I am at a loss for words.
Very rarely do I sit down to type out my thoughts when I am so torn. Not only where to begin, but how to wrap my head around the ideas that are permeating our current social climate. So much of what I have felt to be concrete and immovable seems to be disintegrating under the collective feet of our nation.
No document has held as much importance to the history of this world than the Constitution of the United States of America. Some of the finer points have been debated over the ages, but for the most part it has had the unflappable ability to protect our rights to practice whatever religion we choose, express whatever ideas we hold dear, the right to protest peacefully and to exercise a powerful and free press.
No matter who you are, we not only allow you to speak your mind, we celebrate it.
“I may not agree with you, but I will defend to the death your right to make an ass of yourself.” ? Oscar Wilde
Wilde was not exactly a conservative Christian, but freedom of speech extends beyond political ideologies and religious boundaries, and we will* defend each others rights to express our thoughts.
The uprising in the Middle East chills me to the bone, but not because of a crowd protesting an offensive YouTube video. Any freethinking American has to ask themselves some daunting questions about what is actually going on. Reports are now surfacing that Ambassador Stevens was traveling without security, in a awfully bad part of a nasty* country in the middle of the night, after being warned days in advance that an attack was being planned. Add to that, Stevens believed himself to be on a “hit” list.
I do not know what all this means, and I will not speculate, but I know in my gut that a YouTube video is not the reason for the wildfire of protests that have spread throughout the region.
Even if this disgusting video were the cause, what God would command His people to kill in retribution? Our very freedom of speech is under attack and we must be more vigilant than ever to protect it.
“If freedom of speech is taken away, then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.” ? George Washington
I may disagree with you with everything in me, I may vehemently oppose your objectives, but if at any point I am offended to the core of my belief system, I will NEVER kill you. You may insult me, my family, my religion and even my God, but He would never demand that your life be taken to defend His honor.
America has had its ups and its downs, but there is no argument that we are progressing and becoming more tolerant and understanding of other people. Our tolerance, however, must come with protections.
The creator of the aforementioned video, was actually brought in for questioning by federal officers – for creating a movie.
“Because if you don’t stand up for the stuff you don’t like, when they come for the stuff you do like, you’ve already lost.” ? Neil Gaiman
We may not care if the government asks YouTube to remove the video, which they did unsuccessfully, and we may not care if the rights of others fade away. But if everyone loses what is his or hers, then who will be there to protect you.
“First they came for the socialists, and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a Jew.
Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me.”
It has always been the policy of the United States to not negotiate with terrorists. This latest uprising may be testing that policy. There is a report on theblaze.com that the U.S. State Department is negotiating with the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt to transfer custody of the Blind Sheikh, the mastermind of the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center.
All these attacks that just happened to start on the eleventh anniversary of 9/11 seem to be a coordinated and planned attack that was meant to weaken our country on foreign policy.
The bottom line is, be informed, know your rights and actually exercise them.
“Proclaim the truth and do not be silent through fear.” ? St. Catherine of Siena
