Butler Shaffer just might be my favorite LRC columnist besides Lew himself. His latest column defends Cindy Sheehan, the grieving mother whose son Casey was killed in Iraq on April 4, 2004. She has generated much publicity of late, having camped out at W's Crawford ranch in order to speak with him about why her son died. Far be it from W to confront the real human costs of his bloody policy -- and why bother when his surrogates in the media dutifully support his agenda by smearing his opponents?
Regarding war and this administration's attitude toward it, Shaffer advises us to see through the rhetoric:
"As this psychopathic administration now scans its world atlas for new targets upon which to direct its forces of 'shock and awe,' it is time for all of us to understand that there is nothing 'noble' in the systematic slaughter of people. There is no 'honor' in bringing grief and suffering to others; and no transcendent 'purpose' in being part of a collective of fungible human beings to be exploited for whatever ends suit those with ambitions over the lives of others. 'Life' belongs to living individuals, not to the state, a message each of us must impart to our children and grandchildren as they learn to resist the seductions of those who would destroy them. It is also time for Americans to take a stand with Cindy Sheehan and help this country rediscover its soul, and return to the sense of decency from which it has so aimlessly strayed."
1 comment:
HD --
They resist only because of the bad publicity this would bring. The Bushies have no choice but to grit their teeth and hope this blows over, but I agree with you -- you get the sense they'd love to break up the demonstration with riot police and fire hoses, and maybe even release the hounds, Mr. Burns-style.
Nice blog, BTW. Thanks for commenting here. We Mises admirers must do all we can to keep his ideas alive.
J
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