I'd like to thank all the Gaza protesters...

[H2O Man]

45. At risk of

agreeing with you ...... years ago, a large group of very vocal, mean, and nasty protesting human beings surrounded Governor Mario Cuomo at a local airport. They were speaking in loud voices that by definition could be deemed yelling or shouting, without allowing him to answer in a meaningful way. Being younger and stronger back then, I made my way up to him. There, I spoke to him in a friendly and respectful way, about pretty much the same issue the angry crowd had been screaming about.

For some reason, the crowd became quiet enough that most people could hear our conversation. Then we shook hands, and off he went. As I turned to leave, some of that very crowd of angry citizens said rude things to and about me. That was a bit of odd, considering that most of them were Democrats or members of the Democratic Left. I had recently moved to that county, and few knew me yet.

The next time I saw Governor Cuomo, it was he who made his way through a crowd -- this time friendly -- to again shake my hand, and tell me that he appreciated what I had done at the airport. He said it was "brave." (I hadn't considered it to be such a thing, as there was only about 100 of them, and though I was retired from the ring, I could still do a fuck of a lot of damage, fast.) We talked for a bit, and he told me how to get a letter directly to him.

In the following year, Chief Waterman and I met in Governor Cuomo's office to discuss burial protection & repatriation issues. A bit later, his attorney called me at the mental health clinic where I was employed. The governor was planning to create an Office of Indian Affairs, and they wanted me to come to Albany to discuss a job offer. I thanked him, but said no thanks.

Because this comes too close to agreeing with you for comfort, I'll say that I wish that good people exercising Amendment 1 would study Dr. King. A silent "prayer-in" would speak louder than shouting. And due to my feeling that this comes too close to agreeing with you for comfort, I'll stick another donation to AOC and Ilhan in the mail today.