I Wish We Had A President Who Could Lead Like Abdullah

[Esmeralda]

Now, this is what a really leader does. Too bad we have Squire Trelane in the White House. Contrast the Abdullah's actions below with Obama trading five terrorists for a deserter and calling out the Crusades as a reason why we are no better than ISIS.


In less than a week, Jordan has transformed itself from a bit player in the war on terror to a moral beacon of why we fight — because it's ultimately a struggle of good versus evil, and good must win.

It began with King Abdullah's fiery vow to make the "earth shake" against terrorists who'd just murdered a 26-year-old Jordanian pilot from a prominent tribal family, as the king's red and white Bedouin tribal attire reminded Jordan's mourning citizens.

The king also morally delegitimized the terrorists, saying they had zero claim to the name Muslim — powerful, given that the king is a direct descendant of Muhammad. He was buttressed by Jordanian officials, who called the terrorists "daesh" — a derogatory word in Arabic that's as nasty as it sounds, and one that IS hates.

Then there was the swift execution of two death row terrorists that IS had sought in bad-faith negotiations for the pilot they had already murdered, done swiftly, just as Jordan had warned would happen.

There were also photos of the king suited up in his pilot's uniform, giving an unmistakable impression of medieval single combat unlike anything seen since the Middle Ages (even if the king didn't fly on the mission).

There was the king's moving expression of compassion for the grieving family in their humble Jordan village, with the king and Queen Rania offering comfort and assuring them that their son's death wasn't in vain.

As bombing missions took off, with the warning to the terrorists that they were now "meeting the Jordanians for the first time," half of Jordan's air force flew over the humble village of the murdered pilot to assure it what the mission was about.

And, matching the terrorists' propaganda-film tactics, the Jordanians also released a film — theirs, of IS targets being blown away by Jordanian forces, which at last count left 55 terrorists dead on the desert floor.

There's a word for this: victory. As the West dithers under the weak leadership and wavering resolve of the Obama administration, the Jordanians, however small and threatened they are as a nation, have injected the force multiplier of moral passion into their war effort....[/]

Jordan s King Gets Medieval On Them - Investors.com

LMAO And this comes from the people who repeatedly say, what are we doing in the ME, we need to mind our own business. As well, the US is supporting Jordon's limited air force with far more fighter jets than they have. What do you miss, the fiery rhetoric of King Abdulla? Words are cheap; actions mean a lot more. What a bunch of idiots you RWs are.

It's not surprising that the import and meaning of what Abdullah does flies right over your pointy little head.

People of character and passion simply make her green with envy...


I crack Myself up....

People like her elected Obama, so clearly she shares his lack of values.

Obama made of point of showing us during the prayer breakfast that he can't see evil for what it is. He compares Christianity with ISIS. For the most part what Christians have done throughout history is hurt sinner's feelings. What was the worse thing that could happen to you if you're a member of a Christian church? Be ex-communicated? With ISIS you get burned alive.

Bullshit! Christians have murdered millions of people throughout history. For example, the death toll from four centuries of the Atlantic slave trade is estimated at 10 million.

 

[NYcarbineer]

Now, this is what a really leader does. Too bad we have Squire Trelane in the White House. Contrast the Abdullah's actions below with Obama trading five terrorists for a deserter and calling out the Crusades as a reason why we are no better than ISIS.


In less than a week, Jordan has transformed itself from a bit player in the war on terror to a moral beacon of why we fight — because it's ultimately a struggle of good versus evil, and good must win.

It began with King Abdullah's fiery vow to make the "earth shake" against terrorists who'd just murdered a 26-year-old Jordanian pilot from a prominent tribal family, as the king's red and white Bedouin tribal attire reminded Jordan's mourning citizens.

The king also morally delegitimized the terrorists, saying they had zero claim to the name Muslim — powerful, given that the king is a direct descendant of Muhammad. He was buttressed by Jordanian officials, who called the terrorists "daesh" — a derogatory word in Arabic that's as nasty as it sounds, and one that IS hates.

Then there was the swift execution of two death row terrorists that IS had sought in bad-faith negotiations for the pilot they had already murdered, done swiftly, just as Jordan had warned would happen.

There were also photos of the king suited up in his pilot's uniform, giving an unmistakable impression of medieval single combat unlike anything seen since the Middle Ages (even if the king didn't fly on the mission).

There was the king's moving expression of compassion for the grieving family in their humble Jordan village, with the king and Queen Rania offering comfort and assuring them that their son's death wasn't in vain.

As bombing missions took off, with the warning to the terrorists that they were now "meeting the Jordanians for the first time," half of Jordan's air force flew over the humble village of the murdered pilot to assure it what the mission was about.

And, matching the terrorists' propaganda-film tactics, the Jordanians also released a film — theirs, of IS targets being blown away by Jordanian forces, which at last count left 55 terrorists dead on the desert floor.

There's a word for this: victory. As the West dithers under the weak leadership and wavering resolve of the Obama administration, the Jordanians, however small and threatened they are as a nation, have injected the force multiplier of moral passion into their war effort....[/]

Jordan s King Gets Medieval On Them - Investors.com

LMAO And this comes from the people who repeatedly say, what are we doing in the ME, we need to mind our own business. As well, the US is supporting Jordon's limited air force with far more fighter jets than they have. What do you miss, the fiery rhetoric of King Abdulla? Words are cheap; actions mean a lot more. What a bunch of idiots you RWs are.

It's not surprising that the import and meaning of what Abdullah does flies right over your pointy little head.

American F-16 and F-22 jets provided security to the Jordanian fighter planes, with additional support from refueling tankers and surveillance aircraft, US officials said.

Jordan US France Intensify Anti-ISIS Operations Following Murder Of Pilot

You people are such idiots. The US and other countries are supporting Jordan. You people have said time and again, why aren't the Muslim countries in the ME fighting against ISIS instead of expecting us to do it. Now one country is doing it. You are such hypocrites.

What is the OP suggesting, that we invade another ME country like Bush did with Afghanistan and Iraq, ending up with thousands of American deaths? You people are such idiots. Can't repeat it often enough.

The only reason the RWnuts want Obama to get us deeply embroiled in the ME again is so they can ridicule him.

 

[Moonglow]

Now, this is what a really leader does. Too bad we have Squire Trelane in the White House. Contrast the Abdullah's actions below with Obama trading five terrorists for a deserter and calling out the Crusades as a reason why we are no better than ISIS.


In less than a week, Jordan has transformed itself from a bit player in the war on terror to a moral beacon of why we fight — because it's ultimately a struggle of good versus evil, and good must win.

It began with King Abdullah's fiery vow to make the "earth shake" against terrorists who'd just murdered a 26-year-old Jordanian pilot from a prominent tribal family, as the king's red and white Bedouin tribal attire reminded Jordan's mourning citizens.

The king also morally delegitimized the terrorists, saying they had zero claim to the name Muslim — powerful, given that the king is a direct descendant of Muhammad. He was buttressed by Jordanian officials, who called the terrorists "daesh" — a derogatory word in Arabic that's as nasty as it sounds, and one that IS hates.

Then there was the swift execution of two death row terrorists that IS had sought in bad-faith negotiations for the pilot they had already murdered, done swiftly, just as Jordan had warned would happen.

There were also photos of the king suited up in his pilot's uniform, giving an unmistakable impression of medieval single combat unlike anything seen since the Middle Ages (even if the king didn't fly on the mission).

There was the king's moving expression of compassion for the grieving family in their humble Jordan village, with the king and Queen Rania offering comfort and assuring them that their son's death wasn't in vain.

As bombing missions took off, with the warning to the terrorists that they were now "meeting the Jordanians for the first time," half of Jordan's air force flew over the humble village of the murdered pilot to assure it what the mission was about.

And, matching the terrorists' propaganda-film tactics, the Jordanians also released a film — theirs, of IS targets being blown away by Jordanian forces, which at last count left 55 terrorists dead on the desert floor.

There's a word for this: victory. As the West dithers under the weak leadership and wavering resolve of the Obama administration, the Jordanians, however small and threatened they are as a nation, have injected the force multiplier of moral passion into their war effort....[/]

Jordan s King Gets Medieval On Them - Investors.com

LMAO And this comes from the people who repeatedly say, what are we doing in the ME, we need to mind our own business. As well, the US is supporting Jordon's limited air force with far more fighter jets than they have. What do you miss, the fiery rhetoric of King Abdulla? Words are cheap; actions mean a lot more. What a bunch of idiots you RWs are.

It's not surprising that the import and meaning of what Abdullah does flies right over your pointy little head.

People of character and passion simply make her green with envy...


I crack Myself up....

People like her elected Obama, so clearly she shares his lack of values.

Yep.

I have always wondered why it is that people are reluctant to name anti-Americans as such.

After all, anti- is a prefix designated to mean, "Against"....every USMB progressive and liberal (with a few exceptions) are against American and would not bring themselves to say anything good about America if you pulled out their toenails.

Yet, these same people who proclaimed loudly that "Bush was not My President" are suddenly besides themselves and frothing at the mouth when anyone decides to disagree with the Bamster.

Its a mental illness.

Bush was my president as is Oblama..Just because you don't like them does not mean you can disavow them from their position....

 

[Esmeralda]

LMAO And this comes from the people who repeatedly say, what are we doing in the ME, we need to mind our own business. As well, the US is supporting Jordon's limited air force with far more fighter jets than they have. What do you miss, the fiery rhetoric of King Abdulla? Words are cheap; actions mean a lot more. What a bunch of idiots you RWs are.

It's not surprising that the import and meaning of what Abdullah does flies right over your pointy little head.

People of character and passion simply make her green with envy...


I crack Myself up....

People like her elected Obama, so clearly she shares his lack of values.

Yep.

I have always wondered why it is that people are reluctant to name anti-Americans as such.

After all, anti- is a prefix designated to mean, "Against"....every USMB progressive and liberal (with a few exceptions) are against American and would not bring themselves to say anything good about America if you pulled out their toenails.

Yet, these same people who proclaimed loudly that "Bush was not My President" are suddenly besides themselves and frothing at the mouth when anyone decides to disagree with the Bamster.

Its a mental illness.

Bush was my president as is Oblama..Just because you don't like them does not mean you can disavow them from their position....

They are the perfect example of traitors. The don't like the elected leader, so they refuse to support him. And not only do they refuse to support him, they denigrate him in the extreme, constantly feeding right into the hands of groups like ISIS and other groups that are against the US. They are traitors, period.

 

[mudwhistle]

LMAO And this comes from the people who repeatedly say, what are we doing in the ME, we need to mind our own business. As well, the US is supporting Jordon's limited air force with far more fighter jets than they have. What do you miss, the fiery rhetoric of King Abdulla? Words are cheap; actions mean a lot more. What a bunch of idiots you RWs are.

It's not surprising that the import and meaning of what Abdullah does flies right over your pointy little head.

People of character and passion simply make her green with envy...


I crack Myself up....

People like her elected Obama, so clearly she shares his lack of values.

Obama made of point of showing us during the prayer breakfast that he can't see evil for what it is. He compares Christianity with ISIS. For the most part what Christians have done throughout history is hurt sinner's feelings. What was the worse thing that could happen to you if you're a member of a Christian church? Be ex-communicated? With ISIS you get burned alive.

Bullshit! Christians have murdered millions of people throughout history.

Not in the name of Jesus. How many people have been murdered while zealots are screaming praise Allah compared to screaming Jesus???

Earlier this week our President made some comments at the national prayer breakfast. In the spirit of hospitality and inclusion he wished to address the recent horrifically evil actions by ISIS by saying that we Christians also have also perpetrated evil in the name of our religion. He gave three examples, two of which I want to make comments on here.

I want to first give this caveat that the purpose of this little essay is not to pick on the President. He simply presents a convenient opportunity for me to address many of our misconceptions about medieval Christian Civilization. I really don’t blame the President for thinking what he does more than I do anyone else. These misconceptions have been commonplace in our national educational system for quite some time.

Back to the point, the three examples President Obama gave do certainly point out that Christians are capable of evil. The evils of American slavery and reconstruction Jim Crow were, as President Obama said, “often justified in the name of Christ.” I want to acknowledge that fact, though that particular evil is not the focus of this essay.

As for the Inquisition, I’m not sure which Inquisition the President was referring to, but it is presumably the caricature we have received of people being tortured for their faith. That caricature reads more like a Jack Chick tract than historical reality. The old legends about the horrors of the Inquisition were largely exaggerated political propaganda. Twentieth century scholars have pushed back against that narrative arguing that the Spanish Inquisition (the particular Inquisition in question, presumably) was more humane than other contemporary trials and prisons. Yes, people did commit evil, but these events were isolated. The Inquisition (in general) was more a method of trying people for heresy than it was an excuse for torture, and the result of a guilty verdict in the vast majority of cases was excommunication not death. What you learned in school was wrong.

And as for the Crusades, yes atrocities were committed, but were they done in the name of Christ? We must acknowledge that evils were committed during the Crusades by evil, unscrupulous people. But we must also acknowledge that those acts were widely repented of and condemned, and that they were never the purpose of the Crusades. The purpose of the Crusades was to defend Christians who were being attacked by ever-encroaching Islamic armies. The Crusades were defensive wars in their conception. Yet, pick a war, any war, and you will find evil, unscrupulous people who get involved for their own wicked reasons and for their own greedy ends. Such is the nature of war, it attracts wicked people bent on destruction. Yet we do have a place in Christian theology for a just war, and at least on paper, the Crusades were just wars.

The president’s statement has also lead to a series of comments and references to the Middle Ages all over the internet and in various news sources. So I want to take the opportunity to dispel a few myths about the medieval period.

1. Medieval Christian civilization was not monolithic – We have this picture of the Middle Ages as a singular culture presided over by the pope and various kings and emperors. This simply was not the case. Europe in the medieval period was made up of a group of diverse cultures, and they didn’t always agree or get along. In the church there were also diverse practices and theologies during the medieval period. So we can’t just lump them all in together.

2. Medieval Christian civilization was not barbaric – Many of us have been to the medieval torture museums. We have this idea that Europe during the medieval period was filled with rustic, barbarous peoples for whom torture was their preferred form of entertainment. We have a picture of disease, famine, wars, tortures, and ignorant people who shunned science and technology in favor of rituals, mysticisms, and literal interpretations of the Bible. Well, again, what you learned in school and in other venues was wrong. The medieval torture museums are modern fabrications. These images we have of the middle ages are inventions of the modern world set to disparage a Christian civilization. As I mentioned above, our notions of the Inquisition and the Crusades are caricatures and fabrications. Yes there were evils, yes there was ignorance, but not any more than any other period of time or any other culture. In fact they were much less. The medieval Europeans did quite a good job with the resources and knowledge they had.

3. Medieval Christian civilization was a work in progress – We tend to judge medieval Europe based on modern standards. But this is not fair. In the early to mid-Middle Ages, the cultures represented were only a short time removed from uncultured and unlettered paganism. We in the modern West have had the benefit of 2,000 years of Christian culture to help us to grow and mature. Yes atrocities were committed. Yes, greedy and unscrupulous people did bad things. But we shouldn’t judge early medieval Europe on our modern standards any more than we should try a child as an adult in a court of law.

4. Medieval Christian civilization was not “Dark” – We’ve all heard of the “Dark Ages.” In my Ancient and Medieval Church History class at Covenant Seminary I tell my students that any of them who refers to the medieval period as the “Dark Ages” will receive an automatic F. I’ve yet to have anyone do that. You see, this myth of the Dark Ages was perpetrated by an anti-Christian Enlightenment culture that wanted to disparage the Christian Civilization that was formed during the medieval period. It is in no way true that people in medieval Europe were uneducated, ignorant, or backward. The medievals created the educational systems and the methods that we still use today. They took the treasure of ancient Greek and Roman education and culture and Christianized it for use in the Christian academies of Europe. Charlemagne (yes him) in his General Admonition of 789 mandated that schools (yes schools) be created in every parish and monastery for the education (yes education) of children in reading, writing, and math. He also mandated that parish pastors work to educate (there’s that word again) all the people (yes all, men, women, and children of all classes) in the Christian liturgy and in the content of their faith so that they could be fruitful citizens. The medieval period was all about education, learning, and discovery. What you learned in school was wrong.

Medieval Christian civilization was a mixed bag, as is any society and culture. But my contention is that medieval Christianity was more good than bad, more light than dark, and when judged in light of the tools they had and the progress they made, there is much to give thanks for the foundation they laid for us.

What You Learned About the Middle Ages Was Wrong Theopolis Institute​

 

[NYcarbineer]

It's ironic that Jordan might become our best ally in this fight while our so-called ally Israel's 'leader' Netanyahu is spitting on America.

Why is everything you say totally ass-backwards from the truth??

It just looks that way to someone like you.

 

[Darkwind]

Given the track record of your heros, she was dead days before that bomb landed.

Not my heroes, an evil like you, and your new hero killed her...

No? You are doing your damnest to defend them and degenerate all others.

yeah, I think they are you heroes. They're killing westerners, aren't they?

Last time I checked the were Muslims fighting a war inside Muslim nations? Exactly what part of that is any of our business?

And they are as evil and stupid as you are. But good news, you both hate Liberalism, the very foundation of this nation.

The liberalism that founded this country is the type of liberalism I practice. You're type, not so much.

Last time I checked, we had interests in that region of the world, and it is acceptable that every country is allowed to look after their own interests abroad. When they start killing our citizens and the citizens of our allies, it becomes our business. In case you missed it, treaties of alliance are part of the highest law of our country.

So, have you recovered from your stupidity yet? Find that compass? Did you get a designer one?

 

[Darkwind]

It's not surprising that the import and meaning of what Abdullah does flies right over your pointy little head.

People of character and passion simply make her green with envy...


I crack Myself up....

People like her elected Obama, so clearly she shares his lack of values.

Yep.

I have always wondered why it is that people are reluctant to name anti-Americans as such.

After all, anti- is a prefix designated to mean, "Against"....every USMB progressive and liberal (with a few exceptions) are against American and would not bring themselves to say anything good about America if you pulled out their toenails.

Yet, these same people who proclaimed loudly that "Bush was not My President" are suddenly besides themselves and frothing at the mouth when anyone decides to disagree with the Bamster.

Its a mental illness.

Bush was my president as is Oblama..Just because you don't like them does not mean you can disavow them from their position....

They are the perfect example of traitors. The don't like the elected leader, so they refuse to support him. And not only do they refuse to support him, they denigrate him in the extreme, constantly feeding right into the hands of groups like ISIS and other groups that are against the US. They are traitors, period.

Kind of reminds Me of every leftist that opined from 2001 to 2009.....thanks for making My point.

 

[C_Clayton_Jones]

"I Wish We Had A President Who Could Lead Like Abdullah"

Yet another authoritarian conservative in love with an authoritarian ruler.

What you and many others on the right fail to understand is that a president can 'lead' in the wrong direction, such as GWB leading America into two failed, illegal wars, wars that clearly contributed to the regional instability that gave rise to ISIS.

Keeping Americans from again pointlessly dying in the ME is leading in the right direction.

 

[Darkwind]

LMAO And this comes from the people who repeatedly say, what are we doing in the ME, we need to mind our own business. As well, the US is supporting Jordon's limited air force with far more fighter jets than they have. What do you miss, the fiery rhetoric of King Abdulla? Words are cheap; actions mean a lot more. What a bunch of idiots you RWs are.

It's not surprising that the import and meaning of what Abdullah does flies right over your pointy little head.

People of character and passion simply make her green with envy...


I crack Myself up....

People like her elected Obama, so clearly she shares his lack of values.

Yep.

I have always wondered why it is that people are reluctant to name anti-Americans as such.

After all, anti- is a prefix designated to mean, "Against"....every USMB progressive and liberal (with a few exceptions) are against American and would not bring themselves to say anything good about America if you pulled out their toenails.

Yet, these same people who proclaimed loudly that "Bush was not My President" are suddenly besides themselves and frothing at the mouth when anyone decides to disagree with the Bamster.

Its a mental illness.

Bush was my president as is Oblama..Just because you don't like them does not mean you can disavow them from their position....

I never have. But you leftists did, and frequently.

Now that you don't like it, you want to change the tune. However, I remember very well and I remember nearly 100% of you people saying the Bush would never be YOUR president.

Its always a bitch when your own hatred comes back to bite you, isn't it?

 

[mudwhistle]

It's ironic that Jordan might become our best ally in this fight while our so-called ally Israel's 'leader' Netanyahu is spitting on America.

Why is everything you say totally ass-backwards from the truth??

It just looks that way to someone like you.

Yeah, anyone with an open mind.

 

[Darkwind]

"I Wish We Had A President Who Could Lead Like Abdullah"

Yet another authoritarian conservative in love with an authoritarian ruler.

What you and many others on the right fail to understand is that a president can 'lead' in the wrong direction, such as GWB leading America into two failed, illegal wars, wars that clearly contributed to the regional instability that gave rise to ISIS.

Keeping Americans from again pointlessly dying in the ME is leading in the right direction.

The instability arises from pulling out too soon. Nice try though.

 

[PaintMyHouse]

Given the track record of your heros, she was dead days before that bomb landed.

Not my heroes, an evil like you, and your new hero killed her...

No? You are doing your damnest to defend them and degenerate all others.

yeah, I think they are you heroes. They're killing westerners, aren't they?

Last time I checked the were Muslims fighting a war inside Muslim nations? Exactly what part of that is any of our business?

And they are as evil and stupid as you are. But good news, you both hate Liberalism, the very foundation of this nation.

The liberalism that founded this country is the type of liberalism I practice. You're type, not so much.

Last time I checked, we had interests in that region of the world, and it is acceptable that every country is allowed to look after their own interests abroad. When they start killing our citizens and the citizens of our allies, it becomes our business. In case you missed it, treaties of alliance are part of the highest law of our country.

So, have you recovered from your stupidity yet? Find that compass? Did you get a designer one?

Tell me, what are the American interests in the Middle East? Should Iran have bombed us when we shut them out of here? Cuba? How about Russia? Oh, we have interests there alright, and we're missing an few structures in NY to prove it but hey, they were only protecting their interests so it's all good.

 

[mudwhistle]

Does anyone here know of anyone who has been put to death by Christians in the name of Christ or know of anyone who was put to death in the name of Christ In the last 50 - 100 years?

You idiots talk like it's happening every day.

 

[boedicca]

 

[PaintMyHouse]

Does anyone here know of anyone who has been put to death by Christians in the name of Christ or know of anyone who was put to death in the name of Christ In the last 50 - 100 years?

Lots of Jews in the old days. Homos in Uganda currently.

And it doesn't have to happen every day to discover that your Holy book is filled the same dangerous, violent, and repulsive crap as the other guy's, only you morons give your book a pass while denouncing the others.

 

[Darkwind]

Given the track record of your heros, she was dead days before that bomb landed.

Not my heroes, an evil like you, and your new hero killed her...

No? You are doing your damnest to defend them and degenerate all others.

yeah, I think they are you heroes. They're killing westerners, aren't they?

Last time I checked the were Muslims fighting a war inside Muslim nations? Exactly what part of that is any of our business?

And they are as evil and stupid as you are. But good news, you both hate Liberalism, the very foundation of this nation.

The liberalism that founded this country is the type of liberalism I practice. You're type, not so much.

Last time I checked, we had interests in that region of the world, and it is acceptable that every country is allowed to look after their own interests abroad. When they start killing our citizens and the citizens of our allies, it becomes our business. In case you missed it, treaties of alliance are part of the highest law of our country.

So, have you recovered from your stupidity yet? Find that compass? Did you get a designer one?

Tell me, what are the American interests in the Middle East? Should Iran have bombed us when we shut them out of here? Cuba? How about Russia? Oh, we have interests there alright, and we're missing an few structures in NY to prove it but hey, they were only protecting their interests so it's all good.

No, they were not protecting their own interests. They can practice their religion anywhere there is a latrine. However, we have an economy based upon the flow of energy from that part of the world. We ALSO pay a handsome price for the energy. The disruption of that supply is a legitimate concern not only for us, but for the world at large.

Of course, you having an advanced degree in macroeconomics would understand the millions upon millions of people who could end up dying if these savages were allowed to interrupt the worlds economy for the sake of a dead child rapist.

They have no legitimate purpose other than hate. Funny thing is, we'd have been willing to help them if they had but asked.

Now, the best they can expect is the bottom of our shoes, the worst....well, I already outlined what I'd do to them in another thread.

 

[PaintMyHouse]

View attachment 36566

Yes, we know, you are excited to pick up your sword again, and be knee deep in the blood of those innocents you slaughter, yet again, in the name of Jesus.

 

[PaintMyHouse]

Not my heroes, an evil like you, and your new hero killed her...

No? You are doing your damnest to defend them and degenerate all others.

yeah, I think they are you heroes. They're killing westerners, aren't they?

Last time I checked the were Muslims fighting a war inside Muslim nations? Exactly what part of that is any of our business?

And they are as evil and stupid as you are. But good news, you both hate Liberalism, the very foundation of this nation.

The liberalism that founded this country is the type of liberalism I practice. You're type, not so much.

Last time I checked, we had interests in that region of the world, and it is acceptable that every country is allowed to look after their own interests abroad. When they start killing our citizens and the citizens of our allies, it becomes our business. In case you missed it, treaties of alliance are part of the highest law of our country.

So, have you recovered from your stupidity yet? Find that compass? Did you get a designer one?

Tell me, what are the American interests in the Middle East? Should Iran have bombed us when we shut them out of here? Cuba? How about Russia? Oh, we have interests there alright, and we're missing an few structures in NY to prove it but hey, they were only protecting their interests so it's all good.

No, they were not protecting their own interests. They can practice their religion anywhere there is a latrine. However, we have an economy based upon the flow of energy from that part of the world. We ALSO pay a handsome price for the energy. The disruption of that supply is a legitimate concern not only for us, but for the world at large.

Of course, you having an advanced degree in macroeconomics would understand the millions upon millions of people who could end up dying if these savages were allowed to interrupt the worlds economy for the sake of a dead child rapist.

They have no legitimate purpose other than hate. Funny thing is, we'd have been willing to help them if they had but asked.

Now, the best they can expect is the bottom of our shoes, the worst....well, I already outlined what I'd do to them in another thread.

It's thrilling to watch you try to justify the taking of the nature resources from other nations while ignoring the fact that such a thing just might piss people off, not to mention trying to impose your economics and culture on them at the very same time, and funding their despots and arming their enemies because it serves your capitalist nation. As for helping them, well, as you can see, you have helped them more than enough and they would like you to stop. How unreasonable these people are.

I suppose overthrowing their governments and installing our puppets is just another form of protecting our interests eh? Got it.

 

[Esmeralda]

It's not surprising that the import and meaning of what Abdullah does flies right over your pointy little head.

People of character and passion simply make her green with envy...


I crack Myself up....

People like her elected Obama, so clearly she shares his lack of values.

Obama made of point of showing us during the prayer breakfast that he can't see evil for what it is. He compares Christianity with ISIS. For the most part what Christians have done throughout history is hurt sinner's feelings. What was the worse thing that could happen to you if you're a member of a Christian church? Be ex-communicated? With ISIS you get burned alive.

Bullshit! Christians have murdered millions of people throughout history.

Not in the name of Jesus. How many people have been murdered while zealots are screaming praise Allah compared to screaming Jesus???

Earlier this week our President made some comments at the national prayer breakfast. In the spirit of hospitality and inclusion he wished to address the recent horrifically evil actions by ISIS by saying that we Christians also have also perpetrated evil in the name of our religion. He gave three examples, two of which I want to make comments on here.

I want to first give this caveat that the purpose of this little essay is not to pick on the President. He simply presents a convenient opportunity for me to address many of our misconceptions about medieval Christian Civilization. I really don’t blame the President for thinking what he does more than I do anyone else. These misconceptions have been commonplace in our national educational system for quite some time.

Back to the point, the three examples President Obama gave do certainly point out that Christians are capable of evil. The evils of American slavery and reconstruction Jim Crow were, as President Obama said, “often justified in the name of Christ.” I want to acknowledge that fact, though that particular evil is not the focus of this essay.

As for the Inquisition, I’m not sure which Inquisition the President was referring to, but it is presumably the caricature we have received of people being tortured for their faith. That caricature reads more like a Jack Chick tract than historical reality. The old legends about the horrors of the Inquisition were largely exaggerated political propaganda. Twentieth century scholars have pushed back against that narrative arguing that the Spanish Inquisition (the particular Inquisition in question, presumably) was more humane than other contemporary trials and prisons. Yes, people did commit evil, but these events were isolated. The Inquisition (in general) was more a method of trying people for heresy than it was an excuse for torture, and the result of a guilty verdict in the vast majority of cases was excommunication not death. What you learned in school was wrong.

And as for the Crusades, yes atrocities were committed, but were they done in the name of Christ? We must acknowledge that evils were committed during the Crusades by evil, unscrupulous people. But we must also acknowledge that those acts were widely repented of and condemned, and that they were never the purpose of the Crusades. The purpose of the Crusades was to defend Christians who were being attacked by ever-encroaching Islamic armies. The Crusades were defensive wars in their conception. Yet, pick a war, any war, and you will find evil, unscrupulous people who get involved for their own wicked reasons and for their own greedy ends. Such is the nature of war, it attracts wicked people bent on destruction. Yet we do have a place in Christian theology for a just war, and at least on paper, the Crusades were just wars.

The president’s statement has also lead to a series of comments and references to the Middle Ages all over the internet and in various news sources. So I want to take the opportunity to dispel a few myths about the medieval period.

1. Medieval Christian civilization was not monolithic – We have this picture of the Middle Ages as a singular culture presided over by the pope and various kings and emperors. This simply was not the case. Europe in the medieval period was made up of a group of diverse cultures, and they didn’t always agree or get along. In the church there were also diverse practices and theologies during the medieval period. So we can’t just lump them all in together.

2. Medieval Christian civilization was not barbaric – Many of us have been to the medieval torture museums. We have this idea that Europe during the medieval period was filled with rustic, barbarous peoples for whom torture was their preferred form of entertainment. We have a picture of disease, famine, wars, tortures, and ignorant people who shunned science and technology in favor of rituals, mysticisms, and literal interpretations of the Bible. Well, again, what you learned in school and in other venues was wrong. The medieval torture museums are modern fabrications. These images we have of the middle ages are inventions of the modern world set to disparage a Christian civilization. As I mentioned above, our notions of the Inquisition and the Crusades are caricatures and fabrications. Yes there were evils, yes there was ignorance, but not any more than any other period of time or any other culture. In fact they were much less. The medieval Europeans did quite a good job with the resources and knowledge they had.

3. Medieval Christian civilization was a work in progress – We tend to judge medieval Europe based on modern standards. But this is not fair. In the early to mid-Middle Ages, the cultures represented were only a short time removed from uncultured and unlettered paganism. We in the modern West have had the benefit of 2,000 years of Christian culture to help us to grow and mature. Yes atrocities were committed. Yes, greedy and unscrupulous people did bad things. But we shouldn’t judge early medieval Europe on our modern standards any more than we should try a child as an adult in a court of law.

4. Medieval Christian civilization was not “Dark” – We’ve all heard of the “Dark Ages.” In my Ancient and Medieval Church History class at Covenant Seminary I tell my students that any of them who refers to the medieval period as the “Dark Ages” will receive an automatic F. I’ve yet to have anyone do that. You see, this myth of the Dark Ages was perpetrated by an anti-Christian Enlightenment culture that wanted to disparage the Christian Civilization that was formed during the medieval period. It is in no way true that people in medieval Europe were uneducated, ignorant, or backward. The medievals created the educational systems and the methods that we still use today. They took the treasure of ancient Greek and Roman education and culture and Christianized it for use in the Christian academies of Europe. Charlemagne (yes him) in his General Admonition of 789 mandated that schools (yes schools) be created in every parish and monastery for the education (yes education) of children in reading, writing, and math. He also mandated that parish pastors work to educate (there’s that word again) all the people (yes all, men, women, and children of all classes) in the Christian liturgy and in the content of their faith so that they could be fruitful citizens. The medieval period was all about education, learning, and discovery. What you learned in school was wrong.

Medieval Christian civilization was a mixed bag, as is any society and culture. But my contention is that medieval Christianity was more good than bad, more light than dark, and when judged in light of the tools they had and the progress they made, there is much to give thanks for the foundation they laid for us.

What You Learned About the Middle Ages Was Wrong Theopolis Institute​

Yes, in the name of Christianity, you moron. They justified slavery based on text in the Bible. They believed they were superior human beings and that blacks were subhuman. They believed that because black Africans were not Christian, they were heathens and not worthy of life except to serve the Christians. How ignorant are you anyway? Did you skip school, or do you just have selective memory?