(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . I/P: Where I Remind Everyone Arguing That You Don't Get a Pass to be Inhumane [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-10-14 I don’t know how this will be taken. The past few days here have been, unpleasant. The incessant arguing, vitriol, anger, and outright endorsement of ethnic cleansing offends me, and gave me pause. We are better than this, people. If the rest of the internet, stem to stern, is a cesspool of rage and debasement, we have proven time and time again to be a freshwater river. It isn’t enjoyable to get involved in this when there are these kind of passions as it feels like this is a digital knife fight and I am trying to disarm friends on either side. The truth is, I rewrote this in my head 10 times and on my computer just as many. There were times where I typed out words and my anger came through, so I deleted them. There were times where I typed words that sounded like they were created by a sanitized AI as directed by a focus group. Those too, were deleted. And then it dawned on me: the world has no need or use for yet another morally timid man. The following words, I kept. I unequivocally condemn the despicable, unconscionable assault on Israel. I unwaveringly stand by the right of Israel to exist, and defend its interests. I pray, literally, that in the course of these necessary actions to defend itself that civilian casualties are not reciprocated. The assault on Israel, carried out by Hamas, was a terrorist act, separate from the goals of, and counterproductive to, a peaceful resolution of the complicated decades long disputes. The advancement of Israel as one state with freedom, peace, and prosperity for all citizens is my hope. I understand if you disagree I just don’t know why it must be. I don’t know why people have to be segregated from each other. Perhaps that makes me naive. As it applies to the human rights of the Palestinian civilians, the needs of the many must be addressed and treated as distinct from the evil of the few. Accordingly, any agreement to advance the interest of all parties must not, under any circumstances, be colored or otherwise influenced in any manner whatsoever by these crimes, in order to prevent suggesting to the world the falsehood that the approach of targeting civilians is effective. I recognize the immense, incalculable pain the Israeli people are suffering. As their ally, they have my empathy and support I can offer within my means, and in alignment with my moral compass. What is not in alignment with my moral compass is the reciprocation of immense, incalculable pain upon the Palestinian people. An alliance to Israel does not make me an enemy to the Palestinian territories. I emphatically reject the notion that I must somehow pick what set of humans deserve to be treated humanely. The following scripture is posted here for Christian conservatives that will inevitably read this: The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God. —Leviticus 19:34 (NIV) Whether a Jew in Gaza, a Palestinian Muslim in Tel Aviv, or a Latino in Texas, Christianity makes clear there is to be no undermining distinction assigned to a person based upon national origin. The Palestinian people are, and I should never have to remind anyone here, human beings. It is one of the hardest things a human can do, restraining oneself in the midst of mind numbing rage and pain, but it is the singular test that will determine if our species survives or destroys itself. This is not equivocation. Hamas is evil and as I see it, attacked my extended family. This must be dealt with. The Palestinian people are not Hamas. Hamas is evil and as I see it, they caused my extended human Palestinian family to suffer from Israel’s retaliation. And if there is any hope at all to ever achieve some kind of peace in the region, today’s Palestinian child is much more likely to be tomorrow’s partner, rather than executioner, if they are not witnessing the destruction of their family. Do not find joy in warfare, do not seek catharsis from another’s blood and do not make vengeance policy. I do not believe that my alliance to the State of Israel and my efforts to protect the human rights of Palestinian civilians are mutually exclusive concepts.. Perhaps I am not getting my point across, to my allies in Israel, led by Netanyahu’s camp: Turn the lights back on. Turn the water back on. And under no circumstances should nurses be carrying patients on gurneys attached to IV’s like some sort of dystopian Stanley Kubrick art film. x Israel gives a Gaza hospital 2 hours to evacuate. The hospital condemns the action & also condemns Israeli attacks on healthcare in Gaza. UK politicians line up to tell us Israel has the right to defend itself. By giving ultimatums to hospitals, right? pic.twitter.com/6z0YoXMvZG — Saul Staniforth (@SaulStaniforth) October 13, 2023 You have criminals to catch. Go catch them. We don’t shut down Phoenix, we don’t empty out Banner Hospital because we need to stop a cartel. The world is smart enough to know the difference between what has to be done, and what is being relished. I may be entering a hospital soon. Now I am still making plans for decades of pain-in-the-assity to the right wing, don’t get me wrong, but as one faces down these challenges one starts to ponder. I say this to highlight that even if my time is shorter than I would like, I will likely die in relative, humane comfort. But as I ponder my contributions to a just society, I experience a range of emotions. And when that happens, I start to reflect. How do emotions lead people? Anger, for example. Hamas wants nothing more than for us to focus on our anger. Their prospect for the success of their malevolent agenda rests on their ability to sell this as a binary conflict. They want to create an environment of us vs. them and have the world be reliant upon traditional biases. The world has no need or use for another morally timid man. A morally timid man will be unable to protect people. He will be unable to place himself in between an aggressor and a helpless child. I wrote this some years back, but it is amazing how it applies to nearly any conflict, anywhere. I call that, “the point.” Little Girl With a Ball By Todd Bennett Little girl with a ball The same sun that shines on me shines on you You might be light you might be dark Or even a different religion too But our mistakes and lack of brakes Should not torch your yard Should not dry its dew Across the pond Lives some of your kin Sharing your innocent grin At something as simple as splashing in a puddle We owe you better than a warning letter Because our foreign policy’s a muddle Play little girl, don’t you worry Shut your ears to the words of adults in a hurry To conquer each other To turn their backs on their brother Play little girl-kick that ball Maybe even over a wall Climb that tree to the top Let me stop the guns that pop Hug the bunny little girl with a ball Don’t forget that life can be funny But learn from us and our foolish ways Only happiness brings light to your days Don’t use blood to buy money Play little girl, don’t you worry Shut your ears to the words of adults in a hurry To conquer each other To turn their backs on their brother Play little girl-kick that ball Maybe even over a wall .. Which side of a border this little girl stands on does not matter. Which side of humanity we stand on, does. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/10/14/2199335/-I-P-Where-I-Remind-Everyone-Arguing-That-You-Don-t-Get-a-Pass-to-be-Inhumane?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=trending&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/