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Body and Soul

Mar 11, 2006

maha

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Jeanne d’Arc has a couple of commendable posts up. This one is about the death of Tom Fox of Christian Peacemaker Teams. The CPT opposes the Iraq war and has criticized treatment of detainees in U.S. and Iraqi jails. Fox and three other CPT members were kidnapped in Iraq in November. Fox’s body was found in Baghdad Thursday morning.

Jeanne writes,

We hear so much about the horrible things Americans are doing in Iraq, and most of us respond with anger at what’s being done in our name. All of us, those who think everything can be solved with more killing, and those who know it can’t, but don’t know what else to do, desperately need to learn more about a man who didn’t just believe that violence was the wrong way, but that peacemaking was an active — and dangerous — pursuit.

As Jeanne says, most of the blog commentary on Fox’s death has come from the Right, and most of it that I saw dripped with hate and derision for Fox and everything he was trying to do. Truth be told, I started a post on Fox this morning but couldn’t finish it because the rightie commentary was too upsetting. No good can come of that much hatefulness.

The other commentary is about Ali Shalal Qaissi — the hooded man with wires attached to his body in the now iconic Abu Ghraib photo. Jeanne comments on the importance of seeing his face.

Spotlight

11 Comments

erinyes • Mar 12, 2006 @6:37 am

I will never understand the mindset of the far right.
In Oct. 2000, I was watching an interview with GWB on CNN with a person I worked with (who happens to be a Christian Fundamentalist). I remarked that I thought Bush was not very bright and lacked the basic intelligence for the awsome responsibilities for the job. My co worker informed me that Americas’ Christians had finally gotten together, and were going to install a Godly man as President, and send Clinton back to Arkansas. I responded that in the next several years, we would be at war with Iraq and Roe Vs Wade would be in peril of being reversed.
Fast foreward to Operation shock and Awe:
I was in a restaurant with two co workers, the T.V. was on showing the attack on Baghdad. One guy next to me was overwhelmed with joy, and exclaimed “We’re finally kicking ass, we should have done this in the Gulf War!” My other co worker, the same guy I wrote of in the first paragraph, looked at me sheepishly and said nothing. As I viewed the bombardment I told both of them “This is very bad. We are no longer a democracy, our country has been taken over by fascists.The most powerful military in the world is bombing a defenceless country as the entire world watches.We will have hell to pay”
The situation in Iraq has deteriorated to rock bottom. The right still defends the war, still blames everything on Islam and Arabs.
How this mess will end is anyones’ guess.Iraq has been subjected to war since the 80′s, it’s no wonder the place has gone crazy.
And my fellow Americans are finally waking up to the reality of this nightmare. How can we get back on track? So many are deluded by this new death cult form of Christianity with their preachers calling for war, others are oblivious to what war is.
The war in Iraq is NOT defending freedom.It is mass murder.
An eye for an eye and soon we’ll all be blind.
Lynne • Mar 12, 2006 @9:07 am

As a Quaker, the risks of being misunderstood by others would not weigh as much as the need to personally witness against evil. Tom Fox chose his path and should be respected for that. Few people have the courage to risk their lives for a principle.

As for the conservative Christians (if that is who they are) who revile him, they would not have recognized Jesus, either.
A Canadian Reader • Mar 12, 2006 @10:26 am

Muslim taliban, Christian taliban. Same difference.
Swami • Mar 12, 2006 @11:21 am

Tom Fox’s last entry in his blog spoke about the de-humanization process of labeling people as terrorists. He knew that the abuses at abu Ghraib, the slaughter in Fallujah and countless other atrocities were committed because Bush purposely de-humanized the Iraqi people who came against him as being terrorists. It’s the same dynamic employed by the Nazis in labeling their victims as sub-humans and vermin.

I followed some links from Michelle Malkins blog to other rightie bloggers who felt there were many differences between between the acts of the people who aducted Tom Fox and the Americans in occupation of Iraq.. they kidnap, they torture, they murder and they dump the body on the street.. The only difference I can see is that the Americans don’t leave the body on the street. Who was it who said, “get the log out of your own eye before trying to get the twig out of your neighbors”?
maha • Mar 12, 2006 @11:25 am

Who was it who said, “get the log out of your own eye before trying to get the twig out of your neighbors”?

He must have been an America-hating liberal.
Lynne • Mar 12, 2006 @11:42 am

The link to Jeanne d’Arc’s article leads to another link (by a reader) to an letter in dKos – I recommend reading this.
Elayne Riggs • Mar 12, 2006 @12:18 pm

I disagree that most of the blog commentary on Fox has come from the right. I’ve seen at least a dozen blogs on the left talk about Fox in the past 48 hours.
Bonnie • Mar 12, 2006 @1:37 pm

The log comment is from the Bible, Matthew 7:3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? King James Version

Jeanne has done some excellent writing on the torture by Americans. For those who haven’t read her before today, you should check her archives.

The right wingers who say hateful things about Fox and his group give us further proof that they are NOT true believers in the culture of life.
Swami • Mar 12, 2006 @3:23 pm

I remember several years ago Bill Moyers presented a program on PBS called, Any mother’s son can kill, where he spoke about the psychology of de-humanization and how easily the masses can be manipulated into hate, and how easily the focus of that hate can be shifted to any target a government decides to declare it’s enemy..When I was attending high school, it was a common expression to to call someone who you sensed as being a betrayer, disloyal in friendship or unworthy of trust as being a Jap. So Bush, “You Japped me out, man”!

Seeing how i’m strolling down memory lane, does any see a resemblance in the looks of Russ Fiengold and Soupy Sales. There’s something similar in their appearance. And while we’re discussing looks, does anybody see anything strange in the spacing of Laura Bush’s eyes?
erinyes • Mar 12, 2006 @5:00 pm

You mean the spaced out look in Lauras’ eyes?
Poor Laura looks like she is constantly amazed.
Bulworth • Mar 13, 2006 @10:42 am

Yet another example of the conservative’s faux christianity. Their demeanor and treatment of their “enemies”–other Americans no less–shows their movement’s true colors. The “return to values” that Limbo and the others are always braying about is really just a trojan horse designed to disguise what is in reality just old fashioned right-wing authoritarianism. Yet many of the believing faithful continue to be sucked in.