What is happening to our world?

[Chelsea_Rose]

I wonder if every generation looks back on their childhood and thinks that the world was better then.

I look back and see a lot of changes, some good, but mostly bad.

Inflation, the rising cost of living, the widening gap between rich and poor, the downgrading of public health and education, corporate intrusion onto childhood via advertising everywhere (even in schools), increasing racial, religious and sexual intolerance, road rage, spam, the increasing pressure on children to be sexual, body dissatisfaction....

And the current political situation makes me scared. Just plain scared. Here in Australia we have racist bastards like John Howard and Phillip Ruddock, scary enough without taking into account white anglo saxon cowboys like Bush. (Interesting fact about Bush. Every single one of his cabinet is closely linked to the oil industry.)

An election was just called here. It's truly heart breaking to think that from our whole nation, we have a choice between nasty, small minded Johnny, and big, weak, affable Kim. It really does break my heart to have to vote for the party that's going to do the least harm, rather than to vote for inspiring leadership.

So that's my rant. What is happening to our world?

 

[sch00lteacher]

scary enough without taking into account white anglo saxon cowboys like Bush. (Interesting fact about Bush. Every single one of his cabinet is closely linked to the oil industry.)

So that's my rant. What is happening to our world?

Thank God for Cowboys. And Bush. Would you rather the USA had a chicken shit liberal in office right now? Should we have let them attack us and do nothing in return?

I give you credit for at least knowing who our president is. I have no idea who runs your country.

 

[Chelsea_Rose]

No answers

I really don't know the answer to that. I'm opposed to Bush morally, on the grounds of his stance towards the environment, capital punishment and a general feeling of uneasiness that a man with his background is the leader of the most powerful nation on earth. He seems to represent a slightly red neck minority.

AS to his actions with regard to the current crisis, my dissatisfaction stems from fear that he is attacking for the wrong reasons without consideration for consequences.

You asked if we sould let terrorists attack us and do nothing in return. If a murderer fled over state boundaries would you attack the state that harboured him? I know that in the terrorists' minds, they were taking their revenge on the US for US foreign policy. It has to stop somewhere. If X takes revenge on Y, and Y takes revenges on X for taking revenge, and X take revenge on Y taking revenge for revenge- where does it end?

My heart goes out to our soliders, and their civilians. Both innocents caught up in something so big and beyond them.

 

[Merelan]

I know i am going to regret this but...

"slightly red neck minority."??????? Are you sure you live in the US. Slightly redneck minority? Have you been around the US lately? There are more people who fit this category then not.
As to the remark that hios cabinet is closely tied to oil. Damn. In order to make it that far in politics you have to have money, it's the way it works. Maybe good, maybe bad. But better them then someone who hasn't run or been a success in business. That's what government is, a big business. So it takes businessmen to run it.

 

[estevie]

I have to say that i was not a Bush supporter, but I am now. I like the way he has handled all of this. I still do not care for all of his policies, but that doesn't mean he isn't doing a good job handling this. At this point, I think its time someone went 'redneck' on Bin Laden, don't you??

 

[Chelsea_Rose]

No, I'm not from the US

I am from Australia, but our SAS and our soldiers are out there in this conflict too. The entire world is tied to the fate of the US- if you go into recession, so do we. If you go to war, so do we.

Our neighbours- Indonesia for example, and a large percentage of our population, are holding their breath, to see whether our region is going to split apart on religious lines.

About the "slightly red neck minority" comment- no, I'm not from the US, haven't ever visited. So, no, I guess that I don't understand the makeup of American society. I was relating my own experience of AUstralian society and politics. Only here, it's extremely red neck majority.

I must say that I neither approve or disapprove of Bush's actions. In my heart of hearts, I don't want any more conflict because it's big and scary and who knows what it will lead to? But at the same time the horror of S11 seems to demand some kind of action.

Here in Australia, since S11, a mosque has been fire bombed. An Islamic school has been set on fire. School buses have been stoned. An old lady wearing an hajab was attacked. In an already intolerant society, S11 and a refugee crisis has exposed the racist underbelly of our society.

My own father refuses to discuss the issues. Any attempt at trying to understand the motivation of the attacks (foreign policy etc) or expression of a desire for peace sends him into resentful silence. He believes America to be the peace maker of the world, the bringer of all good things and that the Taliban should be crushed.

I really don't know. I just hate the thought of World War III.

 

[Cheyenne]

Sometimes, it is necessary

I got this in my email last week and debated about posting it here. This seems like a place where it might fit.

How to teach peaceniks why force is needed:

1) Approach person talking about "peace" and saying there should be "no retaliation".

2) Have brief conversation, ask if military force is appropriate?

3) When he says "No!" ask, "Why not?"

4) When he says, "Because that would just cause more innocent deaths, which would be awful, and we should not cause more violence."

5) Punch him in the face . . . hard!

6) When he gets up to punch you back, point out that it would be a mistake, and contrary to his values, to punch you, because he would be just increasing the violence.

7) When he agrees that he has pledged not to commit violence, punch him in the face again . . . harder this time.

8) Repeat steps 2 through 8 until he understands that sometimes it is necessary to punch back.

 

[Lancaster]

Nothing new that hasn't happened many times before.

 

[Chelsea_Rose]

To Cheyenne:

Oh, if only conflict were that simple.

Because war isn't like that. It's more like:

1: X gets punched in the face by Y

2: Y gathers all his friends and punches X's innocent son/wife/mother plus a whole heap of people standing by.

3: X escapes unscathed, meanwhile Y's friends are wounded, as are X's relatives.

4: Y must be satisfied with the action take, even though X is still unpunished.

God! I am definitely all for Osama Bin Laden, his supporters and co-conspirators to all be punished- even with violence. It's when civilians and soldiers get thrown in to the mix that I really do prefer peace.

 

[naudiz]

The world has been coming to an end since it began. I'm with Billy Joel on this one: "The good old days weren't always good, and tomorrow ain't as bad as it seems."