Quote:
|
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.
|
And you would be wise to do so. But lets add another feature to your analogy. Suppose the child that is known to be fair and honest is discovered biting the heads off of small animals and fabricating evidence to make it seem like the dead animals are the other child's doing. After you have already formed your opinion of the guilty party in the preceding incident. Does this new evidence make you reconsider your previous conclusion? Do you ignore it because it doesn't fit your understanding of how the world turns?
I think we have been down this road before. But just because America was founded by some very wise and bold thinkers, and we have spent the last two hundred plus years defining the right side of social and human rights arguments to the world does not make us immune to the same diseases that took hold of Germany in Hitler's era. Keeping America the model citizen of the world that it has been is a tough task. Every generation has to do its part. A tall order but being America has always meant finding a way to be solidly on the side of freedom, human rights and honesty. It is disturbing to hear excuses for bad decisions and failures to uphold our principles. Or arguments based on "It can't happen here" logic. As soon as we believe that it will. Jim
__________________
Own:
1986 Euro 190E 2.3-16 (291,000 miles),
1998 E300D TurboDiesel, 231,000 miles -purchased with 45,000,
1988 300E 5-speed 252,000 miles,
1983 240D 4-speed, purchased w/136,000, now with 222,000 miles.
2009 ML320CDI Bluetec, 89,000 miles
Owned:
1971 220D (250,000 miles plus, sold to father-in-law),
1975 240D (245,000 miles - died of body rot),
1991 350SD (176,560 miles, weakest Benz I have owned),
1999 C230 Sport (45,400 miles),
1982 240D (321,000 miles, put to sleep)
|