Re: WTC tragedy

mariss92705@...: "It just crossed on the news wires 5 minutes
ago that there may be more than 20,000 dead. I light of that, and if
true, Peter I ask you what would constitue over-reaction from your
perspective?"

I am truly sorry that there are beings, human or otherwise, that are
capable of wrecking this kind of havoc on innocent lives. After
watching the horror unfold in realtime, 20,000 didn't come as a
suprise. Trying to answer question like this at time when wounds are
still fresh may not be the wisest thing to do, but answered it has to
be. Perhaps it should have been rephrased "wrong-reaction" rather
than "over-reaction". There are now reports of American (and other)
Muslims being verbally abused, recieving threats. While this can
hardly be deemed "over-reaction" these people may be as innocent as
those who perished so horribly in that megatragedy. And NY is a
cosmopolitan city, and it is not only innocent American blood that
had been shed. Before any innocent lives are lost, it would be
worthwhile to repeat that often quoted phrase "two wrongs doesn't
make one right". (may I add now that USA reaction had been very
restraint to date).

"Major Rudy Giuliani warned New Yorkers late yesterday not to seek
revenge against any of the city's ethnic communities for the
terrorist attacks that toppled the WTC..."

And I do not know if I am sticking my neck out when I quote a wise
teaching "bless those who persecute you", I have seen how adverseries
can be converted to friends by those who sacrificially practice that.
How else can blood feuds be terminated? Will killing more of the
other parties bring it to an end? Should not our goals be to prevent
further shedding of INNOCENT blood? Should the blood of those 20,000
be shed in vain, a prelude to even worse violence? Would it not be
minutely possible that they might be happier to know that their blood
had at lease brought some good to this wretched forever fueding world
by making people search harder for solutions? In advocating a search
for the root causes, I hope it will not be seen as "rewarding" those
who commit such crimes, but something that NEED TO BE DONE to prevent
recurrence. Those who commit or assist in terrorism need to be
brought to justice. These are difficult questions, forgive me if this
causes more hurt. Perhaps we may have a chance to elaborate later.
Perhaps this list need a minute of silence.

Peter