It is a sign of age when your drive time is punctuated by listening to talk radio, but such is the case with me. Yesterday I heard a conversation that was at once fascinating, frightening, and foreboding. I'll leave it up to you to decide for yourselves (that is...all 2 or 3 that actually read this blog). There are at least 6 - and possibly more - talking points here, and I honestly don't know where to begin.
Key:
Talk Show Host = TSH
Caller = CL
TSH: What do you want in life?
CL: I want peace.
TSH: Define peace.
CL: Peace is when we withdraw all of our troops from Iraq and Afghanistan to within the confines of our own shores, reduce the size of the military to cut expenditures, and stay within our own borders.
TSH: So you define peace as an absence of conflict?
CL: I define peace as the United States minding its own business.
TSH: So you feel we should allow evil to permeate the world, and be separatist?
CL: There is no evil.
TSH: There is no evil?
CL: Correct.
TSH: Was Adolph Hitler evil? Was Stalin evil?
CL: Adolph Hitler could have been negotiated with.
TSH: I see where you are now. So we should be negotiating with Osama Bin Laden?
CL: Yes, absolutely.
TSH: I've just theoretically appointed you chief negotiator to Bin Laden. What would you say to him?
CL: I'd offer him whatever amount of money he wanted to leave us alone.
TSH: And you'd trust that he'd comply if we paid him?
CL: Of course he would. He'd build schools, roads, and a modern infrastructure.
TSH: He wouldn't use the money to finance more terrorism?
CL: Never. I know in my heart he's an honorable man.
TSH: Would you give him $100 million? $200 Million?
CL: Yes, I'd give him $200 million. It's better than any of our soldiers dying.
TSH: Ok. Peace to you means an absence of conflict, and you think negotiating is the way to go. Additionally, you think the U.S. should be isolationist in the world.
CL: I'll go along with most of that, but those are your words - not mine.
TSH: Do you live in a single family home? Condo? Townhouse?
CL: Single family home.
TSH: Ok. You hear your next door neighbor screaming that she's being raped by a man with a knife. What do you do?
CL: I'd call the police.
TSH: Ok. You call the police and they tell you they can't get anyone there for at least 8 minutes...what do you do?
CL: Nothing. I'm against violence of any kind.
TSH: But next door, a violent act is occuring.
CL: You want me to fight violence with violence?
TSH: If necessary, yes. I believe that is the appropriate response.
CL: It can't be...I'm sure I could talk the rapist out of finishing his actions.
TSH: So you'd do nothing? That's your neighbor...possibly your friend. And you'd do nothing? She may die. Are you going to let her continue to be raped and possibly die?
CL: (Long pause and a whispered sigh) Yes. My interests are in myself and the United States.
TSH: What?
CL: We are here to talk about the United States' involvement in the Middle East, are we not?
TSH: That is what we're talking about. Confronting a violent enemy with violence of our own.
CL: (Sigh) And we're wrong for doing that.
TSH: Ok. Ok. Thank you for the call.
CL: You're welcome.
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3 comments:
It's quite obvious, the caller doesn't have any real clue, that being said, his/her idealism is just that...some kind of ideal that few could or should subscribe too. He/she sounds a bit ignorant to the realities of the world today.
There are those of us that do in fact want peace..that is the ideal, but one has to be a realist to know that shangri-la does not exisit anf if we want peace, in whatever incarnation it could possibly take in this crazy world, then we'd better be smart about it.
There is nothing wrong really with striving for peace or working towards it, but one would be foolhardy to think or believe that people in the world like Osama Bin Laden or hezbollah, Terry Nichols, the Unibomber or the crazies that attack women going into a clinic etc...are reasonable people..they are radical idealists and their ideal is far different from yours and mine (I am assuming that we basically want the same thing)
We have a lot of intelligent people in this country..and we also have a number of folks who are not so intelligent...and I believe in my heart that even the not so smart ones, want whats best for this country...they are just not very adept at getting there.
We need to use our resources of intelligence, military might and forward thinking to get things done and work towards peace.
peace
–noun
1. the normal, nonwarring condition of a nation, group of nations, or the world.
2. (often initial capital letter) an agreement or treaty between warring or antagonistic nations, groups, etc., to end hostilities and abstain from further fighting or antagonism: the Peace of Ryswick.
3. a state of mutual harmony between people or groups, esp. in personal relations: Try to live in peace with your neighbors.
4. the normal freedom from civil commotion and violence of a community; public order and security: He was arrested for being drunk and disturbing the peace.
5. cessation of or freedom from any strife or dissension.
6. freedom of the mind from annoyance, distraction, anxiety, an obsession, etc.; tranquillity; serenity.
7. a state of tranquillity or serenity: May he rest in peace.
8. a state or condition conducive to, proceeding from, or characterized by tranquillity: the peace of a mountain resort.
9. silence; stillness: The cawing of a crow broke the afternoon's peace.
An EXCELLENT response!
I thought this would incite thought
It did and thanks for posting it.
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