Once again I have to admit I'm no expert on Bhutto or her politics. But, from what I understand she was anti-extremist. She was liked by the U.S government. She wanted her country to be a civilized nation. And she had/has quite a following. Now she's been assassinated. People are rioting, setting the streets on fire, robbing banks, burning down police stations, and of course killing....lots of killing.
Sweet Irony.
9 comments:
Um, duuuuh. What other possible reaction could there BE?
It's genuinely mystifying, but there's no denying the pattern!
More striking than this latest bloodletting was the orgy of murder we witnessed after that Danish cartoon of Muhammed, suggesting - - perish the thought - - a legacy of violence in Islam.
And of course, we know that violence is not confined to one people or religion, but hmmmmm...
"There's something going on here, Mr Jones."
Dad
(Crusader)
(I've had a couple hours to think about my own comment...)
In the US, in the fifties, there was terrible violence, committed by our equivalent to Al Qaida: the KKK. They tortured and murdered blacks and white civil rights activists, with impunity. They blew up a Church, with kids inside! Then in the sixties, after Martin Luther King was assassinated, there were days of rioting and looting in American cities. So, the mayhem is clearly NOT confined to one people or religion.
This is not to draw a simple-minded equivalence between Christianity and Islam, because on the issue of violence, there is certainly a difference. The KKK were not highly religious Christians (nor were the IRA), whereas Muslim terrorists are drawing inspiration directly from Islam. Highly religious Christians are more often pacifists than terrorists.
Dad
There are many examples of everyday folks taking part in mass murder all over the globe. I don't think it has anything to do with religion, but statistically, you're going to get a large number of members of the major religions. I think it has to do with the power of suggestion when very charismatic leaders turn bloodthirsty.
Just think: What if Danny Williams was a little more radical?
That makes sense, Megan. You remind me of Rhwanda, where there was recent mass murder, without religious "inspiration".
We are always looking for the reason, but we'll never find the reason for irrationality.
Dad
I think that every organization or group should begin to suspect its self at the moment that the members are encouraged to NOT think about what they are saying or doing. This is of course applicable to religious, political, and social groups. There is this crazy group mentality which can be so volatile that in the right conditions it seems that we might all go nuts and pillage our own towns and cities.
Did you ever hear that (horrid) song "The Logical Song" by Supertramp? It's a seventies thing, and it fits in nicely, right here.
Dad
hmmm... I just went over to youtube to check it out (I thing meg posted it awhile back) but I'm not really getting the connection.
Weird song, but all it seems to be about is the rejection of reason for... ahhh... I get it. I'm not always the first out the starting gate I am afraid!
The money doesn't go to the first one out of the starting gate; the money goes to the first one over the finish line. "Slow and steady wins the race."
Dad
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