LilacRose v1.0: Pro-War or Pacifist?

Pro-War or Pacifist?

You know, I'm not pro-war. Actually, I don't know anybody who is pro-war. Only a nut would be pro-war. I would say Osama bin Laden and his ilk are pro-war.

I'm not a pacifist either. Sure, I can respect honest pacifists, although I don't agree with them. Pacifism is one of those philosophies like socialism, anarchism, libertarianism or laissez-faire capitalism. It sounds good in theory, but simply doesn't work in a fallen, real world with imperfect, sinful people.

If you could put a label on what I believe, that would be pro-defense (a term that Lynn Sislo coined a few months ago). I believe in the right to self-defense and the right to defend others (your family, friends, strangers or your country). If someone wants to be a pacifist for themselves, that's fine. But don't try to impose your pacifism on me. I won't stand for it, any more than I'd stand for someone trying to force me to live by their pro-war philosophy.

Posted by Susan B. at 4:25 PM to Rants & Ruminations

Comments

Jen

You said that you have not met anyone pro war...well you just did...me.

Posted on February 19, 2003 at 5:23 PM

susan b.

Hi Jen, nice to meet you! :-)

A lot of people would say I'm pro-war, too, since I do believe we should remove Saddam from power. I believe this because a loose cannon like Saddam should not have WMDs. This is a threat to the whole world, not just America. I also would love to see the Iraqi people liberated from his brutal regime.

I guess what I was trying to express in my post is that I'm not some bloodthirsty warmonger who wants to see a bunch of innocent people suffer. It's just that I realize that sometimes war is an ugly necessity. It's like someone having life-saving surgery. Nobody wants to have surgery, but sometimes you have to or else you'll die.

But some people want to categorize anyone that's "pro-war" as some sort of jerk who doesn't care about the suffering of other people. That's why I like the term "pro-defense", because I think it's more accurate.

Posted on February 19, 2003 at 7:37 PM

bill lorentzen

thank you -im a vietnam vet and i agree with you- the fact of the matter is either we fight it in iraq now, or we fight it here later-we ve already been attacked a couple of times -keep up the good work

Posted on March 6, 2003 at 3:58 PM

susan b.

Hi Bill,

You're welcome! And thank you for the kind words and for your service to our country.

Posted on March 6, 2003 at 11:44 PM