Pro-Life and Pro-War


Well with the anniversary of Roe v Wade many religious were subjected to anti-abortion rants. My church was not immune.

Now I will give my priest credit for at least mentioning the Death Penalty and poverty. Of course he failed to mention that the same Congresspeople who are supported on the basis of thier opposition to abortion are also the most strident supporters of the death penalty and favor unraveling the "safety net".

But there was something else that our priest missed out. The fact that most, if not all, of these same "pro-life" politicans are also the most strident supporters of war and empire. A war that the previous Pope opposed. A war that has killed what's estimated to be hundreds of thousands of people--many women and children.

Now I'd have no problem with the "Pro-Life" camp, if they were a bit more concerned with "Life" in all it's stages. Not just conception, development and end-of life issues.

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In Plain Sight


"We don't negotiate with terrorists", so says Bush.

But we train them, or people close to them. At least that the impression I got after viewing Hidden In Plain Sight, a look at America's Latin American policy filtered through the School Of The Americas, now renamed.

When I saw the images that children drew of what the "graduates" of this school had done, I saw Iraq. When I saw and heard descriptions of the torture that the graduates learned, I could'nt help but see Abu Gharib, etc.

You see, the School of The Americas is (was) designed to train Latin American soldiers to deal with what today would be called "Insurgents". Of course, to much of Latin America "Insurgents" are usually people like labor leaders, indigenous advocates and activist clergy. And thier tactics sound like those of the SS in many cases.

But much like Iraq, there is a resistance to this school. Under the leadership of a Maryknoll Priest, a large and well-organized resistance has developed. The movie showed images of these courageous dissenters, many who are likely standing against the war in Iraq. For it may all be about the same thing, protecting and expanding the interests of a elite.

If you want to understand why so much of the world doesn't like us. Take a look at this film.