Post Independence Day reflections

[sailaway58]

Originally Posted by Progo35

Well....I don't know that Michael Moore will necessarily foster your compassion...he is a little OFF at times, but what I'm saying is that the things your poem cited are very baisc, and if I saw someone on the street on a regular basis who was ill and didn't try to do something based on the belief in the "survival of the fittest" I feel that that would be a major sin. It would be like just standing there while someone wasted away and died.

Moreover, "survival of the fittest" and "entitlement" were big issues in the latest Futile Care debate...doctors were going to stop treating a baby on medicaid against his mother's wishes and his so-called 'guardian' at litem said that the child didn't have the right to medical care. So, you can see why the ideals articulated in that poem seem snotty when they are not clarified.

And, I do agree that the US gets a one-sided portrayal in 90 percent of the media today, which I am sick and tired of as well. Other nations need to step up to the plate in doing their part to combat oppression, etc. in other nations

Ok, a little snotty.
You said, "…and if I saw someone on the street on a regular basis who was ill and didn't try to do something based on the belief in the "survival of the fittest" I feel that that would be a major sin."
I agree overall, however some people just can't be helped.
Who is your neighbor? Christ might ask of me. I would say not the high school drop out that wants to blame everyone else for their inability to provide healthcare and food for themselves.
You have to do more than want something to get it.

On a lighter note:

How generous are Americans? Inconceivably so. An official collecting private donations for victims of the Asian tsunami has described American largess as a "tidal wave of generosity."

How generous are Americans compared to everyone else? Canada's Fraser Institute measured the "generosity gap" that separates Americans and Canadians, in both "the extent and the depth of charitable giving." It found that "the average donation in the U.S. is three-and-a-half times more than in Canada." As a percentage of their aggregate income, Americans give more to charity than citizens of any other country.

[KennethJ]

Sailaway: "Canada's Fraser Institute" is an ultra right-wing joke. It's the Fox News of Canadian think tanks.

[Progo35]

Sailaway:

I guess my issue there is that you and I have no way of telling the difference between a homeless, sick person who is a high school drop out who's bad attitue has crippled him-and the sick, homeless person with a mental handicap whose family doesn't give a crap about him or her. Also, I suffer from clinical depression and even though I am an honors student who has worked extremely hard to get where I am at, I know enough firsthand about what that does to a person to imagine myself too depressed to get a job. Now, the point is to try to seek help when one is in that state, but sometimes compassion can give such people the shred of hope they need to get off the street corner and walk into the hospital/shelter/job interview, where they can be helped to help themselves. Sometimes that doesn't work, but at the end of the day, does it really matter? At least I tried.

I would re-think the "who is my neighbor"? question, because I think that Christ makes it clear that every person is our "neighbor," its just that we shouldn't respond to them all in the same way. For instance, a once dated a guy who had major drinking and self esteem problems. But this guy was the nicest, sweetest person who had just been hurt. But, in the end, he started hurting me and I knew that I had to break off our relationship for both our sakes. So, sometimes you do have to practice "tough love" with people.

Finally, I guess I try to rely on the Holy Spirit when deciding how to respond to a homeless or needy person. For instance, I try to go with my sense of what that person's character is like. If I get a "bad" feeling about someone, I don't make contact with them, not because I don't want to, but because I think that the Holy Spirit gives us a "sixth sense" to discern between safety, danger, and method of response to particular people.

[scott snedeker]

Originally Posted by KenPeters

Because I'm not an American, I write this email with a bit of fear and trembling I'm not sure if it's my place to comment... but I'm going to plunge in anyway. First, I would like to say, I love Americans. Anyone who truly knows me, knows that... How could a country that produced the Dixie Chicks be all bad?

But I would also say that I find that nationalism of the USA very disturbing. And I'm talking about Democrats here just as much as Republicans. It goes beyond patriotism. I think there is a high number of patriotic people all around the world in different countries, but there isn't this blinding allegiance to a human institution. It is almost like some Americans believe God Himself wrote the constitution. Even if people don't believe that literally, there is this strong undeniable ideology that America is a divinely chosen nation. And there is also this strong belief that American international relations are doing more good in the world than harm. This is not an opinion shared by the majority of the world, by far. I sometimes wonder what will happen when the United States' resources run dry... is Canada the natural choice for the expansion of the Empire?

Does God's realm operate on "survival of the fittest?"

Glad to have you!

Otter, one of my cherished and adored lovers is a beautiful canadian. I love canadians and probably would emigrate to Canada if it weren' so damn cold!

Your picture is adorable btw! I couldn't agree with you more if I were canadian myself. I think Canada is an example of how decent all nations could be if they tried!

[u-dog]

Ken,

No offense taken and we are related closely to Canadians. we are eagerly anticipating the annual "Canadian invasion" in a week or two (when our Ottowan relatives come south).

The pathological patriotism of which you speak is a natural consequence of Empire. It is a bad thing. "My Country right or wrong" God's chosen people. all of that is crap of course and has led us into some of the darkest times of our history.

However, we are JUSTIFIABLY proud of our constitution... and yes I DO THINK GOD WROTE IT (or at least hovered actively over its creation) and that it and the values it contains have been and continue to be a positive influence on the world.

We HAVE to have an almost religious devotion to our constitution because of the strong influence of religious communities in the US. That quasi-religious devotion to the constitution stands as a bullwark against the evil Theocrats who stand ready to devour us if we are not vigilant.

[sailaway58]

Originally Posted by KenPeters

Sailaway: "Canada's Fraser Institute" is an ultra right-wing joke. It's the Fox News of Canadian think tanks.

Well I did say on a lighter note.

[kara speltz]

Originally Posted by scott snedeker

Glad to have you!

Otter, one of my cherished and adored lovers is a beautiful canadian. I love canadians and probably would emigrate to Canada if it weren' so damn cold!

Dear Ken: You Canadians have much to teach us. I grew up in Detroit and one of my strongest memories was that black and white couples moved to Canada because they were accepted there. Right after Bush was elected a second time, I wondered if I shouldn't seriously consider becoming a Canadian. But I'm so spoiled here in the Bay Area, that I just couldn't. And besides, I suspect we'll need all the rebellious types to stay and make sure the U.S. has a few faithful dissenters left here to protest the empire. We live in the belly of the beast, so to speak. Our constituion is something worth fighting for, and acquiesence has never been something I did well.

kara

[Progo35]

One movie that I was thinking about while writing my original post was "Sophie Scholl: the Final Days," which is about the last six days in the life of one of the members of "The White Rose" a student resistance group that wrote leaflets against Nazism during WWII. Ultimately, this young woman and five others were executed for their beliefs-all because they printed some leaflets and posted anti Nazi signs! So, at least, as several people have mentioned, we can say what we want without being killed-at least by the government. If you haven't seen the movie, I highly recommend it-it's German language with english subtitles, but it's worth the fact that it's in another language. It was made in 2005 and nominated for the Best Foriegn Film Award at the 2005 grammys. The fact that Sophie was only 21 years old at the time of her death is also truly inspiring.

[Progo35]

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2...d_N.htm?csp=34
This is a very good reason for the US and all other nations to prevent Iran from having nukes, no matter how many we have