[ original thread - Re: Keeping track of the news [was Re: UT (extreme:): the US and the human rights ]
- On Sun, 12 Jan 2003 Bart Buitinga <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > Dear friend, > > Are you suggesting this 18th century > constitutional reasoning is tricking > you to believe that the US population > would stand a chance against the US > army if ever...??? Sorry to say but I > think you're tragically wrong there. There is a huge difference between (1) winning a war with overwhelming military might and (2) occupying the land. Consider the history of Afghanistan, for example. An occupying force cannot maintain a presence over time when the local people are opposed to the presence. The native population must either be assimilated, displaced, or eliminated. <snip> > What will help are a good social system to > improve the position of the poor, equal chances > in education for their children and another > president because this one would be your > dictator if only he had the guts to disobey his > father. This may all sound a little hostile, which > is not intended. I just hope to make very sure > the Americans get to read what's really happening. <more snips> A system that provides opportunities for the underdogs will always do better at promoting peace and understanding than will a system that maintains injustice and power at the expense of poor and powerless. Information and obtainable education is power to the little people. Simply put, complete poverty is the lack of opportunity. In view of history, Bart, I submit that in the last century capitalism - with all it's problems and potential flaws - has done a much better job at providing opportunities for people than has either communism or socialism. The theory of equally shared wealth has some appeal, but it lacks evidence of practicality. Over the long term, with very few exceptions, the shared wealth communities have all disintegrated. The poor are motivated to join to obtain more wealth, but leave once they reach the point of giving more than they receive. I once heard this argument between a communist activist and a christian missionary. The communist said, "You should be one of us. You care for the poor and oppose injustice just like a communist." The missionary answered, "There is one major difference in our actions. You say 'What YOU have is MINE' and I say 'What I have is YOURS." It is the GIVING, and not the TAKING, which is the source of strength that fosters cooperation and peace. I think the same reasoning applied to military force. A nation can offer help and be warmly welcomed as friends, or it can project its force where it is not welcomed and be rejected and despised. Same force - different outcome. Applied to Arachne, I choose to use the program to offer some help to the underdogs who want opportunities for information. They choose where the road will take them. If I were to dictate the process and the application, I would choose Win-doze as a model. I added the last paragraph to make a suggested point. We can spend a lot of time and bandwidth arguing political perspectives and accomplish little, if anything. Or, we can take what we have (as a group, our knowledge of Arachne tricks) and offer it to somebody somewhere for the purpose of giving them opportunities for information and knowledge. You (Bart, a communist) might perhaps want to consider joining me (Bob, a christian) in some wild adventure to share with some poor villagers the advantages of digital technology and information. That's where the rubber meets the road - in the application of the principle. I sometimes quote a bible verse that says, "Faith, without works, is dead". (James chapter 2, verse 17) I care very little that your beliefs differ from mine. I think it is your freedom to choose what you want. It does bother me somewhat that few people (from all sectors) practice little of what they profess. Perhaps you, Bart, might be the guy to write the code I need for the HTML-DGI-DBMS scheme. Wouldn't that be a blast, a communist and a christian cooperating to fight against poverty and injustice and to work together for world peace. But, whatever you're doing, do it well. And, if it involves Arachne, then share your knowledge with the rest of us so that we, too, can benefit. As a communist, it's your duty. <grin> Butyl Bob (the organic radical) - ________________________________________________________________ Sign Up for Juno Platinum Internet Access Today Only $9.95 per month! Visit www.juno.com
