unbiased reporting. I have come to rely on your newsletter for a truly American view. Carry safely, carry on! --Warren "Skip" T.,VT
Alan, As the founder of the Scottsdale Militia, I find your comments disturbing to the many millions of Americans who are willing and able to defend themselves with a 7-iron. You are probably aware of Ms. Kelly Tilghman of the Golf Channel, one of your fellow journalists, who was suspended recently for two weeks for her allegedly racist comments. In response to her co-anchor's joke that younger players should "gang up" on Tiger Woods, Tilghman replied "Lynch him in a back alley".
You had the nerve to use the words white and black in the same sentence above, even trying to hide your obvious intended racist remarks by embedding them in terms like "white-collar" and "black out", but we know what you really meant. My guess is you do not like plaid or have an aversion to wearing alligators on your chest. The answer of course is not to make fun of hunters and gun people, as you unfairly did to golfers, but to spend more money on golf so we can rightly take back our # 2 position on the list next year. I am going out now to the PGA Superstore in Scottsdale to buy a new putter so I can "put my money where my mouth is". Hit 'em straight, --David D.
Alan, You the man on public speaking. Mesmerizing. Funny. Ad libbed well. I learned a few things. You even sold some books. --Powell
Alan Korwin
Bloomfield Press
"We publish the gun laws."
4848 E. Cactus, #505-440
Scottsdale, AZ 85254
602-996-4020 Phone
602-494-0679 Fax
1-800-707-4020 Orders
https://www.gunlaws.com
alan@gunlaws.com
Call, write, fax or click for free full-color catalog
(This is our address and info as of Jan. 1, 2007)
If you can read this, thank a teacher.
If you're reading this in English, thank a veteran.
"No one could make a greater mistake than he who did nothing
because he could do only a little."
--Edmund Burke
WE MOVED on JAN. 1, 2007!!
Alan Korwin
Bloomfield Press
"We publish the gun laws."
4848 E. Cactus, #505-440 <-- NEW STREET ADDRESS
Scottsdale, AZ 85254 <-- NEW STREET ADDRESS
602-996-4020 Phone
602-494-0679 Fax
1-800-707-4020 Orders
https://www.gunlaws.com
alan@gunlaws.com
Call, write, fax or click for free full-color catalog
If you can read this, thank a teacher.
If you're reading this in English, thank a veteran.
"No one could make a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little." --Edmund Burke
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