8 Comments

I love your example, Brent. My mother, too, was hospitalized and received electroshock therapy back in the early 1950s, and looking back, I don't think she was ever properly diagnosed.

I do know that she was abusive to her children, and I caught the brunt of it. As I have grown older (I'm 78 now) I have achieved enough distance and perspective to realize that all the pain she inflicted on me as a child, to a large extent was the result of the demons she fought all her life. People are often surprised that when I talk about my mother, it's with a great deal of love and compassion. Like your uncle, she was a good person. Charming, smart but uneducated, incredibly hard working, and extremely generous to others both with her time and resources. That doesn't negate the harm she did to me and my sister, but it helps me to realize that she did the best she could under difficult circumstances. To my mind it does not diminish her in any way to tell the truth about who she was, warts and all, and I agree with you, the same is true about this nation's history. Bravo for another insightful piece of writing.

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"to know the whole truth does no harm to him or his memory."

Same goes for reaching our next generations. 👍🏻

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Jul 23, 2021Liked by Brent Olson

Amen, Brent. And I’d love to read what you’d have to say with another 600 or so words.

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Jul 23, 2021Liked by Brent Olson

Knowledge is power. Best explanation I've heard so far.

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Jul 23, 2021Liked by Brent Olson

Well said Brent, you did get it done in 600 words!

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Thats a good example, could easily be disabled people. Now for some witty stuff . Next week?

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Anything "anti-white" doesn't count. Another book on the shelf to confirm white supremacy.

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As a lover of history, I early came to understand that nothing human is perfect. Only fairy tales (and often history written by the victors) portray some people as perfect, and then, not even all do. The Bible is filled with stories about imperfect people that God must work through. If we are honest, our personal histories are not perfect either. Where would I be without God's grace? So your article is spot on. Thanks for saying it!

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