A few thoughts on Iran

There are many people who are writing far more effectively on this subject than I can right now, but here are a few scattered thoughts:

Just as we did after 9/11, America stands at a major crossroads. After the World Trade Center fell, we had the goodwill of the entire world on our side, and we completely squandered it. There was a brief moment just before the Iraq war when the UN inspectors were saying they needed more time to determine if Iraq had WMD, but instead, we invaded the country before they could complete their work, and of course found no WMD. At that moment, we had the opportunity to empower the UN to do its job of peacekeeping and insuring justice between nations, just like Washington does between all the different states in America. Now, it seems (one would hope) that our new President will continue to speak out on human rights, but I am also proud so far that he is not using US military power. There are many Americans right now who are wondering why Obama is not doing more - many of these are the same people who criticized Bush for invading Iraq. Though it was a proven lie, the justification for the Iraq War was the same as the current justification for wanting Obama to do more - human rights. We must never use military might or violence to achieve the ends of human rights. Not only that, but, as the BBC points out, it would actually be harmful to the protesters for Obama to do more than he's doing. Here's a quotation from their article:

But the BBC's Jon Donnison in Washington says the president is treading a fine line - he does not want to be seen to be interfering, which could stir up anti-American sentiment within Iran and work against the protesters.

As I was thinking about this tonight (and realizing that it's 20 years to the month after the Tiananmen Square Massacre), I finally got around to watching Obama's speech in Cairo. It was wonderful, and worth watching, so I've included it below. Here's a short paragraph, but you really should watch the whole speech.

For we have learned from recent experience that when a financial system weakens in one country, prosperity is hurt everywhere. When a new flu infects one human being, all are at risk. When one nation pursues a nuclear weapon, the risk of nuclear attack rises for all nations. When violent extremists operate in one stretch of mountains, people are endangered across an ocean. And when innocents in Bosnia and Darfur are slaughtered, that is a stain on our collective conscience. That is what it means to share this world in the 21st century. That is the responsibility we have to one another as human beings.

I've heard this type of thing before, in John Donne's Meditation 17.

No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee.

It's pretty amazing to be able to watch all this develop in the present moment on Twitter, but I think there's something to be said for the old style of journalism too - the kind that verified its facts before spreading them. Fox News and CNN are pretty much using only Twitter and Facebook as their sources, which is basically just relying on gossip. We have to be careful before we rush to action, careful about mob mentality, careful not to sacrifice our principles when we become outraged at violations of human rights. That is what led us into Iraq, and so many other atrocities throughout history. Obama is right to proceed slowly and carefully. It's what we elected him to do.

I've tried not to get my hopes up since we've stood at this same crossroads so many times before. The beginning of the Iraq War was pretty much the last blow to my optimism about this. But although it's more cautious this time, I can feel that hope starting to build again. Maybe this time we'll choose the right path...

Google Bookshelf

Ok - so this is amazing. With Google Books, you can now upload the books that you have by their ISBN, which you can either enter by hand on a keyboard, or with a barcode scanner. I have a T-Mobile G1, which I was able to use to scan, and I'll be the iPhone would be able to do this too. Without a scanner, you can just type the numbers directly into the import feature. All the details are at this link, including this video which will walk you through everything you need.



The real kicker, though, which they mention at the end of the video, is that not only can you use your computer to search the titles of all your books, but because it's Google Books, you can type in any word that would be IN any of your books! If you are wondering where that quotation came from, and are just not sure which of your books has it, search your books online, and it will lead you right to the book, and in many cases, will actually show you the page number of what you're looking for. Pretty amazing!

Fluteboxing!

These guys are unbelievable.

The end of Carneval, and the beginning of a long Lent

Despite the pretentious demeanor and the dumb glasses, Bono sometimes
channels the muse. This one is worth a read.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/19/opinion/19bono.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

The Bigots’ Last Hurrah

An article on the impending death of the anti-gay-marriage debate.

http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=6bbdfabc8555aee76d28fb8d216ca874

Our Very Own Mahabharata

I'm teaching the Mahabharata in my mythology class now, and am amazed at how often it reads like the newspaper. Here's a review of a new book by Reza Aslan about a Cosmic War. Aslan differentiates between a global war, like the two world wars we have had, and a Cosmic War, which is described like this:

"A cosmic war," Reza Aslan writes, "is like a ritual drama in which participants act out on Earth a battle they believe is actually taking place in the heavens." Earthly wars are fought with weapons. Cosmic wars are won or lost with jihads, occupations, and forcible conversions. "There can be no compromise in a cosmic war. There can be no negotiation, no settlement, no surrender."

Sound familiar?

Apparently, the book doesn't offer a way to win a cosmic war, but does offer ways to make it more manageable. Its focus is primarily on Islam and Christianity. But with North Korea testing its missile range by shooting into the Pacific, it's obviously not limited just to those two religions.

The book also has a battle between Arjuna and Aswatthaman that sounds exactly like the last days of the cold war. Arjuna and Aswatthaman have both released weapons into the air - weapons which have the power to destroy the entire universe, but which counteract each other through their intentions - and Krishna and Vyasa try to talk them down from it. Here's the passage at length:

[Krishna said,] "Arjuna, withdraw it."

"I will," said Arjuna. Majesty, it is harder by ten million times to call back that weapon once released, and at the slightest error Arjuna and all there would have died, and Earth become a desert with no life for seven thousand years. But he did it; then weak and sick he collapsed to his knees gasping for breath.

Vyasa sat before Aswatthaman and said, "Bring it down. You will not be harmed. I protect you."

Slowly Aswatthaman's fireball turned yellow, then orange. The flames flickered and smoked. Aswatthaman perspired and said, "I cannot."

"Your heart must be at peace and not burning," said Vyasa. "You are afraid of Bhima. He lied to your father. But he cannot move. You have my protection and Arjuna's weapon is gone."

"Alright." The fire was only half as large, and dim. "Because I trust Arjuna," said Aswatthaman," I kill my fear. Because I trust you, I am not sad. Because Arjuna did not wish for my death, I let my anger go."

Like a torch in the daylight the pale flames were still there. "But I must have revenge."

Vyasa sighed. "Stop your sadness, kill revenge himself. Find that cunning ugly man who holds you tight as iron chains, aim true at him where he is hidden."

"I have no other purpose," said Aswatthaman. The fireball burst into bits in midair and was gone.

Vyasa is certainly speaking now (through Aslan, as well as others), but we will need to sharpen our hearing. As Vyasa says in another context, "Understand me; do not only agree."

Global Spirit

This new show looks interesting. The first episode will have Karen Armstrong and Robert Thurman. You can watch the episodes online.

http://tinyurl.com/dnejc8