Dr. Martin Luther King, Jnr., once said. “The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it. Through violence you may murder the liar, but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish the truth. Through violence you may murder the hater, but you do not murder hate.”
King was shot and killed 39 years ago today. In death he has become an iconic figure whose words have echoed through history. So today I thought I would share with you the quote below which is especially interesting as our soldiers fight another war in a far of land.
“Somehow this madness must cease. We must stop now. I speak as a child of God and brother to the suffering poor of Vietnam. I speak for those whose land is being laid waste, whose homes are being destroyed, whose culture is being subverted. I speak for the poor of America who are paying the double price of smashed hopes at home and death and corruption in Vietnam. I speak as a citizen of the world, for the world as it stands aghast at the path we have taken. I speak as an American to the leaders of my own nation. The great initiative in this war is ours. The initiative to stop it must be ours.”
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Wrote the following comment on Apr 4, 2007 at 7:59 pm
I have been very moved this year by MLK. I have taken an interest to find out more about the man and his philosophies. One thing is for sure, by the time of his death at 39, he made a striking impact on the world for the better. I don’t know if I would go as far as to label him a bleeding heart liberal. I’m sure I would have found myself on the opposite side of many idealogical debates from him, but he was a man who incited action. He had a plan to better his people, and he executed it aggressively.
To me, “bleeding heart liberalism” is the advocacy of a world without absolutes… an ideology that can only criticize conservative values with no real substantive argument for alternative.
I am all for non-violence and think the thought of war is aweful. But what is the alternative when facing an ideology that places no value on human life? I know there’s tons of room to debate the decision to go into Iraq, but can we put that aside to evaluate the situation that is there now? Like it or not, we’re there. Is the best thing to pull out and leave a fledgling government to fend for itself against insurgents? Is it best to stay and attempt to help re-build the infrastructure, even while the insurgents continue to try to blow us up at every turn?
Forgive me for going on, but these are very real questions that I’m grappling with as we watch the rise of Iran’s dictator. As we “peacefully” negotiate, he continues to develop nuclear capabilities and snatch British soldiers and hold them hostage at will. I’m by no means a “kill ’em all and let God sort ’em out” person… but I am searching for a what would be suitable responses in today’s world.
Sorry, I may have strayed from the point of your post… MLK was awesome!
Wrote the following comment on Apr 5, 2007 at 1:49 am
Sadly I think that Bush’s war in Iraq will cost America heavily for years to come. Eventually troops will be withdrawn over time, but his Presidency will be forever marred by his foolish ill advised decision to fight an illegal war in a far off country that will never ever ever be the United States, no matter how many Starbucks and McDonald’s are planted there.
I wish that Bush could at least be honest and admit that his decision to go to war was a mistake. Iraq is not a success and no matter how many times he tries to justify it, it’s never going to be anything other than a national embarrassment for America.
I doubt that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad would have order the capture of the British soldiers if he wasn’t in such a politically powerful situation. He can showboat a lot at the moment because he knows that the United States and United Kingdom are militarily stretched already that the people of those countries would not support any military action against him right now.
I think if MLK were alive today he would be speaking out very strongly against the war in Iraq and the illegal imprisonment of men at guantanamo bay. He would be speaking about the dead soldiers and how it’s not the Senators and Gongressmans sons who are dying for a war that seems to have lost its way. He would I’m sure be seen speaking at many anti-war rallies, and sadly his words would probably be consigned to the same place as anyone who has spoken out against the war since it began.
It took his death for people to call him a great American and a great humanitarian. Ironically in silencing him by violence, he was given one of the most influential voices in history.
Wrote the following comment on Apr 6, 2007 at 1:00 am
Did you mean 39 years ago?
Wrote the following comment on Apr 6, 2007 at 2:42 am
At least one of us is paying attention Anne. ;-)
I’ve corrected that now, thanks.