The previous post brought me some further reflection:
All of the “conservative” arguments I hear for the “rightness” of the Iraq offensive are tactical and calculating, all based on arguments like: “IF we didn’t do that, then THEY WOULD do that”, and WE would losr fewer soldiers by doing thus. All of it is based on the adavantages that we can create for US. The conservative arguments are so often totally and utterly SELFISH. We take action based on THEORIES of how this gives us an advantage, and the results we inflict are far from theory. We bomb, people die. for SURE. All based on what we THINK MIGHT happen. I find this morally reprehensible. And the conservatives say “That’s war”.
I also find it it morally wrong. But I find it morally impossible, when conservative christians tell me they support the abortion measures of Bush (and they cite the words of Jesus), but then ignore the fact that Bush has waged a lie based war against an already decimated people, and lied to his own people for the sake of nothing less than material gain. Some say it was for revenge over 9/11. Fuel for the endless, hopelessley broad, war against “terrorism” (which is really a war of percieved intent). But what I know of Jesus is that he taught Compassion, Forgiveness and Honesty. How can you support such a dichotomy is what I ask? How can you be morally satisfied and want to re-elect a man who is not the moral standard bearer he makes himself out to be?
Mohammed,
I find it painfully obvious that these Christians who maintain such a precarious lack of balance in their theology are often unwilling dupes at best to the mass indocrinization of the Religious Right (at best) or unconsciou schemers (much more guilty than the former) out to “neuter” the gospel by “filtering out” the more “unconfortable” and the more “radical” of Jesus’ notions about peace. Their “pro-life” views are insanely limited to the abortion issue (I don’t advocate abortion either– I believe it it to be, in the vast majority of cases, aslo evil, but the same “concern for the innocent” is somehow left out when it comes to the suffering of innocents all t=for the sake of “our theories and would-be scenarios, all based on conjecture).
I think they entirely miss the point, and I believe that they will one day see this, al;beit often in another life.
To be honest with you. I don’t think a lot of the ‘right’ bother to put even that kind of argument together. I’ve just been visiting some right-wing blogs (such as the hopeless ‘right-thinking.com’ I’ve found little but xenophobic claptrap to be honest. I even posted comments warning about stereotyping peoples claiming that ‘no good could come of it’ etc. All I received in return was the worst invective and claims that I was ‘anti-American’ I’m not American but the idea is clearly laughable – that they claim to be ‘exporting democracy’ while, at the same time, labelling the merest dissent under a category designed to cut-off any form of discussion whatsoever.