Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences - This topic has 14 replies, 15 voices, and was last updated 23 years, 10 months ago by
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The terrorist bombing in New York has caused great ripples in the American spiritual consciousness. There has been a great call for prayer to God for encouragement. I think that is a good thing. But if we were to pursue this one more step, and ask the question, ‘What would Jesus do?’, how would non-Christians react to the idea of dropping food on Afghanistan rather than bombs?
(1) Giving food and shelter to those in Afghanistan would be according to Jesus’ teaching of turning the other cheek. (2) Afghanistan is a poor country and has been struggling many years. Many will starve this winter. (3) The people and government of Afghanistan were not responsible for the bombing. (4) In the war on terrorism (like fighting a ghost), the people of America will gain allies in Afghanistan by meeting their needs.
The bombing was a terrible event, but an eye for an eye will not bring back anyone and will only cause further escalation. How would Christian and non-Christian people feel about responding in love, rather than reacting in hatred?
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Name : Ronald-V29472, Gender : M, Religion : Christian, City : Edmonton, Alberta, State : NA, Country : Canada,THE GOVERNMENT OF AFGHANISTAN IS RESPONONSIBLE, MAYBE NOT DIRECTLY THEY SHOULD BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT HAS HAPPENED. THEY HAVE SHELTERED A KNOWN TERRORIST SINCE 1996 AND ALLOWED HIM TO KEEP TRAINING CAMPS ON THEIR LAND. THIS IS NOT THE FIRST ATTACK AGAINST THE U.S. USAMA HAS BEEN RESPONSIBLE FOR. AND IN THE U.S. WE HAVE A SEPERATION OF CHURCH AND STATE SO ‘WHAT JESUS WOULD DO’ ISN’T REALLY RELEVENT.
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Name : ANTHONY23744, City : BERKLEY, State : MI, Country : United States,This would be an excellent idea, and I would agree. I recently read an article by Kent Madin titled, ‘Bomb Them With Butter’ that spoke of some of the same things you mentioned in your posting. Madin states, ‘A military response, particulary an attack on Afghanistan, is exactly what the terrorists want. It will strengthen and swell their small-but-fanatical ranks.’
The sad thing is war is inevitable. You also mentioned prayer. Well, I find it interesting that the same people who voted prayer out of the schools were the same people asking everyone to stop doing what it was they were doing at noon a few weeks ago and pray. Everyone was saying ‘God Bless America.’ Strange how He wasn’t an issue until tragedy struck. Hmmm.
‘War is not the answer, only love can conquer hate’ – Marvin Gaye
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Name : Lisa, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Christian, Age : 39, City : Detroit, State : MI, Country : United States, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,What if one or more of your loved ones died on Sept. 11 as a result of the attack? What if they were one of the several who leapt to their deaths from the Twin Towers? What if they were still lying under all that rubble? What if their remains will never be found? Would your opinion be the same? I think not. Retaliation is not hate, it’s justice. Read your Bible; the Old Testament is full of God’s wrath on heathen countries. There are times when war is necessary.
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Name : Redeemed-One30119, Gender : F, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 53, City : Newport News, State : VA, Country : United States, Occupation : HR Field Rep, Education level : Over 4 Years of College,I believe you will see a huge division in what one popular prophet said and how closely his modern devotees adhere to his teachings. If you can, assume this perspective: The Christ figure was, for his day, an anarchist. He drew attention to the ‘God-lessness’ of the religious power structure at that time. You will witness the same dynamics now as then. Those who have the ‘hand-up’ on God’s thoughts will define the situation to keep themselves and their lifestyles the way they are – not necessarily they way they should be. Drop bread, not bombs: too spiritual a thought for the current earth plane. This does not mean your answer is not a higher choice. Maybe your voice should reach more ears. And don’t forget that this is just my humble response to your question.
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Name : Matthew, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 45, City : New York, State : NY, Country : United States,I am really getting tired of everyone saying ‘America is hated,’ ‘We should solve this with love,’ blah blah blah. That is like telling a rape victim she deserved it because she flaunted herself. Basically, whether we give food or not to Afghanistan, they are still going to hate us and think our motives are suspect. The idea that we can ‘love them into alliance’ is beyond belief to me. Why don’t some of these people who think we can do this head over there and announce that they are Americans and we are there to ‘help them’ – well, the Afghans would stone them to death. The Taliban has allowed bin Laden to be in that country for years, and they have been warned that if he did anything, they would be held responsible. It’s not like this is a surprise to them. I just want to feel safe in my own country again, and if it takes military action, so be it. By the way, the United States does give millions of dollars in aid every year to countries all over the world. Some of that is tax money that I work for, Ronald, so if I want some of mine to be used to keep me safe, I don’t think Canadians have anything to say about it. THEY started this, and WE are going to finish it, one way or the other. P.S. Jesus wasn’t exactly a wimp. Did he turn the other cheek when the temple was being used for trade? No, he broke the place up.
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Name : Annie23906, Gender : F, City : Omaha, State : NE, Country : United States,The world is a brutal back alley and does not solve its differences by ‘force of logic.’ If it did, the planes wouldn’t have been turned into guided missiles and people would be alive today whose only crime was to get to work on time Sept. 11. Name me one case, just one, in which any country has fed someone into being their friend! Do not kid yourself. The statutory authority in Afghanistan is the Taliban, they have sheltered an enemy of our way of life, and they have reacted consistent with the belief that they knew this attack was going to happen in advance. U.S. history is replete with regimes that have misunderstood American resolve. All I can say is that the United States’ former enemies (Japan, Germany) became some of the most successful countries on Earth after we whipped them and built them up.
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Name : Steve27842, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 45, City : Houston, State : TX, Country : United States, Occupation : Still On the Top Floor of a Skyscraper, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper class,An interesting question with some interesting replies. A Christian is someone who believes Jesus Christ was the Son of God and follows His teachings. So the Christian response would be based on the Sermon on the Mount, which contradicts and supersedes much of the Old Testament. For a Christian to selectively quote from the Bible to justify actions while ignoring the spirit of the teachings of Christ is in my opinion hypocritical. However, I’m not a Christian, although I was raised as one (and I’m glad I was).
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Name : Oisin, Religion : Agnostic, City : London, State : NA, Country : United Kingdom,Responding to Steve: You answered your own question — Germany. We took our enemy, fed them, and they became our friend. Otherwise known as the Marshall Plan. That is not to say that air strikes on terrorist camps are out of line — they are not. But, the humanitarian aid that follows is just as important … just as it was 50+ years ago.
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Name : Beth23165, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 42, City : Wamego, State : KS, Country : United States, Occupation : journalist, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,The theory behind this is that people who are well-fed are less likely to drive themselves to martyrdom. If, on the other hand, you have nothing, and for the foreseeable future are likely to continue to have nothing, then why not go on a suicide bomb mission? The people who ‘have’ are not the ones who want change – it’s the ones who have nothing that want change. Life can’t get any worse. No, they won’t ‘like’ us for it, but that’s not the point.
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Name : Kerry, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Lesbian, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Wiccan, Age : 31, City : Ventura, State : CA, Country : United States, Occupation : Stagehand, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class,I’m curious to hear from those who were hostile to the idea of sending food to the Afghans: Has your opinion changed now that President Bush is doing the very thing you were so dead set against? And isn’t it curious that he is doing it as much as a military and political tactic as anything else, to drive potential allies of Bin Laden away? To Steve in particular: this tactic is not exactly new. It has been done in hundreds of wars (even wars mentioned in the Bible). You even gave two examples yourself.
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Name : ACC25029, Gender : M, Race : Mexican and American Indian, City : Phoenix, State : AZ, Country : United States, Occupation : Grad student in history, Education level : Over 4 Years of College,Annie from Omaha, First, I would like to say that your assertion that Canada is to blame for the terrorist attacks laughable, to say the least. You obviously have not visited your neighbour to the north because then you would know that all persons crossing the border has to pass BOTH Canadian AND American Customs. So, in that respect, you are as much to blame for letting these people as we are. And did we get in the way of you capturing bin Laden when he bombed the USS Cole, the embassies in Africa or the 1993 bombing of the WTC. I think not. And in 1999 there was a report released here in Canada saying that there was a 100% chance of terrorism taking place in North America, but no one took the warning seriously. Second, I can see why there is some distaste towards the United States by Afghan people. Now, I am not saying the terrorist acts are excusable, because they are not. North Americans have been living in the lap of luxury, especially for the last twenty years. Our way of life in the last twenty years is a stark contrast to that of the people of Afghanistan. They have had to endure war, drought and famine, human rights violations, and the Taliban movement. So, it is easy to see that there may be some jealousy towards us. Third, the US is no better than the terrorist if the lives of innocent people are lost. The people of the WTC died in vain if there is bloodshed of innocent men, women and children. Furthermore, the people working in the World Trade Centre led luxurious lives compared to those who will die at the hands of the American military. And if you are hoping to befriend a nation by feeding them with one hand, and beating them into submission using your military might with the other hand, you are crazy! And while I do think your president is on the right path by dropping food and medicine, do not forget to drop body bags. I think it is high time the Americans stop their flag-waving for a moment, step back and look at the whole picture. It is easy to play the big rich cowboys of the world ( the git’ em dead or alive stance), but who is fighting for the interests of the poor
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Name : Laura22970, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Catholic, Age : 22, City : Toronto, State : NA, Country : Canada, Occupation : University Student, Social class : Lower middle class,Are any of the respondents familiar with U.S. foreign policies? You can’t possibly put this tragic event or the reponse to it in proper perspective without an understanding of what ‘our’ government has been doing in other parts of this world for centuries. Most of the people who died at the World Trade Center were put on the frontline through no fault of their own.The rest of us who are not making the decisions to bomb other countries, support dictators and rape other countries of their resources continue to be on the frontlines of retaliations. No one rushed me onto Air Force One and took me to a ‘secure’ place when the planes hit. How about you?
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Name : Donna25608, Gender : F, Age : 35, City : Bronx, State : NY, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,> What to do if you happen upon a peace rally by stupid naive > hemp-shirt-wearing college idiots, to teach them why force is sometimes > needed: > > 1) Approach dumb rich ignorant student talking about ‘peace’ and saying > there should be, ‘no retaliation.’ > > 2) Engage in brief conversation, ask if military force is appropriate. > > 3) When he says ‘No,’ ask, ‘Why not?’ > > 4) Wait until he says something to the effect of, ‘Because that would just > cause more innocent deaths, which would be awful and we should not cause > more violence.’ > > 5) When he’s in mid sentence, punch him in the face as hard as you can. > > 6) When he gets back up to up to punch you, point out that it would be a > mistake and contrary to his values to strike you, because that would, ‘be > awful and he should not cause more violence.’ > > 7) Wait until he agrees that he has pledged not to commit additional violence. > > 8) Punch him in the face again, harder this time. > > > Repeat steps 5 through 8 until they understand that sometimes it is > necessary to punch back.
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Name : TC, City : BATON ROUGE, State : LA, Country : United States,Why assume those who act to kill the terrorists hate them? I don’t hate the terrorists – I don’t know them. But I surely want to stop them from attacking me or my fellow citizens again. Osama bin Laden came from a rich family – he didn’t act out of economic despair. Dropping bread on the terrorists won’t stop them.
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Name : Kay26736, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 45, City : Denver, State : CO, Country : United States, Occupation : Engineer, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class,
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