By Timothy D. Naegele[1]

Few Americans have ever heard of Victoria, Texas, much less been there.  The wider world probably thinks any mention of this pint-sized town is utter nonsense, especially given all of the chaos that is swirling about us.  Yet, to understand how the residents of Victoria have come together after its only mosque was burned to the ground speaks volumes about Man's humanity toward our fellow beings.

In four days, 21,000 Americans donated more than $1 million to rebuild the mosque, which was not insured in the event of fire.[2]  But that was only the beginning of love and reconciliation, which might spread far beyond Victoria.  To its credit, PBS aired a special about what has happened in the town, which is worth watching in its entirety.[3]

Our news is saturated with stories about the tragic war in Israel, which may spawn a greater conflagration—approximating or metastasizing into World War III.  Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine, and Xi Jinping's moves vis-a-vis Taiwan and beyond, are downright scary and mind-boggling for most to comprehend, much less absorb.

To find "good news" each day, certainly on a global scale, is a time-consuming search, which most Americans and citizens of other countries gave up trying to do long ago.  Covid hit us.  Then, crime and the closing of long-established businesses, and the loss of jobs.  And rising prices for almost everything, and budgets stretched beyond the breaking point.  And frictions between religions and economic classes—the "haves" versus "have nots"—coupled with racial hatreds, divisions and animosities.

Many Americans have chosen to tune out bad news by watching sports, and hoping that their team wins, or is not too much of a embarrassment.  Will the "good news" from Victoria remain true, or is it a fanciful facade that will evaporate over time?  Let us pray that it endures, and shines a bright light and beacon of hope on our lives and the wider world.

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© 2023, Timothy D. Naegele

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[1]  Timothy D. Naegele was counsel to the United States Senate's Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and chief of staff to Presidential Medal of Freedom and Congressional Gold Medal recipient and former U.S. Senator Edward W. Brooke (R-Mass).  See, e.g., Timothy D. Naegele Resume-21-8-6  and https://naegeleknol.wordpress.com/accomplishments/  He has an undergraduate degree in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), as well as two law degrees from the School of Law (Boalt Hall), University of California, Berkeley, and from Georgetown University.  He served as a Captain in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency at The Pentagon, where he received the Joint Service Commendation Medal (see, e.g., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commendation_Medal#Joint_Service).  Mr. Naegele is an Independent politically; and he is listed in Who's Who in America, Who's Who in American Law, and Who's Who in Finance and Business.  He has written extensively over the years (see, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/articles/ and https://naegeleknol.wordpress.com/articles/), and studied photography with Ansel Adams.  He can be contacted directly at tdnaegele.associates@gmail.com

[2]  See, e.g., https://www.victoriaadvocate.com/projects/special_reports/mosque-arson-from-ashes-to-aftermath/collection_c2e9e7ac-3f31-11e8-9ea6-9f3a9f86bb6e.html ("Mosque arson: From ashes to aftermath"); see also https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria,_Texas ("Victoria, Texas")

[3]  See https://www.pbs.org/independentlens/documentaries/a-town-called-victoria/ ("A Town Called Victoria")