> > [Krimel] > > We and they have evolved differing sets of moral expression to maintain > > our cultures and to pass them on to our children. These separate moral > > codes evolved under different conditions. They are different but both seem > > to be effective. > > [Platt] > So we shouldn't interfere in anyone's culture so long as it is effective? > Should we have interfered in Bosnia? > > [Krimel] > This isn't really about politics but to the extent that it is we should > cooperate with the UN on matters of this sort.
[Platt] Is that a political or moral judgment? Do you think there's a difference? As I learned from Mr. P., I consider all judgments moral. > [Platt] > Right. My question was, "Would it be moral if we had interfered on the basis > of that genocide alone/" > > [Krimel] > As I attempted to point out there have been plenty of post World War II > opportunities to end genocides and we turned away. I think Jimmy Carter was > right in saying that our foreign policy should reflect our Values. [Platt] So it would have been right for us to have interfered? > > [Krimel] > > Should we have intervened > > in Cambodia, Uganda, Rwanda? I would say that according to OUR moral code > > we should offer assistance when we are asked to do so. > > [Platt] > Asked by whom? Does "offers assistance" mean sending in armed forces to stop > the killing? > > [Krimel] > Asked by the aggrieved parties. Asked by our partners in the UN. I really > don't think unilateral intervention is in our own best interests, ever. Even > Daddy Bush knew that. [Platt] Obviously the forces doing the killing are not going to ask for assistance. We can assume those being killed are "aggrieved," so why wait to be asked? As for the UN, you must be joking. Wasn't there a UN force sent in to "help" some country that ended up raping and pillaging those they were supposed to help? > > [Krimel] > > In fact according to our > > own moral code we should be doing far far more to feed the starving, cure > > the sick and educate the illiterate at home and abroad. > > [Platt] > Including cultures who have harmed us and threaten more? And what is "our > moral code" anyway? Christian? > > [Krimel] > Yes we should and have been generous to our enemies. We do embrace > Judeo-Christian ethics in this country. I rather like them. It is Christian > theology that tends to be problematic. [Platt] What about the theology do you find problematic? The existence of God? Jesus as God's son? Life after death for believers? All of the above? > > [Krimel] > > Perhaps Muslims believe that tolerance for blasphemy is a greater threat > > to the fabric of their society than freedom of speech. Rather like the > > Christian Right's stand on pornography or the Bush administration's view > > of civil liberties in general. > > [Platt] > When you see freedom of speech squelched by Christians or the Bush > administration by imposing jail terms and whippings, do let us know. > > [Krimel] > You mean things like the Christian call to reinstitute school prayer or to > require biology teachers to teach theology? Or the administration holding > people without charges or recourse to council? That sort of thing? [Platt] No. I mean freedom of speech squelched by Christians or the Bush administration by imposing jail terms and whippings. When was the last time you saw a biology teacher whipped? > [Platt] > I would suggest that political correctness as practiced on college campuses > is a far more like the Muslim approach to preserving society's fabric than > anything Christians or the Bush Administration do. Maybe you won't get a > whipping for violating campus speech codes, but if found guilty you face > involuntary "sensitivity training" at best and expulsion at worst. You would > think a college campus would be the last place where free speech ought to be > inhibited. > > [Krimel] > While I find some aspects of this as disturbing as you do, I do not think it > as serious as you make it out to be. And I do think people should avoid > ethnic slurs and racial stereotyping. [Platt] I see it as the nose of the camel in the tent -- punishment for expressing an opinion. > [Platt] > Gee, I didn't know the earth had lungs. > > [Krimel] > Yes oddly enough oxygen does grow on trees and plants and plankton in the > seas. [Platt] IMO an odd metaphor. But then I'm not a politically correct Gaia fan. :-) > [Platt] > Are volcanoes the earth's ass holes? > > [Krimel] > No, that would be Republicans. [Platt] I know you couldn't resist. But, I'll ignore the implication anyway. Moq_Discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/
