Conspire By The Sword
I lament the fact that many of today's victimizers were yesterday's victims. And I lament the tragedy that results from the clash of opposing violent extremisms. Many in the West are too filled with fear and rage that they are unable to see that they themselves are just as “radical” and “extreme” as those they call terrorists. Each side believes that its own violence is redemptive, but rages against the violence of the other side as senseless and unjust. Each side thinks its anger is righteous and is blessed by a divine authority, and each side conceives of its opponents as originating from the realm of absolute evil, and so they see any compromise and reconciliation as immoral. The only goal is total elimination of the other side. Each side conceives of the conflict in stark extremes, with all goodness on one side and absolute evil on the other. To mourn over the deaths of your opponents thus appears nonsensical and morally abhorrent. Why would anyone care about the death of someone who represents absolute evil and injustice? Both sides deceive themselves by thinking that their war and their violence will usher in an era of peace