Originally Posted by Botnst

There are two assumptions in that argument.

One is the assumption is that all force is equally bad.

The otehr is that all arguments are made in a vacuum--taht it doesn't matter who voices the argument.

Thus, if we use force justified by our aims, and the stated aims are the same as some mass murdering unelected dictator for life, well they are equally evil.

These are assumptions that I reject. The one thing that matters more than anything else is who voices the argument. All governments are NOT equal. Thus, the argument, though composed of the same wordss are not equal.

If one of my kids says, "He did it" but the other kid says, "No, she did it." The both say the same thing. But If I know one to be fair and honest with a domonstrated history of good behavior while the other tortures small animals and shoplifts, I make a judgement based, not on the words (which are the same) but on the child.