The stupid neither forgive, nor forget.
The naive forgive, and forget.
The wise forgive, but never forget!
Thomas Szasz
This response to my Quip of yesterday, from a long-time Jewish friend and student:
“For one, I am in agreement with your comments of yesterday.
Yet, the majority in the Jewish Community (at least the part of it with which I am familiar) will blatantly ignore your advice.
Why?
Despite recent history being reason-aplenty for unilateral armed self-protection, the majority of Jews I know immediately ‘push-back’ when the subject of guns, and lethal-force inherent to them, comes up.
Even when I bring-up the subject discretely in casual conversation, the response is usually, ‘Oh no! I would never have a gun in my house,’ or the boringly classic ‘Guns are dangerous!’
I conclude there is no point in continuing the discussion!
‘Ignorance is Bliss,’ but it is fatal bliss, as we’ve seen so often!
Yes, I’m frustrated.”
My reply:
Naive, soft-headed liberals are everywhere, many among Christians, even atheists.
Enlightenment, and subsequent delivery from dangerous stupidity, requires sincere repentance, and the smug, of all flavors, are just incapable of it.
They would rather die than admit they’re wrong, even when it’s obvious
Unhappily, many will get the martyrdom they think they want!
Of course, they’ll sheepishly ‘change their minds’ at the last minute, when they’re staring death in the face, but by then it will be too late!
History does not deal kindly with arrogant, self-deceiving fools, no matter their religion, as we’ve witnessed, over and over!”
“‘Taking the law into your own hands?’
The law IS in our hands!
‘Law enforcement’ is not something sovereign citizens seize from police officers. It is a societal function that citizens delegate to civil police. In doing so, we do not abdicate our own sovereignty, nor our duties as citizens. Ultimate responsibility is still ours. When people we hire as police are either unwilling or unable to perform that function at the critical moment, there is no law nor standard that says we cannot perform it for ourselves.
Indeed, when personally threatened, we have no choice!”
/John
