Wednesday, February 06, 2008

I wonder

I wonder what it was like to live in the late '30s in Germany or what it was like to live in the states in the 1830.

You'd think that there were probably some good people, some bad people, and some just plain old normal average, every day people.

So what must have it been like to just live in a society that lived with/tolerated or just sort of ignored slavery? What about what was going on with your neighbors who happened to be Jewish?

Do you think it was the kind of thing where if you really pointed out how absurd the situation was - you were this radical extremist?

I wonder how many people thought it was wrong, distasteful, brutal even...but just didn't do anything about it?

"It's a moral problem, not a political one"

"I'm personally against this, but I can't force my beliefs on others" - this lets you tell people that you're above this, but at the same time...it's kind of ok. "I hate that there are slaves, and I'm personally against it...but if someone else truly believes that it's ok, then I can't force what I believe on them"

I wonder if this was the problem. People were afraid to speak up. They wanted to get along - to not make waves - to fit in...

So I have to wonder what those issues are today?

7 comments:

  1. I can only give my two cents (whatever that means) but I feel like the prominent issues have always been, or should have been, about preserving precious human life.

    So does that mean speaking up on behalf of the unborn, the poor, the hungry, weary soldiers, our enemies abroad, immigrants, or all of them?

    I guess that's where it gets a little gray...

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  2. Anonymous6:23 PM

    Some people convinced themselves that slaves and Jewish people weren't people so it was OK to do whatever you want to them. I don't know what scientific, legal or biblical justification they could have found for that. (I also don't live in fear that I'll be lynched if I try to stand up for a slave or a Jewish person. I'm glad some people back then stood up anyway.)

    Moral dilemmas should never be political ones because 300,000,000 people all have different dilemmas. For example, if Jehovah's Witnesses morals were made into laws, blood transfusions would be illegal. Again I ask, whose morals should be laws and whose shouldn't be? Evangelicals? Whose laws do you want to affect your everyday life? Scientologists maybe? Catholics are the largest single religious group in the country so maybe their morals should be legislated. So are you cool with the Hail Mary being posted in public buildings and praying the rosary every day, Sean?

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  3. no I don't want the hail mary being posted in public buildings and don't want to pray the rosary every day...

    anything else?

    I’m guessing that was rhetorical…

    laws are moral dilemmas put into legislation though

    murder is kind of a moral dilemma wouldn't you agree?

    how about stealing? that's sort of one...and driving while drunk....and....I really probably don't have to go on I'm guessing...

    we just pick the laws based on what we believe - we believe those things are wrong so we make laws....based on our beliefs

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  4. Anonymous7:40 PM

    I find it interesting that anonymous' post starts with noting the fact that people justified slavery and the holocaust by convincing themselves that people of Jewish or African ancestry were either less human or even non-human, but then ended their post apparently giving a veiled defense of abortion, based on the fact that not everyone agrees that an unborn human is fully human.

    Interesting.

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  5. Anonymous8:27 PM

    I wrote nothing about abortion at all, veiled or otherwise. What post are you reading, Mike?

    My point was that since we are a democracy, the majority rules, right? Catholics are the single largest religious group. I think Catholics are anti-abortion Mike.

    But then you gotta take the good with the "bad" if you decide to legislate morality. I think most Americans think that is a slippery slope so most people are only willing to commit to clear, glaring examples of inhumanity. Slavery would be one of those.

    Abortion, to most Americans, is a gray area because the particulars are so disputed.

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  7. i'll certainly take a stand for what i believe in - that paul mccartney does in fact play the drums. i find it hard to believe that in all his years with the beatles that he never once picked up the sticks whilst jamming with the boys. hence, the logical conclusion that one would come to is that "at one time or another, paul mccartney played the drums with the beatles."

    a technicality, you say? yes. but this great nation thrives upon technicalities and loopholes. people get rich from spilling hot drinks on themselves all the time. you might even call me a patriot for holding fast to a notion that can in no way be proven, but can also never be disproven... and then you might send me $8.

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