The Man Called 'Islamic Martyr'

Some highlights from the resume of Saddam Hussein, the man some are calling a 'Martyr for Islam.'

1978-1979- Up to 7,000 Iraqi communists were executed by orders of the Ba'athist regime.

1982- The specific atrocity for which Saddam was hanged: 148 Shias were murdered in the village of Dujail.

1984- Up to 4,000 political prisoners in Abu Ghraib jail were tortured and killed. Saddam's favored methods of torture included cutting off genitalia, gouging out eyes and acid baths.

1980-1988- Some 1.7m died on both sides during the Iran-Iraq war, started by Saddam.

1987-1989- At least 100,000 Kurds were slaughtered in the so-called Anfal campaign. Some were gassed, others cast alive into mass graves. 1988 On March 16, in the worst single atrocity of the Anfal campaign, 5,000 Kurds were killed when Saddam ordered planes to drop a mixture of mustard gas and the nerve agent sarin on the town of Halabja.

1991- Tens of thousands were killed as Saddam attempted to put down a popular rebellion following his defeat by the US-led forces in February 1991. More than 100,000 Shias were killed; a similar number of Kurds died. About 200,000 Marsh Arabs were killed or made homeless.

1993-1998- About 3,000 prisoners were machine-gunned to death at Mahjar prison in central Baghdad.

Another Year Of Insanity Draws To A Close

What do Saddam Hussein, Jimmy Carter and gay sheep have in common?

Why, Dr Sanity of course!

The year 2006 is yielding to time. Because most of you will make a pitiful effort to celebrate the New Year's arrival and behave even more stupidly tonight than usual, Dr Sanity rides to the rescue with a classic, year end edition of Carnival Of The Insanities.

That's right- no matter how much of an ass you make of yourself tonight, Santy Claus brings your revolting, stupid and crying in your beer behavior the gift of anonymity. Hard as it is to believe, there are people out there that make even you and your wildly exaggerated borderline personality disorder look like the picture of mental health.

This year, Dr Sanity will be inducted into the SC&A Institutes's Hall of Fame. She has also been awarded a fellowship at the SC&A Institute, for her creative use of psychotropic drugs, restraints and cattle prod techniques. After her 3 year stint of research at the SC&A Institute, her intent is to publish her findings, tentatively titled, Dungeons: The Appropriate Use Of Sensory Deprivation And Appropriate Levels Of Moisture Content And Electrical Conductivity.

We wish Dr Sanity the best of luck in her research, and as a gesture of our appreciation, we present to her a pair of well grounded, designer electrician boots.

Carnival Of The Insanities- shockingly good!

SC&A Predictions For 2007

In keeping with spirit of the season and because the high voltage power line to the ECT room seems to short circuiting (a situation that must be corrected before midnight so that we might participate in the midnight fireworks display), we at the SC&A Institute find ourselves with a few moments to spare.

In the spirit of the season, we would like to offer up our insightful and correct predictions for 2007:

Sex will remain a popular pastime (that is, for everyone but you or your partner).

Arab scientists will not be awarded a Nobel Prize Prize in 2007, after losing by a hair to researchers and scientists from 180 other nations. The Arab League is petitioning Stockholm for a new award, Jew Hating. That is the one field in which the Arab world has excelled at for decades.

Arab world scholars will gather at a conference funded by Mohammed Fayed to declare that Saddam is indeed alive.

George Bush will resurrect a high school acting role and appear in a Shakespeare production of Hamlet, as a tree.

Not to be outdone, John Kerry will will resurrect his high school acting role appear in a Shakespeare production of Hamlet, reinterpreting the role of Claudius as that of a French, gay, well coiffed, oppressed man who served in Vietnam. In this groundbreaking performance, Claudius is shown to love himself more than Gertrude (that bitch).

Barack Obama will question why there are so few acting roles written by Shaespeare in medieval times for African American actors. Jesse Jackson will sue.

Arnold will not be mistaken as speaking with a British accent.

James Brown will cease to 'feel good.' In fact, he will cease top feel anything.

Dick Cheney will go hunting with an air rifle. Secret Service agents will drop dead ducks from a helicopter.

In 2007 Al Gore will try a goatee and monocle. Notwithstanding his efforts, he will again be at a loss as to why he did not secure the Democrat party nomination.

Isabella Rossellini will make known her true love, the one dead psychiatrist she finds 'electrifying.'

Insight and brilliance are wonderful things.

Babies, Puppies, Kilts And Why Spelling Counts

Oh, baby, baby!

Taking the puppy away...

No order in the courts!

Must have been headwinds...

The kilt business has never been better...in French Canada

Why The Left Loves Saddam

Selections from the Times of London obituary of Saddam Hussein:

"Saddam Hussein was a tyrant whose actions brought down unimaginable catastrophe on Iraq and its peoples. From an early age, he had enjoyed inflicted suffering on those around him and, when he came to positions of political power, those whom he could not force or corrupt into submitting to his will, he maimed, murdered or made to flee.

He started two major international wars - one against Iran, the second as a result of aggression against Kuwait - which cost an estimated one million lives. He instituted genocidal campaigns against the Kurds in the north of Iraq and the Marsh Arabs in the south. Ruling through the Sunni minority of which he was a member, he ignored the claims of the country's majority Shia population...

Saddam appeared to have psychopathic tendencies which, combined with the exacerbating circumstances of his absolute power, resulted in the killing of more fellow Muslims, possibly, than Genghis Khan and Tamberlaine had caused between them in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries...

A fervent admirer of Hitler on account of the latter's boldness and hatred of Jews, he told his official biographer in 1980 that he wanted Iraqis to think of Nebuchadnezzar every day. "We could march into Palestine and bring all those Jews here in Babylon with their hands tied behind their backs once more", he said...

Saddam's schooling began at the age of seven in Tikrit. Such was the lawless environment around him that, on his first day at school, he carried a steel bar in his hand and a loaded revolver in his pocket, the latter bought for him by his relatives. A year later, his uncle, who had fought on the side of a pro-Nazi coup in 1941 and who had started a bus service in Tikrit, took him to Baghdad for the rest of his primary and secondary education, and Saddam acquired a surname, Tikriti...

An incident from this period of "peace" with the Kurds that typified Saddam Hussein's methods occurred when a group of Muslim clerics were urged by the government to visit the Kurdish leader Mustafa Barzani in his mountain stronghold "to build goodwill between Arabs and Kurds". The secret police persuaded the clerics to conceal small cassette recorders under their robes and switch them on as soon as Barzani spoke. The devices exploded, killing the clerics and a Kurdish soldier serving them tea...

...Saddam was convinced that all international protests about human rights were designed solely to extract commercial concessions, and that no atrocity of his risked serious punishment. He believed that Western powers would not oppose his acquiring of nuclear weapons, since they had allowed him to buy chemical weapons technology and had apparently turned a blind eye to his agents buying nuclear triggers and fissile material, often with money borrowed from themselves under such guises as credit for agricultural products.

Read more about the hero of the left, here.

Saddam And The Left, Swinging From The Tree, K-i-s-s-i-n-g...

Predictably, much of the left is in a frenzy over the trial and execution of Saddam, because for the first time in a very long while, they, like he, have been exposed for who and what they are- enablers and perpetrators of evil.

The hysteria and chest beating over the execution of Saddam is nothing more than narcissistic theater, designed to camouflage the frenzied demise of that fantasy of moral superiority. Like that great narcissist of our time, that former President they worship, many on the left have been exposed as moral impotents. To justify their existence the left need the trappings and phony good intentions of a pseudo-morality rather than substance of real morality- that ability to draw a line in the sand and commit to defend what is right. They need the equivalent of a cigar or other proxy to finish their self serving drama in the hope that no will will notice their diminished capabilities.

The pattern is clear, unmistakable and oft repeated. As the left screams about the execution of Saddam, they only highlight the truth that they don't really give damn about the victims of evil and never have. The Arab world has imposed the death penalty (outside the regularity of extra judicial killings that kill thousands each year) for centuries. Why is it now, with the execution of Saddam, that the left finds Arab capital punishment so abhorrent? Do not the doctrines of multiculturalism and moral relativism apply? Aren't the regional cultures of the Middle East equal to our own? What is it about the execution of one man the left finds so intolerable, even as in excess of 100 million women have been subjected to Female Genital Mutilation, with not a word from the 'progressives'?

Much of the left highlight their moral impotence and indifference when it comes to Darfur. There are no voices from the left for the victims of the Janjaweed any more than there were voices from the left that spoke out for the victims of Saddam. There are no voices from the left decrying the Iranian mullahs repressive regime and their support for terror. There are no voices castigating the Saudis and their bigotry and more than there were voices from the left that spoke out about Taliban bestial behavior in Afghanistan. The fear, intimidation and murder that is a hallmark of the Allawite regime of Assad clan is ignored as is the pornographic behavior of the Palestinians, masquerading as a civilized society that is equivalent to the society the Israelis have built.

The true (im) moral center of the left is exposed every time the perpetrators of the evil or genocide are brought to justice. The track record is hard to ignore. The left have become Holocaust deniers. Like 'academics' David Duke or David Irving, the mantra of the left has become one of blaming the victims or holding blameless the perpetrator. They will declare that Saddam had nothing to do with the evil and genocide that defined his 30 year tenure as dictator of Iraq, or the evil never really happened, or the Americans or Israelis or all Jews everywhere were really to blame. To the left, the victims, like the truth, matter little.

It is a cultural and moral imperative to fund an Iraq Holocaust Museum, as quickly as possible, because the same kind of morally bankrupt and evil worshipers of evil will deny Saddam's crimes as those who deny Hitler's crimes. Of course, much of the left will oppose that very idea, as they opposed the establishment of the Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC., much in the same way they desperately want a museum at New York's ground zero to highlight and emphasize America's evil and culpability that lead to the attacks of September 11, 2001.

In the real world where words and behavior do count, there are absolutes- real absolutes. One of those absolutes is that evil must be extinguished.

Suppose Adolph Hitler not committed suicide in a Berlin bunker in 1945. Would it have been better if the beast that authored so much evil and the final destiny of 50 million poor souls, were to have spent 50 years in prison? Would today's American left have ‘felt’ better if there were a trial, whereby Hitler might have defended his own evil? Would they have ‘felt’ better that Hitler might have been allowed a platform to publicly present his hate, camouflaged as scientific and legitimate, or the result of some evil 'conspiracy,' and then be sentenced to life?

Keeping Saddam alive would be no different than keeping Hitler alive. Each would have become icon, a living saint and rallying point for purveyors of evil everywhere. Notwithstanding his death over a half century ago, Hitler still serves as an icon for sick and demented individuals. Saddam will be an icon too, for those who hate.

The absurd centered ‘nobility’ in opposing the death penalty for Saddam points to no added credibility in this particular argument. If anything, that admission puts the left into conflict with more far recognized and respected moral authorities- Elie Weisel immediately comes to mind. The self serving pompous liberal ideology that somehow, ‘justice’ for Saddam would be served if he were not executed, is absurd.

Saddam was no more a common criminal than was Adolph Hitler. Saddam, like Hitler, was the embodiment of evil. His crimes were not committed out of some self serving need or moment of passion. The evil and genocide were a direct extension of the evil and hate he espoused, promulgated and implemented. Evil isn’t a crime and evil isn’t self serving. Evil, is by definition the real multicultural truth: the intent and destiny of evil is to destroy all morality and all culture and all society, everywhere. Support or turn a blind eye to evil in one place and the virus will spread.

The Anchoress rightly agonizes over the execution. Her post is deliberate and in fact, not deserving of much of the knee jerk reaction that has come her way. She notes in The Execution Of Saddam Hussein:

Saddam is clearly an evil man. But evil men have - throughout history - been turned, “converted” by the Holy Spirit. I know John Paul II preferred we err on the side of mercy and assume God’s not done working on anyone of us.

I cannot say I am sad that Saddam will die. I only wonder what it means in the higher realms of heaven, and here on earth, for us.

My wonderings on all of this are not conclusive - there are merely wonderings. These are big questions...

Death, even for those most evil, is a sobering and meaningful event. Death is not ever to be administered lightly, even when we rid ourselves of evil. Nevertheless we are obligated to remove evil from our midst. We are obligated to rid ourselves of the virus that will kill us all. That is part of our bargain with God and part of the bargain we have with each other. That kind of Justice does not only serve God’s laws and Dominion- that kind of Justice serves us even more.

Cancers of hate must be excised- there is not one single example of evil that has been talked into submission. Time and time again, the cost of doing nothing has been incalculable.

The Arab world that refuses to celebrate the death of Saddam only highlights the truth that they are infected with that virus of evil. The fact that it took outside forces to remove Saddam- something the Arab world itself should have done, long ago, only serves to highlight Arab world moral bankruptcy. That moral bankruptcy is highlighted everyday throughout the region as millions honor Saddam as an 'Islamic hero.' What does it say about a culture and region that cannot bring itself to respect a freely elected national unity government in Iraq, preferring instead to lionize a purveyor of genocide and evil? What does it say about the left in this country and the west that deliberately espouse those very same values?

Saddam killed over 2 million Arabs- far more than have died as a result of their 50 year conflict with the Israelis. Palestinians, true to form, supported Saddam the beast till the end and mourned his loss- as if Saddam were the embodiment of the ideal Arab and Muslim. The cost of loyalty is cheap in the Arab world. All that is required is to legitimize dysfunctional behavior as honorable.

The dysfunction of Saddam's legacy is profound and highlight the depth of that surreal detachment from reality. Saddam's daughters steadfastly defend the purveyor of evil, and present him to the Arab world as a 'martyr' of hero. They make no reference to the cascade of death Saddam oversaw for decades. They make no reference to the beast that had their husbands murdered. It is clear Saddam's daughters have no shame. In their world, family loyalty not only excuses the evil, it defends evil.

The last living direct relatives of Adolph Hitler changed their names and went into hiding. Some of Hitler's descendants have spent their lives helping others and all have lived honorable and decent lives. By some accounts they chose not to have children so that the bloodline that brought so much evil into this world might die out. It has been said that they were afraid some purveyors of evil might come and venerate their descendants and elevate them to messianic figureheads of yet another evil agenda.

The Germans, with few extreme exceptions, have rejected Hitler and his ideologies. Contrast that with the behavior of Saddam's family, the Arab world and the left, where supporting Saddam and other leaders of his ilk are not only widely accepted as a righteous cause, but reason for violent and evil Jihad.

Denial in the Arab world and on the left runs deep. In the crisp, cold light of reality, it is clear that neither the west nor Israel humiliated Arab world, notwithstanding the desperate desire of the left and Arab world for that to be true. In fact, it was and remains the inability of the Arabs to rid itself of tyrants like Saddam that continues to humiliate the Arab world.

An even greater shame is that the Arab world have come to defend the tyrants and despots that have caused decades of failure in their societies. Perhaps the greatest shame visited upon the Arab world is how they have allowed the likes of Saddam Hussein and the other tyrants and despots in the region come to redefine the religion of Islam so as to reflect their evil political and ideological agendas. It is as if Hitler were to remake and rework all of Christianity to serve his evil and ideologies.

Like the Jews that marched silently into the 'showers' at Auschwitz without resistance, so too march millions of Muslims into the newly redefined Islam. The difference between themselves and the Jews is clear. The Jews marched to their death only, never relinquishing their faith to evil. The Arabs stood by silently as they watched their religion decimated.

The proof is in the pudding- how is it that 'evil Islam' came into being under the patronage of tyrants and despots? How is it left that abhors religious thought and expression, has come to supports the 'evil Islam,' created, endorsed, supported and sharing the values of tyrants like Saddam?

In Divine Justice, Dr Sanity makes clear a certain reality, one that is almost heartbreaking in it's clarity:

...Saddam Hussein is an individual who takes no responsibility for any of the suffering and pain he deliberately inflicted on many thousands of Iraqis. Nor do I think he suffers much guilt or remorse for his actions. In fact, he is simply incapable of any psychological insight or self-awareness of the forces within that motivate his brutality and arrogant malignancy and entitlement.

One of the definitions of justice is "conforming to truth, fact, or reason" and, as a psychiatrist, I like to think of psychological insight as a sort of divine justice that implacably forces an individual to become aware of even the darkest parts of his or her soul.

Dr Sanity's words cut to the heart of the matter. It is clear that as of now, the Arab world, the left and all the purveyors of evil are refusing to 'conform to truth, fact, or reason,' and as a consequence, there will be more heartbreak, more denial, and more death.

'Only the good die young and the dictators live forever'

Bitter irony and humor that hurts.

Shed no tears for Saddam.

'Not finding a sunken Spanish galleon laden with gold, doesn't mean that ship doesn't exist.'

As another year comes to a close, introspection becomes as instinctive as breathing. We look back at our successes and our failure and those dreams we achieved and those that have faded or remain elusive.

No matter our religious affiliations, this time of the year encourages not only an examination of personal ourselves, but an examination of our spiritual selves.

In God Knows Why faith Is Thriving, Dineesh D'Souza addresses those who are obsessed with others who profess belief in God. The authors of The God Delusion, refer to belief in God as a 'virus of the mind.' D'Souza writes:

In the secular account, "You are the descendant of a tiny cell of primordial protoplasm washed up on an empty beach 3 1/2 billion years ago. You are a mere grab bag of atomic particles, a conglomeration of genetic substance. You exist on a tiny planet in a minute solar system in an empty corner of a meaningless universe. You came from nothing and are going nowhere."

In the Christian view, by contrast, "You are the special creation of a good and all-powerful God. You are the climax of His creation. Not only is your kind unique, but you are unique among your kind. Your Creator loves you so much and so intensely desires your companionship and affection that He gave the life of His only son that you might spend eternity with him."

Now imagine two groups of people -- let's call them the Secular Tribe and the Religious Tribe -- who subscribe to one of these two views. Which of the two is more likely to survive, prosper and multiply? The religious tribe is made up of people who have an animating sense of purpose. The secular tribe is made up of people who are not sure why they exist at all. The religious tribe is composed of individuals who view their every thought and action as consequential. The secular tribe is made up of matter that cannot explain why it is able to think at all.

Let's examine the effects the idea of God has had on society- and conversely, let's look at the effects of a society where God plays no meaningful role. D'Souza notes:

Across the globe, religious faith is thriving and religious people are having more children. By contrast, atheist conventions only draw a handful of embittered souls, and the atheist lifestyle seems to produce listless tribes that cannot even reproduce themselves.

Russia is one of the most atheist countries in the world, and there abortions outnumber live births 2 to 1. Russia's birth rate has fallen so low that the nation is now losing 700,000 people a year. Japan, perhaps the most secular country in Asia, is also on a kind of population diet: its 130 million people are expected to drop to around 100 million in the next few decades. And then there is Europe. The most secular continent on the globe is decadent in the literal sense that its population is rapidly shrinking. Lacking the strong Christian identity that produced its greatness, atheist Europe seems to be a civilization on its way out. We have met Nietzsche's "last man" and his name is Sven.

Our own cultural biases towards non belief are the result of the secularist notions. Freedom from religion is preferable to freedom of religion. Secularists will argue and point to an unforgiving and oppressive God- exactly the kind of God that no longer exists in the Judeo-Christian ethic (it bears noting that the Islamic fundamentalist idea of Allah is exactly like the kind of religion to which secularists are so opposed- violent, malevolent and oppressive. That said, there are few is any progressive secularists that will confront that reality). It is precisely because the Judeo-Christian belief system is so unlike what the secularists believe, that religion is thriving. They cannot 'argue' a believer out of his or her faith, so they resort a legal system that accommodates their biases against religion.

It is clear that in any discussion of faith vs non-belief, the vast majority of us have to be talked out of our belief in God. Our instinctive beliefs point to a deity, however we define that deity or spirituality.

In other words, belief is God appears to be a more natural state of affairs than non belief. Notwithstanding the inevitable (and shallow) arguments that belief in God is for weak people, and other such arguments, ad nauseum, the fact remains that while we may all argue over exactly what He/She/It is, the 'numbers' tell the story. It is reasonable to believe each of us is born with that inherent belief structure.

In their attempt to talk believers out of their faith (an almost religious obsession for many), non believers will argue about injustice and inequity, about the dark side of religion and a thousand and one other such notions (as if secularism has provided anything other than an even greater amount of darkness). They want to engage believers, in an attempt to shake the faith of believers. There is the decidedly illusory notion that secularists feel that they are on even standing when discussing faith. They are not. In fact, a secularist arguing against faith is like a botanist insisting to a zoologist that their fields of study are the same.

There is no point in arguing, no point in defending belief in God. It may make us feel good, as if we are assuming the role a hero, but in truth, as noble an endeavor as defending faith may be, in the end, it is like trying to describe a painting to a blind person- or, as the Chinese say, "A frog in a well cannot be talked to about the ocean."

Some people will be forever comfortable in their wells. They are safe in the well and they retain control in their well. It is for them best to argue and debate the size and shape of the walls that contain them.

Believers look into the skies at night, and they know. Believers see a sunrise or sunset, and they know. Believers know that they don't know everything or have the answers to all the questions. Believers also know that it doesn't matter.

When a believer hears the ocean, he or she hears the same sound that God heard at creation. Whether it is that rhythmic soft sound, as water laps the shore or the mighty roar of the waves crashing in on each others, the believer understands he or she is hearing the sounds of the Creation event. Believers are instinctively drawn to those sounds, to reflect and ponder a mighty greatness. Whether it is the ocean, mountains or any other manifestation of nature, believers listen- and know.

The non believer engages the believer precisely because he knows that his questions can never be answered. The non believer is safe that way- he never has to worry about having to defend his position- it isn't as if God is likely to announce himself and put to rest the inquisition of the non believer. In his own mind, the non believer is safe from being held accountable or responsible- not so much from his actions, but rather, his inactions. To the non believer, life has no special purpose or meaning. There is no sense of obligation- non believers does not understand that his or her life is another necessary chapter to the Creation story, a chapter and legacy that can reach and influence those that come after they are gone.

Believers cannot explain that mystery.

In the end of course, we must allow for God to do His work and we must focus on our own.

We must do what we can to be better. We must focus on our relationships with our fellow man. We must bring them close and when need be, push them away. We must focus on the balance that effects and defines us. From Ecclesiastes:

To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under the sun.

A time to be born and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

a time to kill and a time to heal ... A time to weep and a time to laugh;

a time to mourn and a time to dance ...A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing;

a time to lose and a time to seek; a time to rend and a time to sew;

a time to keep silent and a time to speak; a time to love and a time to hate;

a time for war and a time for peace.

These words are as true today as the day they were written. They are logical and they reflect truths we all know.

There are days believers feel lost and alone. There are days that believers are angry- so angry that they will curse God. Even at that point, they still have to talked out of belief in God.

Those days, are part of the landscape of the spiritual journey we all take. Believers have weathered them before and will face them again. Every believer confronts those kind of days (see The Anchoress, here) and as bitter and weighty as those travails get, believers would not, in the end, trade those burdens for a moment of non belief.

In the course of time and long after we are gone, others will withstand and suffer the same agonies.

There are days that all believers struggle with belief, injustice and evil. 'Oh Lord, why hast Thou abandoned me,' is universally understood- and felt. Those days require faith, not lack of faith.

Non believers would argue that belief in God is a kind of crutch- and it is in that argument that we can see that they do not understand the meaning of 'faith in God.' In fact, real faith is assuming a burden, obligations that would otherwise be ignored. The Jewish notion is particularly illustrative- it is one of assuming 'the yoke of Heaven.'

With real faith there is no respite from those obligations. In fact, the obligations and 'ascent' are unrelenting. There is a never ending field that must be plowed so that who follow the believer will find spiritual nourishment and meaning. There are no vacations from the obligations believers assume.

Those believers who struggle with those beliefs at one time or another, are the real people of faith. To struggle with faith is as much a part of faith as anything else. We wrote in Mundane Sanctity that

In our humaness, we are clothed with finite attire- we cannot divine the mind of God. When we demand absolutely certain truth, we are attempting to play God. We may believe that there are absolute truths, but in fact, we are bound by our understanding at the moment. Scientific truths alter as our understanding alters.

If we presume we can understand the ‘absolute truth’ about God, we are destined to fail in our desire to know God and to accept God as God. The ‘absolute truth’ about God changes as we come to understand ourselves, our world and even others.

That ‘absolute truth’ can never be corralled or understood because only God is ‘absolute.’ As humans, we are the opposite of absolute. We can be ‘good’ and ‘bad,’ we can be ‘more’ or ‘less.’ For us to exist as God’s creations, we must know joy and we must know suffering. We need to succeed and we also need to fail. We are meant to be less than perfect, because it is through our imperfections that we find ourselves and our potential.

God treasures our spiritual achievements. He treasures our failures along the way even more, because in facing and overcoming our failures, we have shown that we are indeed worthy of the humanity He bestowed upon us. We are not meant to become perfect in our struggle and search for meaning and faith- we are meant to overcome the limitations, imperfections and obstacles along the way.

Relating to God is about relating to that most human side of ourselves.

The Lonely Man of Faith (please read the link to Crosscurrents), by JB Soloveitchik is one of the most moving and profound essays on faith we have ever read. He discusses both the 'Majestic Man' and the 'Man of Faith'- and how both are 'fulfilling the word of God.' The impact of Soloveitchik's words still resonate deeply. The following is from an essay on that book:

Still, both worlds, Soloveitchik says, are willed by God. It is therefore our destiny —and more importantly, our responsibility to recognize our loneliness, to recognize the distance between the two worlds. Only when we recognize our inability to create and secure our own home can we recognize and proclaim faith in God'’s unique redeeming power. The real crisis then is not our loneliness but our failure to recognize it.

The truth is that there is no one truth (that is, there is no single spiritual journey ("The loneliness of the man of faith is an integral part of his destiny from which he can never be completely liberated "), anymore than there is one kind of love. That should not preclude anyone from seeking God. It is also true that God manifests himself in ways and in the language that we understand- each of us.

There are many sunken treasure ships that litter the ocean floors, that have never been located. Not finding a sunken Spanish galleon laden with gold, doesn't mean that ship doesn't exist.

The treasure of faith is to be found in good men of all faiths. If the path or the sound of the ocean is clear and unmuffled, follow it. If it isn't, seek out the path, over a lifetime, if necessary. Not finding the path does not mean that path doesn't exist, either.

This post was originally published on October 23, 2006.

Necessary Rerun: Hating Ourselves To Death:The Environmentalist Demands

As the climate change mujahadeen and jihadis are increasingly under fire ("We tried for years – decades – to get them to listen to us about climate change. To do that we had to ramp up our rhetoric...), we thought we would revisit our analysis of how the climate change ideologues come into conflict with societal and cultural realities.

How deeply can one hate oneself? Can we hate ourselves to death?

If you look around the liberal blogosphere and what passes for liberal thought today, we are all going to die soon. Global warming, use of fossil fuels, and depletion of fresh water by humans, are but a few examples of how we are ruining everything, forever. James Howard Kunstler solemnly states that 'this is a much darker time than 1938, the eve of World War II.' Jared Diamond (we wrote about his book, Guns, Germs and Steel) has a new book out, Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Survive, in which he places us on the precipice of a total societal collapse. These writers and the media are bombarding us with doomsday scenarios. Oil depletion, global warming, bird flu, are the result of human selfishness, cruelty and moral depravity.

The extreme liberal version of The Book of Revelations and the Apocalypse contains no possibility of redemption. There will be no future. We greedily gambled away our future, they tell us. We consume too, much, we have too much technology and worst of all, we are 'playing God.' Sin will not lead to the fall of man (morality is after all, 'relative') , but rather, our fall will be attributed to our own shortcomings.

They have spoken, and so shall it be- or so they would have you believe.

Of course, the media is never far from wanting to be the center of attention. To that end, media scare stories about the scope and scale of human destruction appear with the regularity of Big Ben. Every high school dropout nitwit and prior life High Priestess or Egyptian princess with a computer can head up an advocacy group or political action committees- and demand to be listened to. The media are only too happy to oblige.

Every time a fish or bug goes extinct (evolution notwithstanding), human activity we are told, is to blame. It doesn't matter one bit if the charge is true or not. We are guilty of 'ecocide'- a crime that exceeds the Holocaust and nuclear war. Man is nothing more than a predatory species to be hated.

The proud and spectacular monument to mediocrity, Al Gore, has found a cause he can appropriate. In an attempt to ('blame the people' and) reinvent himself, Al Gore rails on about the evil 'human impact' on the environment. He envisions 'a violent destructive collision between our civilization and earth.' The reality that man has developed a civilized society- music, literature, science, medicine and everything else that contributes to great societies, seemingly escapes those who want to see man destroyed. Today, building a better mousetrap is suspected as being evil. Using animals to test for a cure for cancer is unacceptable (though we suspect that might be looked over in the search for the HIV or AIDS cure).

In fact, man has been exploiting the earth since the dawn of time. Vegans have the luxury of being vegans because our ancestors killed animals, ate meat and engaged in wars. Grandma can get the best medical care possible because we used our will, talent and drive to build a society that made hospitals and medical care a priority. Notwithstanding all that shared DNA, we are not chimps. In fact, given the opportunity, those cute chimps would just as soon eat us.

That's called nature.

Humans are a part of nature- a most important part. We meant to use all those those things in nature that are available to us. Do we hate ourselves much- and do we have so much hubris- to believe that we are not a part of nature?

Are there ecological issues that must be addressed? Of course there are. That said, too many are perfectly happy to see mankind as the problem and focus on bestowing the scarlet letter. Whatever problems we must address, we are in fact, the source of the solution- and it is for that we need to be recognized and not as the 'cancer' on nature. The solution will not be realized by reducing populations and redefining human values (To be sure, those slated for 'elimination' do not include those who support the idea. Surprise).

In fact, from a historical perspective, man's greatest achievements have come about as the result of dealing with the situation at hand and not by 'killing off' the problem. Those who hate mankind have no faith in imagination, possibilities and the human capacity to achieve, progress and reach an ever greater potential. Greatness is never arrived at from despair or self hatred. In fact, the proponents of man as the 'cancer' of nature are no different than racists. It is they who decide what and who are of value and it is they who wish to decide the future of others. If your grandmother is ill, she too, becomes disposable. If your child has chronic asthma, well, he or she is less than perfect. If the rest of us who are healthy are a 'cancer,' one can only imagine how much value is placed on those less than perfect, or those who might be different. We know about that, firsthand.

Peter Singer notwithstanding, mankind is not the equivalent of other species, anymore than other species are equal to each other. Those notions came about as the result of moral relativism making no headway in the real world. Unable to declare all humans and all human behavior equal all the time, we are now asked to believe we are equal to other species.

Here's another secret: We are perfectly capable of feeding ourselves and then some. The real problem lies in distribution and corruption. There are those who hate mankind so much they would rather see populations die than solve political divides and corruption.

It's one thing to have no faith in God. It's another thing entirely to have no faith in the potential of man. We are being asked to believe that we, as a species, are capable of great achievements in every field, except when it comes to addressing environmental concerns. We are incapable of solving our problems and so, we are subject to elimination. We have to hate ourselves- in reality, because those who demand that we do, hate themselves.

What crap.

For more on climate change see The Economist's The Truth About The Environment and SDA's "We Wonder If We've Oversold The Science."

Also, see Fausta's Again, There Is No Consensus On Global Warming and Science, Politics And Death, for starters.

Reality Roundup

Courtesy of Kate (she who knows all, when it comes to what's hot and what matters the web) of Small Dead Animals, comes the another 'reality roundup.'

In this post, Kate links to the future. Hillary Clinton has plenty to be concerned about, because Bill might be on the prowl again, with non other than a prominent Canadian politician. The good news is that Bill seems 'more interested in her money than her breasts.' Is that a cause for celebration? Does that mean Bill be breaking out the cigars sometime soon?

Kate notes that the MSM 'emperor has no clothes' in this post. She links to a piece by Josh Trevino that exposes the spectacular failure of the media to report news of the goings on in Somalia, and the blatant efforts to replace news with opinion.

The Ethiopian invasion of Somalia proceeds apace, and from all reports, it proceeds at a much faster clip than anyone -- including me -- expected. Western journalism is struggling, and failing, to keep up.

Kate highlights the hysteria when it comes to climate change. The BBC reports on climate porn. Then, there is this overview of the American Geophysical Union conference:

...{We tried for years – decades – to get them to listen to us about climate change. To do that we had to ramp up our rhetoric. We had to figure out ways to tone down our natural skepticism (we are scientists, after all) in order to put on a united face. We knew it would mean pushing the science harder than it should be. We knew it would mean allowing the boundary-pushers on the "it's happening" side free reign while stifling the boundary-pushers on the other side. But knowing the science, we knew the stakes to humanity were high and that the opposition to the truth would be fierce, so we knew we had to dig in. But now they are listening. Now they do believe us. Now they say they're ready to take action. And now we're wondering if we didn't create a monster. We're wondering if they realize how uncertain our projections of future climate are. We wonder if we've oversold the science. We're wondering what happened to our community, that individuals caveat even the most minor questionings of barely-proven climate change evidence, lest they be tagged as "skeptics." We're wondering if we've let our alarm at the problem trickle to the public sphere, missing all the caveats in translation that we have internalized. And we're wondering if we’ve let some of our scientists take the science too far, promise too much knowledge, and promote more certainty in ourselves than is warranted.}

There is more here, from the BBC.

Lastly, Kate recounts a story out of her own backyard.

...a former New Zealand special forces member, face up to 15 years in a Lebanese jail after leading a five-man team to reunite Melissa Hawach with daughters Hannah, five, and Cedar, three.

As well as holding Canadian and Australian citizenship, Hannah and Cedar are considered Lebanese citizens, giving their father Joseph rights to their custody under Lebanese law.

Missing Children's Society of Canada executive Rhonda Morgan said on Monday that the five men did only surveillance work and were not involved in the seizure last Wednesday of the girls from the car park of a hotel in the resort of Jounieh.

Ms Morgan said the two Australians and three New Zealanders offered their services to Ms Hawach, whose father Jim Engdahl is the president and chief executive of Great Western Minerals Group and a former vice-president of Barclay's Bank in Canada.

However, Lebanese police sources said yesterday that Mr Pemberton, the alleged team leader hauled from a plane at Beirut airport with Mr Corrigan last Wednesday, was initially approached via an email asking him if he wanted the job to rescue the girls, taken to Lebanon by their father at the height of the July-August Israeli-Hezbollah war.

As the children remain hidden in Lebanon, there are questions that need to asked- and answered.

What kind of father uses his children as pawns? What kind of society endorses that kind of behavior? Be sure to click on the links Kate provides.

Lost Souls: Organized Feminism In The 21st Century

Where did feminism go wrong? One only has to look to women themselves to see the divisive issues that feminism has laid bare. We have decided to revisit the issue and add a few more thoughts to some ideas we have had.

Feminism remains controversial- even among it's proponents, because of the ferocity of many of it's adherents. Feminism has become a 'take no prisoners' proposition, no matter what the issue. The original, driving force behind feminism, choice, seems to be a forgotten, if not pesky attribute. The feminist establishment has morphed into an ideology that excoriates women who don't view politics, religion, sexuality and even motherhood in the way they do. Women who dare disagree or offer up different ideas are labeled traitors. Even the word 'rape,' once used to describe that vicious and heinous crime of violence committed against women, is now appropriated by some women (and others) with different and varying agendas, to describe what they believe are other injustices. Disagree with them and you become an adversary.

In the wake of the suffragette movement, feminism could have- and should have, become one of the great human rights movements in history. The empowerment of women to the equal status of men, had the potential of tremendous change for the good in our society. Instead, the orthodox feminist movement has become one of the great divisive and explosive issues of our time. To understand why feminism imploded is to understand the confluence of events that conspired to result in a great divide in our society.

Understanding the origins of feminism is necessary and clarifying.

There was a time when a man was measured by how well he took care of his family. Who he was and his worth, as an individual within his society, could be clearly measured.

Man left his abode in the morning and went to the fields to tend his crops or went to the forest to hunt. His first priority was to provide the necessities of life, to provide for his mate and children. His mate was responsible for maintaining the the home and raising the family. It was a partnership, plain and simple. One could not exist without the other and raise a family. The description, while simplistic and incomplete, is essentially accurate, for the purpose of this discussion.

The advent of the Industrial Revolution, begun in 1789, heralded great changes.

A man's worth, value and status, were now measured by what he did for a living. His work defined him. The clearly defined equilibrium within the partnership changed. His worth- and self esteem, was no longer measured by how well he took care of his family. That he no longer had to tend his fields or hunt, to take care of his family was a mark in status and resulted in a change of attitude.

Man became identified by his job title or career. He was a somebody, contributing to society, he would say. Every day he went off to work, was to serve as a pointed reminder that her status had not changed. He was part of the new times and she was not- and he never let her forget it. Her role remained essentially unchanged. As time went on and the changing world made no room for her, she became even more disenfranchised.

Of course women wanted to participate and contribute as equals. In truth, who could blame them? In point of fact, men were as contributory to the demands of feminism as anyone else. After almost 200 years of exclusion, women had enough and said, 'My turn, I want to contribute.'

To no one's real surprise, the original feminists left the home and entered the work force. They challenged and often bested men in their own environment. Women learned the game and the rules and became so adept at beating men and replacing them, they often forgot who they were. where they came from. many also forgot the real goal of feminism.

The real goal of feminism wasn't to have women deny their own gender, but rather the goal was to be equal to men in opportunity. The goal wasn't to be men, with all their failings, but to prove that could equal and often excel and thus contribute to an higher ideal.

Proteins aren't the same as carbohydrates-- yet they both have caloric values and necessary nutrients. To negate that balance is to negate a chemical reality. Women and men are inherently different- a biological dictate. Neither is superior or inferior. To negate that reality is to negate a biological reality.

In negating those truths, feminism has failed miserably.

Instead of serving to elevate women, feminism grafted onto the same failings as men. Rather than offer a higher ideal, feminists focused on being better men. Thus, they chose to be forever 'also rans,' in the attempt to negate themselves and their identities.

While it is true that feminists have achieved much for themselves to date, they have also lost much. For too many women, motherhood is still a second class endeavor. With a straight face, feminists will tell you that being home and raising children is of no consequence to the child's development. Men they say, are not needed to raise a child.

For many feminists, careers and status, they say, is the path to 'fulfillment.' They choose not to discuss the legions of women who wanted it all, only to find out it was too late, to have a family- and are now bitter at having ignored their biological clock. Many feminists choose not to talk about the legions of children who desperately want a father figure in their lives- sons and daughters. Instead, they extol the anonymity of test tube 'donors.'

Feminists want talk about everything but matters of real substance. There is no position or focus on rights other than abortion or their chosen political ideologies- and that, in truth, is more about men than it is about anything else.

There are no higher moral ideals spoken of. Where are the women standing up for women being raped in Darfur, for example? Where are the protests on the Washington Mall decrying equal rights for women in third world countries, suffering horribly at religious and cultural discrimination?

According to the UN, there are in excess of 100 million women that have suffered from FGM (Female Genital Mutilation). Read that number again. Apparently, it isn't an issue feminists really want to put on the front burner. However, 'Sex in the City' is praised as a breakthrough for women. The irony and bitter pill of women basking in their own selfish sexuality cannot be lost on the victims of FGM.

Even as FGM is ignored, feminists, apparently, are still busy trying to gain membership in the Augusta National Golf Club or delighting in a Washington state NARAL 'Screw Abstinence Party,' even as AIDS is decimating female populations in Africa.

Is it any wonder so many young women are uncomfortable with the morality of feminism? Instead of meaningful and relevant dialogue, organized feminism has come to be defined by 'vagina monologues.'

Along with the ability to think, comes the ability to change ones mind and make different choices. There can be no lockstep groupthink if feminism wishes to be considered anything other than just another run of the mill political movement.

Human nature being what is, change does take time.

If feminists really want to regain any kind of moral high ground, they would be best served by addressing who they really are and striving toward those higher ideals, rather than choose to be identified by what they do in ' a man's world.'

We men could learn a lot from that.

This post contains material originally published on April 29, 2005.

From The Author of SC&A: "When did she grow to be a beauty?" And Secrets Fathers Share

My daughter has gone from playing Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star to playing Chopin.

My little girl no longer bangs at the keyboard, legs dangling from the piano bench, glaring, focusing and concentrating with her tongue unconsciously sticking out, determined to hit every note. Now, my daughter sits at the piano, poised and with unconscious gracefulness and plays Chopin, with her eyes closed, transported to another place where she finds peace, beauty and meaning.

"Isn't that the most beautiful thing you've ever heard?" she asks. "Can you feel the music, daddy?"

There was a time I read my daughter stories at bedtime that enthralled her. "You can't stop now!", she would exclaim, "I need to know what happens! How will I fall asleep not knowing what happens next!"

Now, my daughter plays music that enthralls me. Now, it is I that does not want her to stop playing the music.

My daughter is growing up. She doesn't need 'daddy' in the same way she needed me before. She doesn't need to be dependent on me for everything. 'Because I said so' is no longer an rationale that ends an argument we might be having.

In many ways, she is still a child. That said, it is clear that she is leaving childhood behind her and becoming an adult. She is no longer testing the waters of independence. She has taken her first independent steps on the unmarked road that will define her life. I am glad those steps are firm and not tentative. She knows right from wrong. We are lucky, her mother and I. Nowadays, that appears to be a lost survival skill.

There is much I have to be grateful for. She favors her mother in many ways. My daughter is beautiful, talented kind and full of grace, that ethereal quality. I also see much of grandfather in her. She carries herself with a quiet dignity and is modest in character and deed. She has my father's humor, gentleness and steely resolve, when needed, all in the right proportions.

She understood what it was to be a good friend from an early age, unlike myself, if those things can measured. Her classmates are loyal and they seem to enjoy her company. She instinctively knows when to take center stage and when to allow and encourage others to do the same. Those left on the periphery, were always brought close. Once, when she was 7 or 8 years old, she came home all beat up. One of the 'ugly girls' in her class, barely tolerated, was victimized when she got glasses. My daughter defended her friend with the determination of Teddy Roosevelt going up San Juan Hill. From that bloody battlefield a friendship was forged and that gangly and awkward 'four eyes' grew into a lovely young lady, now headed for Oxford. I don't know who is more grateful for the events of that bloody day- the Oxford beauty or myself.

She is learning to love- that other kind of love. Like all fathers even the thought of the inevitable pain she will endure as she learns about love and loss, is a knife that pierces into my heart. I don't want her to suffer, even when it is best she does. Still, I resolve myself to the necessary truth. I wish her as little or as much pain as she needs so that she might find that kind of love that will help fulfill her destiny. I dread and rejoice at the very thought of that.

It will be bittersweet when that time comes and she has found another to love- and count on. I hate the truth that she already knows that there will be another, even more important man in her life. I also know she and I will always be close. Her new love will not diminish what we have and will continue to have, any more than another child diminishes the love a parent has for their other children. The heart is a remarkable, never ending fountain.

In a few short years, my daughter will forget the secret we share, as she must. The lyrics to I Loved Her First hit the mark:

Look at the two of you dancing that way
Lost in the moment and each other's face
So much in love you're alone in this place
Like there's nobody else in the world
I was enough for her not long ago
I was her number one
She told me so
And she still means the world to me
Just so you know
So be careful when you hold my girl
Time changes everything
Life must go on
And I'm not gonna stand in your way

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But it's still hard to give her away
I loved her first

How could that beautiful women with you
Be the same freckled face kid that I knew
The one that I read all those fairy tales to
And tucked into bed all those nights
And I knew the first time I saw you with her
It was only a matter of time

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But it's still hard to give her away
I loved her first

From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
Someday you might know what I'm going through
When a miracle smiles up at you
I loved her first

As I listen to her play Chopin, I still see that little girl with legs dangling from that piano bench.

The Anchoress post, 'Listen,' (I read that everyday) has taught me about another great lesson and truth about what it means to be a parent. Sometimes, music is isn't just about the music. Listening to my child play that music opened up a whole new world to me.

Fathers of daughters develop a secret and special ability to see the woman before them and the little girl that adored them, at the same time. We don't talk about that, ever, because fathers need to believe that gift is special, unique to them. Fathers know that gift comes about as a result of loving their daughters with every single fiber of their being.

Like Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof, I cannot answer the question, "When did she grow to be a beauty?"

It just happened, thank God.

Dough, Booty, Bells And Cabs

When some cops need money for the holidays.

"For Christ Sakes, It's Christmas Eve," and other minor miracles.

"The bells, the bells... "

Blow on the dough.

Trading booty for the movies. Yeah, like that's gonna work.

Delusions, Projections And Apes In Tuxedos

That bastion of Arab rational thought and fine example of Arab ‘journalism.’ the Khaleej Times, has published an editorial, Mums The Word, an editorial that attempts to put a rational face on Holocaust denial.

That much of the world’s Jewish community continues to nurse psychological wounds from the much-reported Holocaust is understandable considering that according to popular opinion, it threatened to practically finish them off, and that too in the most gruesome manner. But there is a fine line between advocating justified sympathy and muscling all and sundry into acceptance of what is their own version of the episode, true or concocted notwithstanding.[emp SC&A]

The editors at the Khaleej Times just can’t help themselves. Instead of completely distancing themselves from the horrors of the Holocaust, the editors of the paper assume a kinder, gentler David Duke kind of racism- as if wearing the garb of ‘academic scholar’ might somehow transform the reality of the Holocaust and make them less racist and bigoted. It bears repeating that the recent ‘Holocaust Conference‘ scholars were not exactly from mainstream academia, and that the vast majority of these ’scholars’ and their supporters, deny the Holocaust are usually the same people that think that a Holocaust against Jews is a good idea.

The editorial goes on to embrace more repulsive and flawed logic- as if putting an tuxedo on an ape might disguise reality.

What is it that has pushed the Zionist lobby to the verge of paranoia, if not into it? Having suffered one of the worst known human rights abuses on record in the Holocaust, they should be eager to encourage rather than shun research and analyses into it. If their claim is right and true, what other could be unearthed by those looking into it?

In the mind of the writers, it is only the ‘Zionist lobby’ and the Jews that accept the Holocaust as reality. As far everyone else is concerned they would have you believe the the jury is still out. Never mind German acceptance of their part in the crime. Never mind the testimony of thousands of Axis and Allied soldiers that bears witness to the horrors and crimes that rained down not just on Jews, but on Gypsies, homosexuals and the mentally infirm. Never mind the millions of meticulous documents kept by the Germans themselves, outlined and recorded the horrors of that time. The editorial writers can barely camouflage their belief and the beliefs of much of the Arab world with any more success than David Duke can camouflage his own bigotry. We’ll finish the job Hitler started‘ is a common refrain in the Arab world- and putting tuxedos on apes can’t hide that.

Finally, the editorialists, like all apes in tuxedoes, give in to their real nature- and expose themselves for what they are.

It bears noting that this iron-fist no-questions-asked approach is widely reflected in the Israeli character. Truth be told, history will judge them as gross violators of human rights themselves, hardly becoming of a people that have suffered injustices. It does not take genius to figure out that only those with something to hide discourage debate and reason, especially in the modern age of much trumpeted freedom of speech. Unfortunately though, it looks as if for such topics it’s going to be ‘Mum’s the word’.

Clearly, there is an attempt to project the worst possible Arab world failures on Israel and the Jews. The record of modern day Arab world dysfunction and failures will be recorded as some of the most monumental failures in the history of man. As we have noted on more than one occasion,

Had the Arab world done for itself only 10% of what Zionism did for Israel, that Arab world would not be the greatest assemblage of failed nation states in the modern world. A clear and final case for the morality of Zionism is the racism, that permeates the region and every level of society in the Arab world. As we have noted, hatred of Jews, America and Israel are the achievements of note in the Arab world…

It is not the Israelis or the Jewish community that have turned the Holocaust into an unstoppable machine designed to oppress the Arab world. Rather, it is the Arab world that have desperately latched on to the Holocaust and Holocaust denial as means and method of perpetuating and justifying Arab world cult of victimhood. It is the Arab world that uses the Holocaust as an excuse for their failures.

The Jewish cousins of the Arabs are despised for another reason. In creating the State of Israel, the refugees from a smoldering Europe went on to build a modern, democratic state, with world class educational facilities, institutions and a vibrant economy. In the short span 50 years the Israelis ‘made the desert bloom,’ and created a forward looking and modern society that has made enormous contributions to the achievements of mankind. They did in those 50 years what the obscenely oil rich Arab nations could not do in 2,000 years- and will be unable to do for the forseeable future. The Arab world, in it’s self inflicted blindness, continues to fall behind on every scale of human achievement that has been devised. As we have noted, the only are in which the Arabs have managed to distinguish themselves is hating Jews, Israel, America and democracy.

We also noted that ‘Jews remembering the Holocaust and remaining ever vigilant to the lessons that must be learned from that horrible time, is very different from the Arab world needing the Holocaust and subsequent Holocaust denial, so that they might create a reason for centuries of failure, despair and denial.’

The editorial writers had the opportunity to excoriate the bigots and Holocaust deniers. They had the opportunity to embrace dignity for themselves and the rest of the Arab world. After all, the Arab world for the most part, had nothing to do with the Holocaust. They could have pointed a finger at the Christian west and said, ‘Look at what you have done!’ Instead, they chose to identify with and embrace perpetrators of the crimes.

One only has to see that for decades, what has been taught in Arab world schools, broadcast from Arab world media and what is preached from Arab religious pulpits, has come to define much of Arab society and culture.

In discussing David Irving and Holocaust deniers, we wrote,

The denial of the Holocaust is a license for the other truths and atrocities to be denied. It is a fact that those most anxious to deny the Holocaust are themselves guilty of either participating in atrocities, encouraging atrocities, funding atrocities or turning a blind eye to atrocities. That is why Holocaust denial is so important to them.

Deny the truth of one Holocaust and you open the door to deny the truth of others.

Perhaps the editors of the Khaleej Times would care to discuss the barbarism in Darfur, Algeria, East Timor and a host of other places. Of course in their world, those things never happened.

If the writers of that Khaleej Times editorial are so concerned about free speech, they would not have protested the Danish cartoons. If the editorial writers are so concerned about academic freedom and academic research, surely they would not protest Quranic research and critique about the early days of the Prophet and the religion. They would have no objection to undertaking research into why violence and death are claimed by so many adherents of that religion, right.

Along the same lines, surely the editorial writers at the Khaleej Times would not object to an analysis of Arab world leaders and regimes. After all, there have been far more deaths that can be attributed to the dysfunctional Arab world than there can be attributed to Zionism.
Anything less would be ‘widely reflected on the Arab character,’ right?

As is often the case, it appears that the only ones unaware of the apes in tuxedos, are the apes.

Once More: Of God, Faith And Ice Cream

Merry Christmas to all!

As we celebrate those events that have come to influence our culture, our lives and the lives of all mankind, it is especially appropriate to consider our faith, family and our place in the cosmos.

One of the great arguments against religion is centered around the matter of faith. It is argued that faith has two faces. One face is passive, the other is dogmatic- that is, at times, faith requires blind obedience.

If faith were so easily explained, religion would reside in a museum, a curiosity of the pre modern man.

Of course, faith is much more than either a passive acceptance or fuel for a Godly Jihad or Crusade.

More than anything, faith highlights the onus we each have to determine our destiny. Faith is what imbues us with the dignity that is uniquely human- and it is in that humanity that we assert ourselves as partners with God.

Now, we are nor declaring partnership in the literal sense- that we are equal to God, but rather, we are partners in that it is incumbent upon ourselves to fulfill our destinies as best we can. We are partners with God, because unlike any other creature, our efforts and intentions not only change our own destiny, but we can impact the destiny of those around us.

For some, faith is the strict reliance on God and God alone. Man plays no part in his own destiny. In reality of course, the opposite is true. Man’s destiny is determined by his involvement in taking responsibility for his own life. We partner with God on the sacred stage of life. It is our own participation in that determines the quality of our performance. For the few short moments that is our lifetime, we are in the limelight. Faith is the script that places as much responsibility upon ourselves and fellow man, as it does on God.

In interacting with God and our fellow man, we can change the world we live in. Therein is the nature of our partnership.

Of course, we need to refine the definition of partnership. Our partnership with God is not all encompassing. We are not partners with God in all Godly affairs. We are partners with him only in those things that effect our lives and our destinies. We understand that we are not God’s equal- we are but a partner with Him in our own lives. God does not answer to us. In the end, we still answer to him. Why? Because God does not need us a partner- we need Him as a partner.

That is not to say that within the framework of the partnership, we have no influence. We certainly do- so much so that we can even change the terms of the agreement. For example, after the Great Flood, God promises Noah that He will never again destroy the earth. Abraham strikes a bargain with God, who agrees not to destroy the Sodom and Gomorra if he can a few righteous men. Moses argues with God on numerous occasions, on behalf of his people and himself.

Just as we need to appreciate God as our Deity, He appreciates our nature as human beings. We can reason, argue, debate and sometimes, we cannot come up with an answer. That is who we are- and God allows for and accepts that, as we argue for own destiny. Our partnership with God is not supposed to be passive. We are meant to participate in our faith, as partners, and not just sit back and allow that faith to change our very nature as humans beings.

There is always an imbalance, of course- there has to be. As noted, we are partners, not equal partners. A parent loves an infant or child and hovers and protects that infant or child. That is a simple love. In more complex relationships, there are whole other set of ground rules.

In mature relationships, we can come closer in defining our relationship with God. In a healthy relationship, we understand there is a balance between closeness and space. Nurturing love accounts for both those dynamics. As close as a couple might wish to be, there is an understanding that each need the space of individuality as well as the closeness of the oneness.

So it is with our relationship with God. We- and He- need the closeness and space. We need to do for ourselves and those around us that which betters us, together. That is in effect, the partnership we have with God. We too, must contribute so that our own destiny and the destiny of those around us, benefits us all.

God gives us the opportunity of making a difference in our own lives, in a very micro and personal way. We are presented with choices everyday, that can make a profound difference in our own lives and the lives around us.

Here’s an example. A father wanted to find special ways to bond with his daughter. Fathers think about that sort of thing. Anyway, what this father did once a month was to have an ‘ice cream emergency.’ What the father did was wake his daughter up at 11 or 12 O’clock at night and insist she hurriedly come to the kitchen- there was an emergency. The ice cream had to be eaten before it melted! Needless to say, there was laughter and good times- and good memories. That went on for years.

Well, that little girl is a teenager now- and she talks about the ‘ice cream emergency!’ as if it were yesterday. To this day, whenever that girl and her father are together, she insists on having an ice cream emergency!’ It is a bond they share. She insists that she will do the same for her kids and that father has been asked more than once by her friends if the ‘ice cream emergency!’ might accommodate a few strangers. That silly ritual it seems, struck a chord with more than a few people.

The simplicity of the ‘ice cream emergency!’ does not diminish the significance. It brings together father and daughter with the common understanding that sometimes, the smallest of things can make a big difference in someone’s life. Over time, the daughter will no doubt understand what that really means.

So it is with faith. Sometimes, a little bit goes a long way. God is not looking for our partnerships to result in earth shattering changes. Maybe it is enough that our partnership yields enough so that our own participation results in a our making this world a better place, for ourselves, our kids and if we’re lucky enough, their kids too.

God wants us to participate in our destiny and the destinies of those around us. If we choose to have faith that can make a difference, we have held up our part of the bargain. We are created in His image, after all. We have the potential within us, to exceed ourselves and capabilities and to make a real difference.

This post was originally published August 2, 2005.

The Nutcracker Suite

The time is fast approaching. Holiday tunes are being played on the radio, or are being hummed off key and insincere phone calls exchanging best wishes for the holidays and upcoming year are made with old friends. Have you ever noticed that all the old friends you pretend to like but really abhor, drive nicer cars than you and are richer than you? Have you noticed that no one ever confuses their mates with Neanderthals and none of them have children that come home with unexplained blood on their clothes or exhibit any symptoms of future serial killers? Have you ever wondered how come their house is alway 'spic and span' clean, and you always seem to smell like you are wearing eau de toilette bowl cleaner?

Not to worry. The celebration of your generosity, good taste, decorating and creative expressions is almost upon us. While that has nothing to to do with the real meaning of Christmas, it doesn't matter. You've laid out that Martha Stewart outfit (holiday apron and over cute 'outfit' or that Paris Hilton ensemble (anything that highlights and emphasizes that not so well hidden slutty and whorish side of you) zone. You are ready. The family will appreciate your goodness, hard work and psychotic, driven efforts, to make this yet another perfect holiday for another perfect family of unappreciative and ungrateful losers (how could they not appreciate you??)

Men are not so burdened by Christmas. All the holiday means is a a shower, clean underwear and the commitment to restricting the butt crack display altogether or limiting the display to any one he categorizes as an 'in-law' (the most spectacular displays ususally occur just prior to meal time).

Well, not to worry. Dr Sanity's Carnival Of The Insanities, Christmas Edition, comes to the rescue and proves once more that there are far crazier people and families out there. If there is anyone that knows crazy, it's Dr Sanity. Every Sunday you can count on Dr Sanity to bring you the best examples of crazy, insane, absurd and psychotic- all designed to make you feel 'mainstream' and part of the human collective, for a few moments each week. This weeks Christmas Edition of the Carnival Of The Insanities is a particularly significant effort in identifying the insane, made even more significant with the consumption of alcohol. After a few hours of holiday cheer, rather than gather around the yuletide log, suggest everyone who hasn't yet passed out, gather around the computer and spend some time revisiting previous editions of Carnival Of The Insanities. Everyone can partake in the fun as they get to see themselves as you see them.

The SC&A Institute shuts down each year, for the holidays. Patients are furloughed to the mothers, fathers, families and homes from with their dysfunctions took root and blossomed. The professional staff take well deserved vacations this time of the year.

Now, while we have no objection to the inmates running the asylum, we do mean to change the No Significant Gratuities For The Professional Staff policy. After a week and a half back home, the SC&A Institute 'Home For The Holidays With Placebo Medication' program ought to get that message out.

Finally, SC&A would like to wish everyone a healthy, prosperous and power outage free year.

Thank You For Your Family Holiday Videos

The SC&A Institute would like to extend a thank all our past, present and future patients (that includes just about all of you). The generous contribution of your family videos, will be included in an SC&A Institute research project.

The project, Dysfunctional Families and the Holiday Season, when completed, will be a landmark and defining study of your family.

No children, pets or grandparents were hurt in the research phase of this study.

We'll try harder next time.

Monsters From Within, Monsters From Without

The war on terror and the fight against the radical Islamists beg more than a few questions.

Firstly, we need to define who are we fighting. We also need to understand what it is we are fighting. We need to confront another question that needs an answer: Are we fighting a religion, a 'civilization,' a culture or something else?

The answer to these and other questions are important because if we do not or cannot answer those questions, we cannot possibly prevail in our efforts. While that doesn't necessarily mean we will lose militarily, it does mean that that we will not be able to define what 'winning' really means. That is already happening in Iraq. There is nowhere near a consensus as to what 'winning' really means. To some, it means the cessation of violence. To others, it means a democratic state. To others, it means eradicating the terror groups. To still others, it means getting out, no more. There are a thousand variations and combinations of those ideas.

In a recent email exchange with Fausta, we were asked about the origins of widely accepted terror as an acceptable form of political or religious expression- 'How did this come about? How can so many people find meaning in participating in or supporting acts of evil?'

In this day and age, those questions are not simply an expression of varying view points. Those questions define those who would choose to live in a medieval world long gone , versus those who choose to live in the here and now, dealing with reality(as we have noted in a recent Sanity Squad podcast, "Imagine living an entire life as a psychotic episode?")

It is clear that even not so fundamentalist Muslims are uncomfortable with secularism. Does that also mean a rejection of modernity? How are secularism and modernity distinguished? On the surface they may be easily separated, but in fact, when examined under real world conditions, the distinctions become blurred. The resistance to secularism is an explicit rejection of secular values, morals and principles. There are no shortages of voices emanating from the Islamic world that denounce the western evil of secularism. America and American Christians, Israel, the Jews and anyone else who has the temerity to denounce radical (and in some cases not so radical) Islamist demands. Recently, we saw efforts by mainstream Muslims in Denmark demand a separate legal system that would apply only to themselves. In Indonesia, plans are being drawn up that would allow the world's largest democracy to enforce Sharia Law in place of civil law for non Muslims.

The struggle against modernity is much more subtle and not so easily defined, because it is a struggle against change. Modernity has given us everything from the western notions of politics to functioning economies. Modernity has impacted social and cultural mores, even in Muslim countries and it is modernity that Muslim societies, influenced by dysfunctional religious and political leadership, fear most.

Understanding the distinctions between modernity and secularism are critical.

Modernity is much like the Industrial Revolution- a redefinition of the process and methodologies and no more. Modernity is about redefining and improving the technologies that influence and impact how we live our lives.

Secularism on the other hand, is an ideology. Like capitalism, communism and religion, the rules can be changed as the game is played. For example, some Muslims like to equate the violence found in much of the Islamic world to the violence of the Old and New Testaments. That would nice if the analogy were applicable. Religious violence of biblical proportions hasn't been a part of the Judeo-Christian ethic for 1000 years, because secularism has influenced the west, western thought and religious thought. To date, secularist thought has barely touched the Islamic world and ongoing medieval violence is still a part of modern day Islam.

The chasm between the modern day Judeo-Christian ethic and Islam is huge.

As globalization becomes more and more of a reality, the questions of secularism and modernity becomes more relevant. Can the Muslim world adopt modernity and reject secularism? The answer is not clear. On the one hand, one has only to look at the history of the Church to recognize there was indeed a strong rejection of secularism. Eventually, the Church 'righted' itself and adopted the kind of secular influences that were to elevate religious thought.

Radical Islam has assumed the face and costume of militancy and violence, not the face of theology. The gun- and frenzied use of the gun, has become a part of the faith. This of course, is clearly antithetical to Judeo-Christian values, moral and principles (The Church never advocated the butcher and slaughter of all non believers). Democracies do not settle differences with violence- and in large measure, that is why the Islamists reject dealing with us. The Islamists are willing to engage us violently because they believe that secularism abhors conflict- and thus, we are theirs for the taking. They understand they will not have to face equal or violent consequences of their actions. That in itself is one definition of the 'Clash of Civilizations.'

That is why they oppose a peace deal with Israel, real democracy within the Palestinian Authority, Iraq or anywhere else in the region. In their minds, democracy, freedom and peace means that secularists have asserted their dominion over Islamism. That notion is intolerable- and as many as need be will die preserving the illusion that democracy, freedom and peace are evil and in opposition to Islam. They deliberately define democracy as a religion in opposition to Islam. That is why their opposition to democracy is so fierce. To believe in democracy is to be apostate and thus, deserving of death.

Modernity is also suspect is the Muslim world. We can define modernity as the change brought about by self expression, higher education and modern economies that function efficiently and seamlessly. Ayatollah Khomeini resisted modernity, as do the Saudis, ostensibly for religious reasons. That said, Saudi ideologies are roundly rejected by countries like Morocco, Jordan, Egypt and Syria. They reject modernity because modernity, like secularism, favors democracy.

The rejection of modernity also explains the indifference the Arab world has to education and functioning economies. Failed and dismal Arab world education levels and economies are of little and no concern to Arabs because education and functioning economies represent the reality of a real future. Recognizing and anticipating the future is an integral part of modernity. The future is a reality the Arab world has consciously rejected, by word and deed.

Healthy societies do not naturally reject the future and modernity. Every parent does what they can to address their children's future and to ensure they the future well prepared. That is how society functions and perpetuates itself. Children are the future and it is incumbent on us to ensure their success. It is also incumbent upon us to do what we can to leave a better world for our children- a concept not at all understood in much of the Arab world, for decades led by dysfunctional political and religious leaders. How this dysfunction operates needs to be understood.

In fact, the Arab world has made clear their intent and desire to return to the past, and not have to face the future. Facing the future means the Arab world would have to be held accountable for their dysfunctional behavior that has made poverty and failure a part of the Arab world reality of today.

Children want to please their parents. What does it say about a society where a parent applauds a child's bigotry, hate and violent tendencies? What does it say about a society where that bigotry, hate and violence are taught in schools? What does it say about a society where parents approve of such educational priorities, and then has those priorities reinforced by media and religious instruction? The tragedies of these dysfunctional societies cannot and will not be overcome easily.

Samuel Huntington makes clear the cost of rejecting modernity. Turkey, a candidate for EU member status has the highest has a population of sixty million and has a GNP equal to that of Denmark, with a population of five million- and Turkey is the most successful Muslim nation in the region. Any shift by Turkey towards Islamism (already a reality and bolstered by Arab world, Islamist-centric satellite broadcasts) will result in that country's economy slow deterioration. The standard of living for Turks will drop as education levels drop and will unlikely recover for decades.

The Arab world is a galaxy away from the 'Turkish way.' Certain realities, already widely reported, bear repeating: The Arab world translates about 300 books a year. Greece translates about 1500 books from foreign languages into Greek in the same 12 months.

The degree of the self imposed isolation of the Arab world can be put another way. The total number of books translated since the 9^th century numbers about 100,000. That is equal to the number of books translated in Spain every year. To be clear, there are far more books translated into the Spanish language every year. In 12 centuries, the Arab world has translated 100,000 books- the same number of books translated in Spain each year.

The Muslim world deliberately attempts to reshape and redefine the conversation, blaming America and Europe for their failures. In fact, much of the attempt is deliberately misplaced. There is an attempt to discredit 'Orientalism' as as legitimate attempt by westerners to understand the Islamic world. In fact, the Europeans went to study and learn about the Islamic world. The Islamic world could not be bothered to do the same, to learn and come to understand the western world.

In the 19^th and early part of the 20^th century, Europeans learned the various versions of Arabic, Turkish and Farsi. Muslims did not study English, French or German. While Istanbul was chock full of Europeans engaging in trade, there were no equally motivated Turks in Europe. European embassies were crowded together in Istanbul. There were no Turkish embassies anywhere in Europe for decades.

When the Arab and Islamic world look to point the finger and assign the blame for their failures, they immediately point to the English, the French, the Americans and of course, the Jews. They are satisfied with that. They never look in the mirror or look to what they can do now, to fix the problem. Many are happy to see guns and bombs directed at the west. That they believe, is a form of justice- and it eliminated the reality of tremendous Islamic failures.

In the need to create a 'monster,' to rally a rationale for isolationism. America is the obvious choice. To any thinking person, that of course is absurd. America can no more impose modernity on any society than can Japan, Korea or the Chinese. The market place of free economies and the market place of the free exchange of thoughts and ideas will determine the face of the future. If the Arab and much of the Islamic world is to 'catch up' with the west, modernity will have to be a part of that society and culture.

Christianity learned from it's failures. The wars and hardships of a culture and society forged reforms (another word for deeper and a more meaningful understanding) and a bond with modernity. Much of Islam has yet to learn those lessons.

In the interim, we will remain 'at war.' We will remain at war for decades. When the 'mission' will be 'accomplished,' will be determined by generations that will follow.

The sooner we understand what and whom we are fighting, the sooner we will emerge victorious over our adversaries.