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Let the sunshine in!
Let me make sure I understand this. The Taliban are wrong to abuse and kill women. But Damon commends them for their honesty in carrying out the penalties proscribed against women who violate their law. Does that mean that they were justified in what they did to their women, since they were being honest in doing it? But when a U. S. Marine Corps general says, in equal honesty, that he enjoys killing Taliban who abuse and kill women, it’s a sign of American hypocrisy? ???? Well, America doesn’t always live up to the ideals of the faith at its core. Neither do any of us as individuals, and only the hopelessly naïve would make that a stumbling block. We all live in a fallen world where pacifism is too often an express ticket to destruction. It’s a very sad but unavoidable fact that survival sometimes depends on “unchristian” actions like killing when attacked. Whoever said that all evil needs to flourish is for the good to do nothing was right. The awful implication of being bound by a mere philosophical condemnation of all killing like Damon professes is that a killer should be allowed to go on killing if the only way to stop him is to kill him. If merely opposing him with rhetoric or anything else short of rubbing him out fails to end his killing, then he must not be interfered with, lest we violate our own ideals of opposing killing. In General Mattis, we have a military leader who has no qualms about killing the enemy.
posted by
WriterofLight
on February 15, 2005 at 7:55 PM
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WriterofLight...
...is your 'Light' really this dim?
I condemn all killing, without exception, and that includes, not excludes, the killing of Afghan women, both by the Taliban and by American-fired bombs and bullets. No hypocrisy here, sunshine.
The Taliban are brutal and harsh on women, especially. But at least they are honest enough to say If a woman does such-and-such, then she will be imprisoned, or maimed, or killed. At least they're not trying to portray themselves as one thing and acting in an entirely different way. America is currently trying to portray itself as a Christian nation, yet is responsible right now for more death and destruction than a dozen Talibans.
It's that level of hypocrisy that is so sickening.
D
posted by
DamonLeigh
on February 15, 2005 at 3:39 AM
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Damon and fwmystic, if you're so concerned about hypocrisy . . .
. . . then why aren't you condemning the murder of the Afghan women just as much? If you don't, then I respectfully submit that you are being hypocritical, because you condone their abuse and deaths by your silence. And, scoop, thank you, sir, for your service!
posted by
WriterofLight
on February 14, 2005 at 7:14 PM
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Such hypocrisy ...
I suppose it makes it all better to shoot human beings if you devalue their worth, call them names, say they are not worthy to live like you are doing them a favor by putting them out of their misery, and still hold yourself up to Christian ideals. How very Godlike of you.
Being trained to kill does not equate to having fun shooting or killing people. Equally matched opponents have a mutual respect for one another, especially in combat. Killing for fun and sport is not admirable. It's sick, and it sickens me that these bastards are doing it in the name of the US.
posted by
fwmystic
on February 14, 2005 at 9:33 AM
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And...
...being "trained to kill" is an entirely different from finding it "fun" to kill.
D
posted by
DamonLeigh
on February 14, 2005 at 5:33 AM
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I Was Thinking...
...along similar lines, Scoop.
This delight in killing from a representative of a nation that is supposedly 'Christian' and supposedly operates under the ten Coomandments.
Now THAT'S true hypocrisy for you!
D
posted by
DamonLeigh
on February 14, 2005 at 5:32 AM
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As an ex-marine I applaud the general
we are trained to kill, but also understand the Commandants reprimand
Semper Fi
L/Cpl Scoop USMC 1st Divsion 1968-70
posted by
scoop
on February 13, 2005 at 6:43 PM
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