Such a nice boy!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Eichmann
"One of the most disturbing facts that came out in the [Adolf] Eichmann trial was that a psychiatrist examined him and pronounced him perfectly sane. I do not doubt it at all, and that is precisely why I find it disturbing. . . The sanity of Eichmann is disturbing. We equate sanity with a sense of justice, with humaneness, with prudence, with the capacity to love and understand other people. We rely on the sane people of the world to preserve it from barbarism, madness, destruction. And now it begins to dawn on us that it is precisely the sane ones who are the most dangerous. It is the sane ones, the well-adapted ones, who can without qualms and without nausea aim the missiles and press the buttons that will initiate the great festival of destruction that they, the sane ones, have prepared. What makes us so sure, after all, that the danger comes from a psychotic getting into a position to fire the first shot in a nuclear war? Psychotics will be suspect. The sane ones will keep them far from the button. No one suspects the sane, and the sane ones will have perfectly good reasons, logical, well-adjusted reasons, for firing the shot. They will be obeying sane orders that have come sanely down the chain of command. And because of their sanity they will have no qualms at all. When the missiles take off, then, it will be no mistake."
"A Devout Meditation in Memory of Adolf Eichmann" in Raids on the Unspeakable." Thomas Merton - New York: New Directions Publishing Co., 1964
Dear Fred,
Thanks for your email.
Your point cuts to the quick.
Still, I cannot determine how "widespread" the "point" is.
At a distance, it is difficult to calibrate the importance of "squeaky wheels."
Buried by broadcast bilge, we shun prudence, perspective and context - favoring instead "whatever" trumpery-of-the-moment, the transient outrage du jour.
Although I cannot judge the depth-and-breadth of Greater Arabee's most recent hissy fit, I can safely judge that the entire Republican Party has lost its sense of humor,
Have you noticed the aching absence of a decent political comedian on the right side of the aisle?
Contemporary conservatives impress me as middle schoolers - development arrested at age 12.
To see their "backlot bluster" in action, check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCl_--E3T2c
How can Limbaugh declare "the grown ups are back in charge..." without an inkling of the irony.
It was recently discovered that Rush is not overweight but over-inflated by hot air.
In the absence of irony, paradox and humor, I have not doubt we must protect ourselves from ourselves.
Make no mistake: I abhor the recent spate of Islamist violence.
But in "The Big Scheme," the cumulative damage done by jihadists is overshadowed -- and toweringly so -- by Washington's state-sponsored terrorism in Iraq.
And Iran is on deck!
And then...
And then...
We will look back on this swashbuckling as we look back on Vietnam.
Or the Crusades -- a lesson not yet learned.
If Israel invades Iran, world opinion will turn against Zionism to prevent Israel's survival except by use of nuclear weapons. (Assuming that can be considered "survival...")
Israeli war historian Martin von Creveld bears repetition:
In a September 2003 interview in Elsevier, a Dutch weekly, on Israel and the dangers it faces from Iran, the Palestinians and world opinion van Creveld stated:
"We possess several hundred atomic warheads and rockets and can launch them at targets in all directions, perhaps even at Rome. Most European capitals are targets for our air force…. We have the capability to take the world down with us. And I can assure you that that will happen before Israel goes under."[7]
Ah! With friends like these...
In the end, there would be a certain "symmetry" if the only two countries to have used nuclear weapons -- every time to target civilian populations! -- were the United States and Israel.
Pax
Alan
PS The Iraq War was not about weapons of mass destruction. It was about Dubyah's adolescent urge to cock strut and whoop ass. On the other hand, the United States IS about weapons of mass destruction. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures
Blessedly, "we" are too virtuous to use them... except as designated executors of God's Will.
And in the end? Uncle Sam lost the Iraq War - and Iran won.
On Fri, Sep 14, 2012 at 12:11 PM, Fred Owens <froghospital911@gmail.com> wrote:
On Facebook
I wrote --
Riots continue in the Middle East. The Middle East is the world's biggest No Joke Zone. A people without a sense of humor are living in hell. A culture without a sense of self-parody is in endless torment..... There is nothing we can do about this except protect ourselves from this madness.
--
Fred Owens
cell: 360-739-0214
My blog is Fred Owens
send mail to:
Fred Owens
7922 Santa Ana Rd
Ventura CA 93001
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