Benjamin- Great post and your passion reads through in every word!
To answer your question as to what should be done with Iran, I don’t know that there is any non-celestial course of action the Western free-speaking and thinking world (at least those of us who still do indeed think for ourselves) can do.
Like Russia, Iranians are well past do for a major offensive to modernize their government and have basic needs and safety within reach (think Maslow).
If there is one thing the USA should have learned by now, it is that removing a regime only leads to greater dysfunction in a dependent, vastly impoverished and uneducated nation. Iran, Libya, Afghanistan? Russia is an exception but I think we can all agree that Putin has never fully left the drivers seat and Russians (despite their number of dissidents) perhaps do not have the stomach to do anything of consequence until they have lost an entire generation of children.
Putin will continue to fling green eighteen year olds at Ukrainian troops until there are no more bodies to spend. And then he may or may not decide to destroy every nation in NATO and beyond and perhaps the globe itself along with it.
Is he dying? Perhaps Putin doesn’t wish to go alone…or, he simply cannot imagine a world without himself so he plans to take the world to hell with him.
I wanted to respectfully disagree on your mention of the American Antebellum South in the regime equation but that talk may be for another time. My family has been in Southern Maryland for 300+ years and are still there. Working poor and uneducated but they inherently know the value of life, black, white, and everything in between, born and unborn. None of them owned or fought for slavery. They knew God and listened to His voice, whether they participate in organized religion or not.
Unfortunately, knowing God, at least the Judeo-Christian God who is fair, just and revels in His creation, is not perhaps currently stressed in the Russian Orthodox Church (that is run by Putin much like the Kingdoms of Europe were once run by the Pope). Ditto for Iran. Who is their God? Do they worship the One who is Truth or the leaders who keep them ignorant and dependent?
I had an idea after reading your post. The only answer I could think of to counter evil regimes in our world is to petition God to intervene. I do this for our own nation daily. Is our current government that different than Russia’s?
As for the dear life of the very brave Mr. Rushdie, I would love to see a universal interfaith prayer chain for his health and life. Prayers combat violence like no other action.
Benjamin- Great post and your passion reads through in every word!
To answer your question as to what should be done with Iran, I don’t know that there is any non-celestial course of action the Western free-speaking and thinking world (at least those of us who still do indeed think for ourselves) can do.
Like Russia, Iranians are well past do for a major offensive to modernize their government and have basic needs and safety within reach (think Maslow).
If there is one thing the USA should have learned by now, it is that removing a regime only leads to greater dysfunction in a dependent, vastly impoverished and uneducated nation. Iran, Libya, Afghanistan? Russia is an exception but I think we can all agree that Putin has never fully left the drivers seat and Russians (despite their number of dissidents) perhaps do not have the stomach to do anything of consequence until they have lost an entire generation of children.
Putin will continue to fling green eighteen year olds at Ukrainian troops until there are no more bodies to spend. And then he may or may not decide to destroy every nation in NATO and beyond and perhaps the globe itself along with it.
Is he dying? Perhaps Putin doesn’t wish to go alone…or, he simply cannot imagine a world without himself so he plans to take the world to hell with him.
I wanted to respectfully disagree on your mention of the American Antebellum South in the regime equation but that talk may be for another time. My family has been in Southern Maryland for 300+ years and are still there. Working poor and uneducated but they inherently know the value of life, black, white, and everything in between, born and unborn. None of them owned or fought for slavery. They knew God and listened to His voice, whether they participate in organized religion or not.
Unfortunately, knowing God, at least the Judeo-Christian God who is fair, just and revels in His creation, is not perhaps currently stressed in the Russian Orthodox Church (that is run by Putin much like the Kingdoms of Europe were once run by the Pope). Ditto for Iran. Who is their God? Do they worship the One who is Truth or the leaders who keep them ignorant and dependent?
I had an idea after reading your post. The only answer I could think of to counter evil regimes in our world is to petition God to intervene. I do this for our own nation daily. Is our current government that different than Russia’s?
As for the dear life of the very brave Mr. Rushdie, I would love to see a universal interfaith prayer chain for his health and life. Prayers combat violence like no other action.
I said a prayer. Join me?