Category Archives: human rights
[TELEGRAM] Combat as an Acquired Taste
Interview with Author Richard Dahlstrom: On Economic Survival, Evangelism, and the Crushing Nature of Adversarial Consumerism
Photo Credit: Ian Ebright | The Broken Telegraph
As our conversation continues, I’m realizing that this idea of intentional living is not just a bunch of words for author Richard Dahlstrom. He seems to be enjoying the moment rather than trying to rush through it. The office we are sitting in is a loft with the usual computer and bookshelf. But there’s also candles burning on top of the space heater, and a pretty impressive climbing wall that he’s made out of a corner of the office complete with climbing holds, carabiners, and what looks like a meditative prayer sheet that’s been tacked halfway up the incline. On the other side of the stairs is a flat, carpeted cubby area that he calls the prayer space, and the books over there have been left open. I can’t find anything in the entire area that has been placed for the sake of appearance.
Osama Bin Laden is Dead, But This is No Time to Celebrate
Celebration at ground zero. Photo Credit: flickr/David Miller. Usage does not represent endorsement by the photographer.
For some, the news brought an understandable sense of relief, or a bit of overdue closure. Others are viewing the event through a purely strategic lens, believing the kill shot to be an accomplishment only because it will likely avert greater violence in the future. The merits of such reactions are debatable. But those who boldly celebrate the death of Osama Bin Laden have fallen for a devilish trick. In an effort to assert moral superiority and to separate from the legacy of the infamous terrorist, they have unwittingly participated in the same hatred that gave birth to his kind of extremism.
Living on Two Dollars a Day During Lent: Simplicity in the Burbs
Photo Credit: flickr/kimili
The following is a post written by my friend Kurt Willems of The Pangea Blog.
I am picky.
I hate most foods that could be considered healthy.
In college, I ate Panda Express (Chinese fast food) for dinner almost every night and supplemented other meals with burgers and pizza.
As a child, I would sit at my Grandpa’s dinner table for hours because I refused to eat my veggies. My most consumed meal during childhood: cereal. Count Chocula was not just breakfast, but sometimes dinner. And if I ran out of milk, no problem… water.
Narcissistic Stockholm Syndrome: War Machine
Photo Credit: flickr/Kenny Holston 21. Usage does not represent endorsement by the photographer.
A couple of friends are filling in for me while I’m away on break. This post is written by Jason M. Dye of the blog Left Cheek.
What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty or democracy?” -Mahatma Gandhi
Someone out there is planning a counter-demonstration to a peace march. Oddly enough, it’s not Boeing, Haliburton, Blackwater, Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, nor any of the other war profiteers taking out the banners and megaphones to stymie the influence of the peace activists.
It is a Marine who served in Vietnam.
Please don’t miss the irony of this. Someone who suffered under the direction of war-mongers and profiteers believes that those who oppose the war-mongers and profiteers need to be opposed.
The Strange American Reaction to the Egyptian Uprising
Photo Credit: HBO.com
It took just 18 days of protest to overthrow a cruel dictator of 30 years in Egypt. And with that, 3 out of 4 recent uprisings in the Middle East and Asia have been successful so far. But you wouldn’t know it if you listened to certain segments of the American public. These pro-democratic movements (now spreading to Bahrain, Libya, Yemen, Algeria, and further south to the African country of Djibouti) have been met with concern over here. When did hope get the reputation for being naivety in disguise?
Interview with a Special Forces Captain: Was War Worth It, and Can We Leave Now?
Tyler is currently a Captain studying for a Master’s Degree in Defense Analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School. He served a year in Iraq as an Infantry platoon leader in the 101st Airborne Division, and three tours in southern Afghanistan as a Special Forces Detachment Commander and Operations Officer.
We discussed the cost of war in Afghanistan, and differing exit strategies.
What Uprisings in the Middle East and Asia Suggest About Muslims…and Everyone Else
If you follow the news then you know that Egypt is in the midst of a revolution. Don’t be alarmed if you’re experiencing deja-vu. The unrest is something the whole world has witnessed recently in Tunisia, Kyrgyzstan and Iran. What are the goals? And what do these movements say about Muslims and the rest of us?
[TELEGRAM] Lust is a Force That Gives Us Meaning
“Porn, which advertises itself as sex, is a bizarre, bleached pantomime of sex. The acts onscreen are beyond human endurance.” -Chris Hedges
The Horrific Abuses of the War on Terror, and Why The American Christian Church Doesn’t Care
Stress positions and humiliation at Abu Ghraib. This is just the PG-rated stuff.
“Let’s talk about waterboarding” former President George W. Bush said with an almost defiant shrug. There was Bush, sitting across from Matt Lauer in a recent interview, now bragging about his role in personally authorizing the waterboarding of key terrorist suspects- which we know occurred up to 183 times per person. “Because the lawyers said it was legal” and ‘keeping the nation safe’ were his favorite justifications, and what thuggish justifications they were to any person with even the most miniscule understanding of justice. And when the glib mockery of the rule of law was finished, and Bush had used every canard he could think of, Matt Lauer still had the look of surrender plastered all over his face, as if to say “I hope my questions didn’t offend you, sir.” Not that it matters all that much; the church, much like the rest of the nation, wasn’t really paying attention.
Ian Ebright on When Christian Blogging is a Popularity Contest (and Other Snares to...
Ken Hagerman on When Christian Blogging is a Popularity Contest (and Other Snares to...
Jim Fisher on The Conclusion of the Heartbreak Series: Saying Goodbye
Yoga Rani on Why, as a Christian, I’m Not Joining the Fight Against Gay...
Beth on [TELEGRAM] When Temptation Taps You On The Shoulder
Tiffany Lucus on The Conclusion of the Heartbreak Series: Saying Goodbye