tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post114209919128114817..comments2023-05-05T05:26:31.876-04:00Comments on Howmanyfingers: The Price of AppeasementJBloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17838349868229069605noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post-1142879847025715662006-03-20T13:37:00.000-05:002006-03-20T13:37:00.000-05:00As is frequently the case with reasonable people.A...As is frequently the case with reasonable people.<BR/><BR/>As Chance the Gardener told the Russian diplomat in the movie Being There,"Our chairs are almost touching."JBloghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17838349868229069605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post-1142879057380272892006-03-20T13:24:00.000-05:002006-03-20T13:24:00.000-05:00Agreed. (I was confident we'd find a patch of comm...Agreed. (I was confident we'd find a patch of common ground if we kept at it for a while!)Scotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18316063669274699878noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post-1142876260586411062006-03-20T12:37:00.000-05:002006-03-20T12:37:00.000-05:00I agree.Can also we agree that people who bomb abo...I agree.<BR/><BR/>Can also we agree that people who bomb abortion clinics and those who chop off the heads of innocent people and set off car bombs in crowded markets are both committing evil, and that they should be confronted and stopped?<BR/><BR/>I'm not suggesting we commit genocide against all Muslims. Just that we pursue and stop the fanatical ones who are committing these evil deeds.<BR/><BR/>Just like we pursue and prosecute abortion clinic bombers.JBloghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17838349868229069605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post-1142576146769328202006-03-17T01:15:00.000-05:002006-03-17T01:15:00.000-05:00...As are people who would blow up an abortion cli......As are people who would blow up an abortion clinic. But we expect that our entire society will not be pigeon-holed into the image of its religious fanatics.Scotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18316063669274699878noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post-1142447758940936822006-03-15T13:35:00.000-05:002006-03-15T13:35:00.000-05:00Also, true.But I think it's pretty safe to assume ...Also, true.<BR/><BR/>But I think it's pretty safe to assume that people who kidnap innocent civilians and cut their heads off probably are beyond being reasoned with.JBloghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17838349868229069605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post-1142438136174811632006-03-15T10:55:00.000-05:002006-03-15T10:55:00.000-05:00That's a fair point; however, it is not always cle...That's a fair point; however, it is not always clear (without the benefit of hindsight) which is which.Scotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18316063669274699878noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post-1142278982549965612006-03-13T14:43:00.000-05:002006-03-13T14:43:00.000-05:00I agree to a point. Peaceful resistance works with...I agree to a point. Peaceful resistance works with rational, morally conscionable people.<BR/><BR/>It worked for Gandhi against the British in India because at their core the British held to a set of moral ideals that could be appealed to.<BR/><BR/>History has shown, however, that such appeals don't work against irrational people who don't hold such values, such as the Nazis and Al Qaeda.JBloghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17838349868229069605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post-1142268473633840262006-03-13T11:47:00.000-05:002006-03-13T11:47:00.000-05:00Thanks, J -- this helps me better understand the f...Thanks, J -- this helps me better understand the framework of your argument. To my way of thinking, you are setting up a false dichotomy. I don’t believe there are only two polar options: violent confrontation versus codependent appeasement. I am nowhere remotely close to being an expert in these things, but it seems to me that <I>peaceful resistance</I> is an honorable (and sometimes effective) approach.Scotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18316063669274699878noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post-1142262028777201102006-03-13T10:00:00.000-05:002006-03-13T10:00:00.000-05:00It comes down the math essentially.If you resist e...It comes down the math essentially.<BR/><BR/>If you resist evil, some people will be killed, but others protected.<BR/><BR/>If you appease evil, more people die ultimately.<BR/><BR/>We've seen this movie and we know how it ends. When the U.S. and the European powers ignored the growing threat of Fascism in the 1930s, the result was a World War that killed 40 million people.<BR/><BR/>If we had acted sooner, fewer would have died and the Holocaust would have been prevented.<BR/><BR/>So we're really not talking about whether or not people are going to die, but rather how many.<BR/><BR/>So you tell me what the moral position is. Is it to confront evil and protect the innocent or is it to appease the evildoers?JBloghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17838349868229069605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12938924.post-1142235688812768142006-03-13T02:41:00.000-05:002006-03-13T02:41:00.000-05:00Hang on: If he paid with his life for the mistake ...Hang on: If he paid with his life for the mistake of pacifism, what mistake are our troops paying for with their lives? I guess I'm just confused by your conclusion.Scotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18316063669274699878noreply@blogger.com