Quotes of Faith

   I relish the times I read of those in the migrant caravan placing their trust in God. A story of the Sunday rush on the border included this quote, from Maria Louisa Caceres, 42:
  “We thought it was a peaceful march today, but then I saw everyone running and I thought, ‘This is it, God will touch Trump’s heart.’ ” 

The Real Victims of War are Those Who 'Survive'

   Going to war can be the right thing to do, and a good thing to do. But war, itself, is never good. It decimates. It mutilates. And, not just the bodies of men, but their souls.
   The victim of war is not just the man who dies -- not just the one who is killed. No, in war, the victim is not just the one left bleeding on the battlefield, but the one whose spirit is left to bleed for a lifetime.
   Ask yourself who can survive it, for those who survive in the flesh often do not survive in spirit. The souls of the soldiers are ravaged by this affliction called war. And, the hearts of nations are seared, as well.
   Consider, then, on war. Consider on its casualties. Consider on them, even before it starts. Consider on what it does to the hearts of men. It sets hatred even in the hearts of good people. Even when the cause is just, and noble, it can spawn a hatred of others that the rightful warrior would be better off without.
  Warriors, beware.
   The turning of a heart to hatred, is bad enough. Often, though, it doesn't stop there. I think of my days on a sheep farm, and of my dad taking one of  our dogs down to the pond, and regretfully having to drown him. My best buddy got the taste of blood in its mouth, so to speak, and became a danger to the sheep.
    I think of the number of times these mass shootings have come at the hands of military veterans. Coincidence, you say? I think not. Rather, I think to cry.
   Bless these veterans. Many of them seem to come through unscathed. Perhaps many of their spirits do survive. But, how completely? Even if their spirits survive uncankered, do they survive untouched? Can one see bullets rip though the chest of a bunker mate without being haunted for life?
  Few spirits are spared when it comes to war.
  No, war is not a good thing. Those who win sometimes lose their souls. If they let it canker them, it will. Search among the soldiers for a man who doesn't hate, and you will have found the good soldier. There may be many. Yes, I imagine there are. Bless them, for what they have gone through does have the power to canker. You can't be placed on a easel without fear the painter will come.
  No, bringing death upon others is never good. He who hails it has not survived. And, he who relishes it has been destroyed.

We have been one of the most enslaving nations of history. And, out of this came freedom? Out of this came equality?

  Bless us, for what we have become. We are a nation of contrasts. We forced the Native Americans on what to some degree was a forced death march, the trail of tears. We are the first (and only) nation to have used a nuclear bomb. The largest carpet bombing in history came at our hands. We may have exterminated whole tribes of natives. We did not start with giving women the right to vote. The list could go on. We are not perfect.

  But, we seek to become it. We change our ways, when they are wrong. This nation stands as the beacon of liberty, and the land of equality.

The Legacy of the Pilgrims Depends on their Motives

   It is said, those early Thanksgivings were little more than celebrations for slaughtering American Natives -- celebrations of conquest, celebrations of what sometimes amounted to genocides.

  I'm new to this debate about the founding of Thanksgiving, and a few hours study will not catch me up with those who have been discussing it for years.

  Still, I have some thoughts. If you are at war, and your society's survival depends on a favorable outcome, you should thank your God when he delivers you from the hands of your enemies. Whether this is what happened, I may not be entirely certain. But, I wonder.

  On the flip side of the argument, I wonder at how the natives were captured for slavery, for while you might not have heard, Native Americans reportedly were taken and sold off to slavery. Now, what does that have to do with protecting yourself against the enemy? My thoughts jump to the African-American slavery, and I note that of all the slave cultures in world history, America's is among the foremost.

   I cannot think entirely fondly upon a people who rank among the most enslaving people in history. And, out of this grew freedom?

   Who started King Philip's War, the American-Indian war at the time, and the bloodiest war in American history (in terms of percentage of  population killed)? What were the motives? Did we seek only to protect ourselves? Or did we see the natives as people to be annihilated? Did we see them as lesser humans, or perhaps not even quite worthy of the designation of "humans"? Did we view them only as savages, people to be swept off the face of the earth?
   I do not know the motives of the American colonists. I only say if their motives were honorable, their history was honorable. But, if they sought to administer death to a people they could have lived among, what they did, indeed, is a stain upon our nation.

(Note: Some editing and adjustments were made and a new head added the morning of 11/24/18/)

War is when 

we murder each other, 

but refuse to call it murder.
--

The Saints-Falcons Game: Where was the Press When We Needed it?

Why is this not a news story? Why is it millions of Thanksgiving NFL TV watchers witnessed it today, yet it is going unnoticed?
  I could hardly believe my eyes. I had to come home, and watch it on YouTube to verify I saw it correctly.
   Now, as you know, the National Anthem kneeling controversy swept the nation last season, cutting into league revenues. This season? Not so much.
  But, let me ask: If -- during the Star-Spangled Banner -- most black athletes were not placing their hands over their hearts, while most whites were -- wouldn't that be a story?
   Of some kind.
   I mean, just a little bit of a story
   At least as a follow-up to the flag controversy, right?
   No. Wrong. It is more than a follow-up; It is a continuation. Perhaps, any way, though I guess it depends on why they didn't have their hands over their hearts. If these players are not placing their hands over their hearts as a way of showing support for the blacks they feel are being discriminated against -- if they are just doing that instead of kneeling -- it is all the same controversy.
  And, reporters are sitting there watching this, and not reporting on it? Yes, I must wonder what is going on. Why is the press not reporting this?
  Let's say you watched Holli Conway singing the National Anthem before the Saints-
Falcon game today, and you counted about five white players who put their hands over their hearts, and none who didn't. Let's say you counted about two black players who placed their hand over their heart, while maybe eight did not.
  Just a coincidence, I suppose, right?
  Certainly, nothing to write about.
  In another controversy in our nation -- about whether the press is an enemy of the people, I have stood with the press. But, I cannot excuse the press on this matter. Even if you don't approve of the kneelers (or those who don't place their hands over their hearts), and even if you can see the NFL suffered financially because of the controversy, and even if you don't want to hurt the NFL . . .
   News is news. You're a newsperson. You don't ignore the story and look the other way and hope it will go away; You write it. This is America. We call you the fifth estate. You are a part of the democratic process. If you abdicate on that responsibility, America fades a little bit from being America.

Why is No One Delivering Thanksgiving to the Migrants?

   If these migrants at the border are in need, if they are poor and afflicted and persecuted . . .
   And, if we in America are so good, and charitable, and caring . . .
   And, if it is Thanksgiving (I'm just thinking, just supposing) . . .
   Well, I kind of wish some group here would get a bunch of Thanksgiving dinners over to them. No, I don't just wish; I'm disappointed in us that this it isn't happening.
   Or, maybe it is. Maybe I just haven't heard.
   I do hope it happens. This is America. I believe in the people of this land. I believe many of them are good and caring. I believe they reach out to those in need.
   So, I want to see it happen so I can keep on believing in the goodness of the people of our land. Oh, I guess I will keep on believing. I do know these people exist. They are all around me. I just hate to see that none of them are stepping forward at this time -- that they, instead, are either themselves swallowed up by a disrespect of the migrants, or they are afraid of offending those who would be outraged if someone stepped across the border to offer them Thanksgiving meals.