You're not biased in any way, are you?

One of my "moonlighting" jobs is as editor of the book review column for the Liguorian magazine. It has been around since 1913 and is published by the Redemptorists at Liguori Publications. When I first tell people this fact I frequently get responses like, "Oh my family used to get the Liguorian when I was a kid," or "Oh yeah, my grandma gets the Liguorian." Those kinds of remarks reflect how long it has been around, yet I don't think of the Liguorian as an "old" magazine. In fact, I think the current editor-in-chief is doing quite a good job with keeping each issue current for today's readers.

As book review editor, I sometimes receive as many as four to six new books per week from publishers all over the country who want to get a review in Liguorian. Unfortunately, we can only publish three or four reviews each issue (which is 10 times per year.) Thus, I have accumulated quite a shelf full of books waiting to be reviewed. Toward the end of each year I clear the shelf of books that have been sitting there too long. For example, we are already working on magazine issues for spring of 2006. I don't want to include reviews on books that are too old, so a few weeks ago I gave away any book that had a copyright earlier than 2005.

I also have several reviewers on my "team." I ask them to select titles that sound interesting to them. In the past I have had to write reviews on books that were on topics I didn't care about and so I know it is very difficult to do that. We do not want to publish bad reviews, and it is easier to write positively about a topic you are interested in.

Sometimes I will get a book that I know a particular person would be interested in and I suggest it to him or her. That recently happened with a book about a priest who has been a missionary in Central America and was arrested and tortured by militants who had been trained at the School of the Americas in Georgia. I know a Franciscan nun who has gone there to protest against the school and I asked if she would be interested in reading the book and writing about it. After all, Franciscans are by nature peace-loving people and it seemed appropriate for someone like her to read and write about this book. Her review was published in our May-June issue. I thought she had done a very good job.

But something I have learned through my own life's experience is that people believe what they want to believe, whether it is accurate or not. I could say that this seems to be the case with the current devotees of the theory of creationism, despite all the evidence in support of evolution. (I must confess, I was a biology teacher for many years and one of my life-long amibitons has been to visit the Galapagos Islands because I want to see for myself that wonderful place where Charles Darwin got his ideas for the theory of evolution in the first place.)

Well anyway, in the October issue of Liguorian is a rather irate-sounding letter to the editor taking issue with the fact that we even included that book (of course, it was only one of the books included that month) and another one on a similar topic in the following issue. Here is what the letter writer said:

"I want to say how dissatisfied I am not only with the books reviewed in Liguorian, but with the reviews themselves. In the May-June issue the reviewer of Disturbing the Peace was biased about the book's subject and unable to provide a valid review. The U.S. runs the School of the Americas to provide military training to the friendly nations of the Americas. In so doing we are also able to provide them with our values of freedom and respect for the rights of others. Closing the school would end our ability to positively influence these nations, as they would obtain the training from countries without our commitment to democracy.

"In the July-August issue it happened again. Peace in the Post-Christian Era is reviewed by a 'freelance writer, educator, and peacemaker.' Once again the reviewer lacks objectivity. Worse, she colors her review with gratuitous potshots at the Administration and at Christian mega-churches. She reveals her bias and her lack of understanding of both areas."

My initial response was, "So you don't like the books - that's exactly why we review them . . . so that you'll know whether or not you'll like them." Upon further reflection I realized that the writer of this letter does not appear to have much respect for other people's opinions, and does not seem very open to hearing another side of the story. There seems to be much evidence that our nation's interests in the military development of Central American countries is not all so pure and altruistic. I personally am not in a position to make a judgment on the School of the Americas, but I would want to hear the experience of someone like the priest in this book who has been there and has a different perspective on the situation than I can possibly have.

I realize very well that I have personal biases - some of them very strong - because of the way I was taught in school, because of the way my family lived, and as a result of various experiences I've had in life. I won't try to deny that fact. I also know that I cannot see the whole picture on anything because my biases create intentional blind spots in my mind. So I truly hope that I can always be open to the point of view of others. That I can recognize there may be unjust parts of even a good venture and that those parts need to be rectified. In the case of the School of the Americas, I don't believe that means I am not a patriotic person or that I do not love America. I have had the great fortune to travel to three other continents in my lifetime, and each time I have been more than happy to arrive home again.

Yet I find it difficult to tolerate "my country right or wrong" attitudes. I also detest America attempting to be the high and almighty leader of the world. In my experience other countries look up to us, but they want us to collaborate with them, not to force ourselves and our idealogies on them.

We Americans can and do make mistakes. Our government has, too, throughout history. There is no shame in admitting that as long as we take appropriate steps to correct the error in humility. THAT'S what takes real courage, and is something that will be admired by other countries.