This
was the question I was greeted with when I woke my 7-year-old
daughter this morning.
“What
makes you say that?” I asked, trying to disguise my irritation at whatever or whoever placed that idea in her head. I
fully expected her to tell me that she heard it on TV, and that the
perpetrator would be Mike Huckabee or Pat Robertson, or perhaps
someone from the Westboro Baptist Church claiming it was God's
retribution on the people of Connecticut for allowing gay marriage.
“Obama
said so,” was her answer.
What?
“Honey,
I'm pretty sure that whatever he said, he didn't mean that God wanted
them to die.” I decided that this may be a good learning moment,
and that we could research online exactly what Obama said and figure out
what he meant.
When
we found details from the speech he gave at the Newtown prayer vigil, I
was speechless. After reading the names of the murdered children, Obama clearly stated:
“God
has called them all home.”
Really?
The horrifying slaughter of 20 young children by a disturbed
individual is the will of God?
I
struggled for words... suppressed my nausea (and an urge to unleash a string of expletives)... and searched for an explanation that would not cause
further fear and confusion.
I'm
still searching.
Thank
you President Obama. Thank you for perpetuating and reinforcing the
same pathological ideas espoused by those who blame disasters on
“fags” and long for a theocracy.
And
thank you, sincerely, for providing me with another learning
opportunity - as soon as I figure out the best way to explain to a
7-year-old that our President is a self-serving panderer, and that
she doesn't need to live in fear that God may “call her home” the
next time she goes to school.
God did not do this, he was not allowed in the school.
ReplyDeleteYeah, how did God stop the kids getting molested in Churches again? Oh wait...he didn't. Pretty sure he's allowed there.
DeleteMy creator or 'god' if you like, never stopped nor created any of the evil within the churches, I say the churches were not made to worship 'god' just as the vatican does not worship the entity we percieve as god. The churches are forefilling their intended purpose well..... Control & 'satanic' sexual abuse. we (as a people)have allowed this to happen by accepting the spoon fed bullsh*t we recieve daily from the media and never questioning it. Only when we accept responsibility for ourselves and our omissions can we ever find remedy. Basically while we are blaming god, jesus, allah or anyone else for that matter, we are lacking the fundamental wisdom needed to create a better life for ourselves and eachother
DeleteThe tides are now turning, Like the Hopi said We are the ones we have been waiting for. No 'god' or creator can come save us.... we have the intelligence and the capability to make change for ourselves and eachother.
Love & Light to All
And thank you Bob for an insighful read, Your daughter sounds a very wise little lady, luckily for her she has you whom takes the time to help her find the answers she seeks, good on you. We need more 'parents' to take the time to nurture their children and we will create a generation of loving, happy and wise children :)
DeleteSeriously? way to twist somebody's words. That phrase has been used forever, and it doesn't mean anything sinister. Just another one who tries to criticize Obama every chance they get. Sick.
ReplyDeleteYou win the most logical fallacies in two sentences contest.
DeleteJust because something has been used historically, doesn't make it right. Corporal punishment was seen as a healthy way to discipline our children, leeches were used as a medical treatment, etc. This is called the "argument from antiquity" or "argument from tradition".
The article doesn't state or imply that using the phrase is "sinister". This is the "straw man" fallacy.
Attacking the author instead of the argument is an "argumentum ad hominem" fallacy.
The phrase "calling one home" implies that the death was God's will. Sure, most religious adults will consider it a harmless turn of phrase, but quite obviously some kids will take it literally. It's akin to using the term "put to sleep" to refer to euthanizing a pet. To a child, that phrase can imply that the pet will wake up, and when it doesn't, the child may relate sleeping with dying; neither which serve any purpose other then potentially instilling confusion and fear.
God dosn`t exist.. it`s only a fairytale! Wake Up Amerika!
ReplyDeleteIn a way , you're right. God DIDN'T kill those children, the shooter did. But if you believe in God, then you must also believe that everything that happens is God's will, right? Isn't that what the Bible teaches? So either your daughter is absolutely correct or you tell her that God doesn't exist and that people are either just good or bad (which is my beliefs). Unless you can come up with something else... The world is a scary place and we all learn that sooner or later.
ReplyDelete