I must admit that I love watching people that argue and are good at it. Or at least I love to watch people who think that they are good at it. There has always been something about me that loved to watch and take part in a debate. I loved it in class when the teacher would let us pick sides on an issue and debate. Really it didn’t matter which side I was on. Give me some time and I will try to convince you of something, even if I don't believe it at all.
In recent years I have tried to not be an argumentative person, especially about issues such as religion. I believe when Walt Witman said “Argue not concerning God”, that he was right in many ways.
Yesterday I watched every video of Ann Coulter that I could find. She fascinates me to no end. I think what really gets me excited about her is that she doesn’t actually believe everything that she says. I think she just says things that she knows will cause a stir, and make her money. The more crazy things she says and write, the more people buy her books. The more crass and rude she is on TV, the more we tune in next time when she is on. I think she is smart enough to pull it off.
Yesterday one particular video particularly captivated me. Ann started talking about the US involvement in Iraq, and how we needed to win the war and stop trying to fight a “hygienic war”. If America truly wants to win, we have to fight like we want to win. If we want to stabilize the area (at least for the present) then we must use widespread and deadly force. We someone throws a rock at you, shoot back at them. When someone throws a bomb at you, bomb three houses. When someone tries to blow up a tank, blow up a city. You get the idea.
Ann said that we cannot be worried about civilians that die. In war people die. That’s true. That’s what war is. War is killing people and trying not to be killed. So what if a few Iraqi families die? Ann said that she would rather their civilians die than our civilians. She would rather blow up an Iraqi hospital than have an American hospital blown up by terrorists. Her argument is America must stop caring about causes like Amnesty International and start caring about winning the war. More US soldiers? No. She just wants more bombs and more deadly force without worrying about collateral damage.
What stuck with me from what she said is that it is 100% true, if you look at the world from an America first worldview. If you believe that America and your identity as an American is very important, then we must defend it. We must defend it at all costs. We must give our lives and take others to defend it. In World War II we fire bombed cities in Germany and Japan because we wanted to win, and we wanted America to endure and vanquish our enemies. We weren’t worried about civilians; we were worried about winning the war at any cost.
So what changed? Has the Internet and the ability to see mutilated Iraqi children and women as well as soldiers made us lose our appetite for indiscriminate killing? Has TV and the ability to interview anyone, anywhere, anytime made us broaden our worldview? Now is it easier to put a face on your enemies? Is it harder to stomach a bomb hitting a school full of children?
For me, the reason is that now I identify with being a Follower of Jesus more than I do an American. For me, my American citizenship and the institution of America is not the most important thing. Loving others becomes the most important when we follow what Jesus told us. When he said that loving others was the second most important thing we could do, he meant those inside and outside of our borders. As Derek Webb says on his album Mockingbird, “How can I love the ones I’m supposed to kill? My enemies are men like me.”
I applaud Ann because as an American-first-person she sees what America must do. She is brutally honest and her insensitivity hurts. But she knows that as a person that puts America above all else, that is what we must do.
It’s time for Follower’s (Christians) to be just as honest. America is not more important than the second greatest commandment. War has no place in the Christian life. For the past 2000 we have tried to justify war and convert those around us by force. For the past 2000 years, it hasn’t worked. All we have succeeded in doing was killing thousands of people, and teaching generations of people from other nations that WE are the evil ones and the killers in this world. We have taken the stance that now it is un-American, unpatriotic or a waste of time to even TALK to our enemies, much less LOVE them.
Rob Bell recently took a lot of flack for attending a “multi-religion” gathering ifor breakfast n America. Christians picketed and protested the fact that it was being held. Many people on the inside thanked Rob for even choosing to show up; in the past, Christians didn’t come. Rob Bell thought about this and said that we are commanded to love the Nations, and many people won’t even sit down to breakfast with the nations.
Breakfast is served America, don't let it get cold.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
On one hand you mention that she doesn't necessarily believe everything she says, on the other you mention her America first view. I think the former might be more accurate. Change it to an Ann first view. I haven't seen the videos, but it sounds like she wants us to bomb the hospitals and cities. Does she mean the ones we're building? If so, she's ridiculous in so many ways. I think people generally care about civilian casualties more now than WWII because the nature of the wars we've fought since are different. It took Britain being an island and Russia losing 2 million people and burning down their own cities to prevent Germany from essentially ruling the world. When is the last time a legitimate country has actually invaded and taken over even another country, let alone a continent, Iraq and Kuwait maybe? I think most people can distinguish the difference between Iraqi shopkeepers and Iraqi/Iranian insurgents and realize destroying the cities and country is harming and only feeds into the bad guys. I'm sure that's only partially the reason we are fighting in this way. It's easier to justify a war back home if you sell it as trying to leave the innocent out of it. I could probably ramble on forever on this. It is interesting, though. Very different from war in the past. Think back to the Romans not only defeating Carthage, taking slaves burning cities, but also sowing salt into the farmlands to devastate the area as long as possible. Maybe people post wwII feel there is or should be a more global awareness/community/interaction/whatever and that the self interest of their country might not equate to the complete destruction of everyone else. I guess I'm rambling again.
by the way, you should check out Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog. That's quality.
Post a Comment