Photo by Pixability
While I waited for Mike to return home from work tonight, I indulged in a true crime show. It's morbid junk food for my brain after a long day at work. The victim in the case was begging the state for life without parole for the defendant, but the District Attorney said that he "doesn't work for the victims". I had to rewind the show--who does he think he works for? I was disgusted.
Normally, I would have listened to news radio on my way home from work, but I hadn't talked to my dad since Christmas and I wanted to hear what he had been up to...
So, when Mike arrived home and immediately turned on the television to the news that Iran had sent ballistic missiles at a United States military base in Iraq. This action was prompted by the murder of an Iranian general whom I had never heard of prior to his death.
My brain says, "come on, boys, pack up your toys and le's go home".
Apparently, a lot of other people's brains say, "le's kill e'erybody".
The older that I get, the harder my heart hurts when it comes to murder. I do not believe that anyone has the right to take the life of anyone else. Period. No ifs, ands, buts, laws, or religious beliefs are acceptable exceptions.
And now, we are at war. I don't understand this, but I do understand what happens after this. War means death, destruction, and generations of heartbreak that will turn into hatred and vengeance for faceless foes. Young men will die. Hearts will break. Mommies and daddies will come home with hard edges and a sadness they can't shake, or worse, they will not come home at all, cultivating a generation of heartbroken children.
As I sobbed in the shower, I wracked my brain for a reason. Being a pessimist means that as soon as I heard the news, I imagined how long this would drag on and how many lives would be taken or ruined in the process. Will my tender heart be able to handle that (and the bloodthirsty fools who cheer for war) for years and years and years? Would I have to find some compromise to retain some sense of peace?
No. There is no reason. I cannot force my brain to come up with a way to convince my heart that it is okay for the government that I pay for to cross the world to murder innocent people.
WHY. FOR WHAT.
Imperialism is not cute. It makes us the bullies of the world. Bullies are scared pu$$ies.
"But what about the (genocide, terrorists, famine, communism, etc.) in (Iraq, Africa, Korea, Russia, etc.)? Shouldn't we help people when we can?"
YES! We absolutely should. But, much like the simple safety instructions provided to anyone who has ever boarded an airplane, we need to put on our oxygen masks before helping our neighbor put on their mask. Ya dig? It's simple.
"We're so good and rich and strong (sotto voce: and we need their resources and maybe a pal in case we need some other countries resources)! We can afford to be helpful!"
Hold up.
As long as we have a federal debt of more than $21.7 TRILLION (and growing!), I think we may need to rethink what we can "afford".
And, closer to my heart...
As long as we have an average of 20 veterans committing suicide each day, and more than 500,000 homeless people, and 2.3 million people in prison, I think we have plenty of work here at home before we can extend our generosity to those who are not citizens.
If your argument is still about resources, your argument is basically that out of the 327.2 million people that live here, we can't get our shit together and utilize technology to figure out how to transport ourselves from one place to another without gasoline and heat our homes and businesses without coal.
I'm sorry, but I think we're better than that. I would rather be a country rich with technology and nature, not thieves or bullies.
Normally, I would have listened to news radio on my way home from work, but I hadn't talked to my dad since Christmas and I wanted to hear what he had been up to...
So, when Mike arrived home and immediately turned on the television to the news that Iran had sent ballistic missiles at a United States military base in Iraq. This action was prompted by the murder of an Iranian general whom I had never heard of prior to his death.
My brain says, "come on, boys, pack up your toys and le's go home".
Apparently, a lot of other people's brains say, "le's kill e'erybody".
The older that I get, the harder my heart hurts when it comes to murder. I do not believe that anyone has the right to take the life of anyone else. Period. No ifs, ands, buts, laws, or religious beliefs are acceptable exceptions.
And now, we are at war. I don't understand this, but I do understand what happens after this. War means death, destruction, and generations of heartbreak that will turn into hatred and vengeance for faceless foes. Young men will die. Hearts will break. Mommies and daddies will come home with hard edges and a sadness they can't shake, or worse, they will not come home at all, cultivating a generation of heartbroken children.
As I sobbed in the shower, I wracked my brain for a reason. Being a pessimist means that as soon as I heard the news, I imagined how long this would drag on and how many lives would be taken or ruined in the process. Will my tender heart be able to handle that (and the bloodthirsty fools who cheer for war) for years and years and years? Would I have to find some compromise to retain some sense of peace?
No. There is no reason. I cannot force my brain to come up with a way to convince my heart that it is okay for the government that I pay for to cross the world to murder innocent people.
WHY. FOR WHAT.
Imperialism is not cute. It makes us the bullies of the world. Bullies are scared pu$$ies.
"But what about the (genocide, terrorists, famine, communism, etc.) in (Iraq, Africa, Korea, Russia, etc.)? Shouldn't we help people when we can?"
YES! We absolutely should. But, much like the simple safety instructions provided to anyone who has ever boarded an airplane, we need to put on our oxygen masks before helping our neighbor put on their mask. Ya dig? It's simple.
"We're so good and rich and strong (sotto voce: and we need their resources and maybe a pal in case we need some other countries resources)! We can afford to be helpful!"
Hold up.
As long as we have a federal debt of more than $21.7 TRILLION (and growing!), I think we may need to rethink what we can "afford".
And, closer to my heart...
As long as we have an average of 20 veterans committing suicide each day, and more than 500,000 homeless people, and 2.3 million people in prison, I think we have plenty of work here at home before we can extend our generosity to those who are not citizens.
If your argument is still about resources, your argument is basically that out of the 327.2 million people that live here, we can't get our shit together and utilize technology to figure out how to transport ourselves from one place to another without gasoline and heat our homes and businesses without coal.
I'm sorry, but I think we're better than that. I would rather be a country rich with technology and nature, not thieves or bullies.
