Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Integrity:
In a surprise turn of events yesterday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee decided to postpone the scheduled vote on the nomination of John Bolton to allow for further review of new allegations which "cast doubt on Mr. Bolton's temperament and credibility."
LISTEN TO YOUR CONSCIENCE: After the session, Voinovich explained his change of heart, admitting, "My conscience got me." It turns out other senators may be having similar crises of conscience. Sen. Chuck Hagel also said the allegations against Bolton are "serious enough that they demand, cry out for further investigation," acknowledging that, while he had been ready to vote to send the nomination to the full Senate, "he would not guarantee that he would vote in favor of the nomination on the floor." And while Sen. Chaffee had said before the committee meeting that he planned to vote for Bolton, last night his spokesman confessed that the continuing revelations and ongoing questions about Bolton's fitness for office had once again left Chaffee undecided.
But both were willing to vote "Yes" until someone else showed some integrity.
LISTEN TO YOUR CONSCIENCE: After the session, Voinovich explained his change of heart, admitting, "My conscience got me." It turns out other senators may be having similar crises of conscience. Sen. Chuck Hagel also said the allegations against Bolton are "serious enough that they demand, cry out for further investigation," acknowledging that, while he had been ready to vote to send the nomination to the full Senate, "he would not guarantee that he would vote in favor of the nomination on the floor." And while Sen. Chaffee had said before the committee meeting that he planned to vote for Bolton, last night his spokesman confessed that the continuing revelations and ongoing questions about Bolton's fitness for office had once again left Chaffee undecided.
But both were willing to vote "Yes" until someone else showed some integrity.
Friday, April 08, 2005
This Month's Query:
Are our children made to feel a valued part of the Meeting, with opportunity to participate and share in its worship and work? What is the Meeting’s commitment to excellent education in the
larger community, including public schools and the Carolina Friends School?
Please respond.
larger community, including public schools and the Carolina Friends School?
Please respond.
Peace:
Pro-war forces are now trying to justify violence in Iraq because "history shows" that the War has helped to bring "democracy" and "freedom" to the Middle East.
I believe that this is a specious argument. "History" will "show," as it always does, that some good and some bad always come out of any action.
History is the process of change over time. People choose to act, and their actions have consequences--intended and unintended, good and bad. World War II got rid of Hitler and, one can argue, hastened the Civil Rights movement in the United States. But one can also argue that it created the basis for the Cold War and ushered in the Nuclear Age.
People cannot control the future, only the present. They can only act upon what they think and believe is the right thing to do at the time.
The real historical question about Iraq thus becomes, were we justified in going to war? Did the evidence support such a drastic intervention? Was it a rational or reasonable response to the situation at hand?
In other words, did we act responsibly based upon what we knew at the time?
I believe that this is a specious argument. "History" will "show," as it always does, that some good and some bad always come out of any action.
History is the process of change over time. People choose to act, and their actions have consequences--intended and unintended, good and bad. World War II got rid of Hitler and, one can argue, hastened the Civil Rights movement in the United States. But one can also argue that it created the basis for the Cold War and ushered in the Nuclear Age.
People cannot control the future, only the present. They can only act upon what they think and believe is the right thing to do at the time.
The real historical question about Iraq thus becomes, were we justified in going to war? Did the evidence support such a drastic intervention? Was it a rational or reasonable response to the situation at hand?
In other words, did we act responsibly based upon what we knew at the time?
Wednesday, April 06, 2005
Community and Peace:
Jeffrey Sachs speaks out against world poverty and proposes concrete solutions:
"The ways out of the poverty trap can be found. The financial costs of the needed development aid are utterly manageable, just 70p per £100 (0.7%) of the national incomes of the donor nations.
Yet will the rich countries follow through? While the UK has raised the banner of fighting poverty in Africa, the US has armed only for its war against terror. Bush never even mentions the Millennium Development Goals. The US spends just 0.15% of its national income on aid, while devoting nearly 5% to the military. Is a superpower that devotes 30 times more in spending to the military than to development aid a reliable partner in the fight against extreme poverty?"
See the entire article at:
http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0405-26.htm
"The ways out of the poverty trap can be found. The financial costs of the needed development aid are utterly manageable, just 70p per £100 (0.7%) of the national incomes of the donor nations.
Yet will the rich countries follow through? While the UK has raised the banner of fighting poverty in Africa, the US has armed only for its war against terror. Bush never even mentions the Millennium Development Goals. The US spends just 0.15% of its national income on aid, while devoting nearly 5% to the military. Is a superpower that devotes 30 times more in spending to the military than to development aid a reliable partner in the fight against extreme poverty?"
See the entire article at:
http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0405-26.htm
Non Violence:
By Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh (From the book Interbeing)
"Do not force others, including children, by any means whatsoever, to adopt your views, whether by authority, threat, money, propaganda, or even education. However, through compassionate dialogue, help others renounce fanaticism and narrow-mindedness."
THE FOURTEEN PRECEPTS OF ENGAGED BUDDHISM
Do you agree?
"Do not force others, including children, by any means whatsoever, to adopt your views, whether by authority, threat, money, propaganda, or even education. However, through compassionate dialogue, help others renounce fanaticism and narrow-mindedness."
THE FOURTEEN PRECEPTS OF ENGAGED BUDDHISM
Do you agree?
Monday, April 04, 2005
Community:
Celebrate Life
Michael Blanding gives us "The Culture of Life Top Ten"--ten ways to value life and improve its quality.
http://www.alternet.org/story/21660/
I would add to this list an 11th way to celebrate life--by making a concerted effort to end world hunger. As a recent article in Time Magazine states, 20,000 people die every day of the completely curable disease of poverty. Jeffrey Sachs, a distinguished economist, has a forthcoming book entitled The End of Poverty. Sachs is "a man who has guided countries from Bolivia to Poland through bad financial times, advised the Pope on Third World debt relief and helped launch the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and malaria. As head of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, he has tried to promote the idea that developing countries can protect the environment while improving the lives of their citizens." Sachs argues that "'More than 8 million people around the world die each year because they are too poor to stay alive.'" He argues passionately that these deaths would be entirely avoidable if the developed countries of the world banded together to stop them." You can see an excerpt from his book in Time, March 14, 2005 v165 i11 p6.
Do you have other ideas about celebrating life?
Michael Blanding gives us "The Culture of Life Top Ten"--ten ways to value life and improve its quality.
http://www.alternet.org/story/21660/
I would add to this list an 11th way to celebrate life--by making a concerted effort to end world hunger. As a recent article in Time Magazine states, 20,000 people die every day of the completely curable disease of poverty. Jeffrey Sachs, a distinguished economist, has a forthcoming book entitled The End of Poverty. Sachs is "a man who has guided countries from Bolivia to Poland through bad financial times, advised the Pope on Third World debt relief and helped launch the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and malaria. As head of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, he has tried to promote the idea that developing countries can protect the environment while improving the lives of their citizens." Sachs argues that "'More than 8 million people around the world die each year because they are too poor to stay alive.'" He argues passionately that these deaths would be entirely avoidable if the developed countries of the world banded together to stop them." You can see an excerpt from his book in Time, March 14, 2005 v165 i11 p6.
Do you have other ideas about celebrating life?
