Who Are These People?

Yes, I understand that it makes me morbidly cynical, but I believe that it is only a matter of time before Barack Obama is assassinated. I’ve lived through the murder of his predecessors: John Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., Robert Kennedy, and John Lennon. It will be a tragedy. The nation will be shocked, followed by genuine mourning. There will be renewed discussion of gun control, capital punishment, etc. There will be studies commissioned, and there may even be a form of pseudo-justice with regard to the perpetrator. But in the end, we will still be left with the dilemma of terrorists that act with violent impunity against civilization. Must fanaticism be tolerated? In my opinion, it should not, but how to defuse it without falling into the trap of zealous eye-for-an-eye thinking is the eternal challenge. It is insidiously easy to decide that all we need to do is kill all the people that are killing people. Just as I have resented the fundamentalists that coopted my Christian faith, I abhor those who are presently destroying our democracy with extremist claims to free speech, possession of guns, etc. They are openly threatening violence upon any who do not agree with them, and I am pressed for a meaningful way to respond that doesn’t itself involve some form of violence. So, from the safety of my cubicle, I am going to renounce those who are so fiercely selfish that they have no tolerance for opposing points of view. You should be ashamed, and I am confident that ultimately you shall suffer the judgment of your Creator.