Friday, August 11, 2006

Building Higher Walls

Bernard Lewis, professor emeritus at Princeton, regarded as the preeminent authority on Muslim History writes a very compelling argument in the Wall Street Journal that August 22, 2006 may be a very important date in world history.

News reports regarding the recently foiled UK terrorism plot involving hijacked airliners destined for the US, state that those arrested were giving the plan a “dry run” so to speak and that the real thing was to actually go down on August 22 and would have involved 22 airliners.

Doomsday scenarios have been around as long as history itself and yet, the planet still revolves and life goes on. Apocalyptic theories embraced by the world’s religions pit believers against non-believers and separate us from each other. It is religion at its worst. Strange how it is that the minority, those fanatical or fundamental elements seems to attract the most attention and cause the most problems.

It is my deepest fear that should another 9-11 unfold on August 22 or at any time in the future that we will begin separating certain people, certain religions from society on mass scale as was done to the Japanese and German Americans during World War II. Separation is the most elementary step, the quickest most efficient manner to begin solving a perceived problem. It represents a dissection of society that slowly bleeds all of mankind to the point of unconsciousness: a perfect example of the cure being worse that the disease.

There is no doubt in my mind that we are on the verge of mass hysteria where thoughts could reach a critical mass to the point we begin believing that in order to save us from the enemy we will need to exercise the most vicious and irreparable of all strategies.

The only problem is how do we separate us from ourselves?

5 Comments:

Blogger Trev Diesel said...

I understand your fear, I have it too.

And yet...

I'm with you on the whole "doomsday scenarios have been around as long as history itself."

It is times like these for those of us that are able to accentuate the goodness of humanity. Life has a way of working things out - even in the moments when things feel the darkest.

11:44 AM  
Blogger Trev Diesel said...

And yet, and yet

...I just read the article you linked to...

certainly scary stuff.

I echo Andrew's most recent post... why can't we all leave each other the hell alone?

11:49 AM  
Blogger Andrew said...

Wow... just... wow. I've got nothing.

Other than, hey, live each day like it's your last, right? Which is whistling in the dark on one level, but perfectly serious and the only sound advice on another.

In which case I should tell you all that I love you and it's been a great gift getting to know you over the past months.

Funny how we live most of our lives like we have all the time in the world.

3:10 PM  
Blogger anonymous julie said...

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

2:27 AM  
Blogger Buford said...

I personally am tired of being hated. This is a good example of why we can not let some people "live their own truths." Their truths want us dead.

Will the end come? Is this the prophetic end? Is this the end of days? Who knows? But, if everything happens for a reason or if God has a grand scheme, then what is the point in worrying or fearing the end of the world? Is everything, really, in divine order?
Religion, in all its sects will, eventually, divide and destroy us. I do not write this with anger only resignation. In my opinion, there are no more true religions, time and humanity has perverted the concept beyond reason.

Life is uncertain. We are born to die. It is the truth of our existence and it is what makes us human.

For me, to curb the fear, I stay close to my home and family. If we are all going to die, I want to be with my family.

I already had August 22nd penciled in, I start class that day. Apocalyptic ending or Math 130 hmmm tuff choice.

8:59 AM  

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