I'm not sure how widely-published Malone is. She used to be the editorial page editor of the New Hampshire Union (mis)Leader. Here she does what she does best: putting the repugnant in repugnican.HOW CAN we celebrate Easter today when visions of charred American corpses dragged through the streets of Fallujah and hung from bridges still burn inside us? When caskets containing bodies of American servicemen are shrouded in flags and transported home during Holy Week? When blindfolded, frightened hostages appear on the news amidst kidnappers’ warning that coalition forces must leave Iraq or face the execution of innocents?
We can celebrate Easter today by remembering this: Terrorists in the Middle East are trying to break our willpower with fear and panic, just as the ancient Romans tried to break the willpower of the first Christians with a grisly public scourging and execution by crucifixion. In the end the terrorists won’t win, because Americans have conviction. It once looked this bleak for the new Christians, but almost 2,000 years later we’re still celebrating. Thankfully, 11 of the 12 Apostles had conviction too.
Nice. This is so loaded. I first doubted she was being so ridiculous as to compare our soldiers and those who persecute this war to Jesus. I thought at first she was making obvious comparison: The Romans executed the first Christians for their belief. However, that, too, is faulty. The first Christians had a choice as to be Christian or not. Our soldiers to not have the choice as to whether or not they are in Iraq. Our soldiers are dying for *'s belief, not necessarily their own.
But it is clear that Malone knows the answer to "who would Jesus bomb?" when she connects anyone who doesn't support the war to Judas, the 12th Apostle who lost his conviction. She is arguing that by not supporting the war, we responsible for the deaths of innocent soldiers--the blood may not be on our hands, but we certainly share the guilt.Saddam Hussein’s loyalists did to non-combatants — American civilians — what Pontius Pilate’s soldiers did to Jesus Christ because he preached a better society, and so threatened those in power.
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And anyone who has watched the news from Iraq last week knows it is even more painful to watch real-life atrocities like these than to watch ones depicted on screen. These innocent men — and their counterparts in the military — were brutalized for trying to improve the lives of Iraqis, and for trying to save American lives from terrorists. They died doing the right thing.
A two-fer: More of the "they hate us because we are free" and the "Iraq harbored and supported terrorists" propagandizing rhetoric the right has been spewing since 9/11. Besides, she's full of shit anyway. I left "The Passion of the Christ" pissed off because people where bawling their eyes out over a film depection of an actor undergoing special effects pain and suffering when many of the same people were blind to the real suffering around them. I'm sure Malone herself has never shed a single tear for the innocent Iraqis we've killed, nevermind our soldiers.<snip>
This is not a war about Christianity’s virtues and Islam’s theological shortcomings. This is a war about geopolitical stability and an effort to subdue international bullies who intentionally kill women and children to make their point.
How she can construct the above metaphor and then write that with a straight face is beyond me. Be sure to note the word "intentionally." We've killed thousands of women and children, but since it was accidentally, I guess we're not bullies when we are trying to make our point.<snip>
Forget the hunt for weapons of mass destruction; there may be many of them, but they will likely never be found. That should not have been our sole reason for going to Iraq.
Wow! Three-for-three. She's hitting clean-up for team Orwell.<snip>
Lucky for civilization, the early Christians weren’t intimidated by Roman barbarism, even as their bodies were fed to lions for a few more centuries. They knew right from wrong and were willing to die for it. Generations of subsequent Christians, celebrating Easter today, are forever grateful they sacrificed their lives for the conviction.
Similarly, generations of Americans will be ineffably grateful to the servicemen and civilians who fell in the War on Terror — from those who died ascending the stairs of the World Trade Center to those whose bodies were dragged through the streets of Fallujah. Whether or not these heroes were Christians, everyone can agree they shared the noble fate of Jesus in dying to save others, and that they’re going to live forever in our hearts.
The big finish. I love the subtext here: "God sent Jesus to die to save others. Bush sent our soldiers to die to save others. Our soldiers are Jesus, and God is Bush." Happy Easter, indeed. :puke:You can find the full text here:
http://www.theunionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=35909 <edit>
Here's how to celebrate Easter during war:
Pray for Peace!