There has been no shortage of bad news lately. But few can beat the two big items hogging the headlines last week. These were the takeover of the Thailand’s main Suvarnabhumi airport by the PAD (People's Alliance for Democracy) hooligans and the Mumbai terrorist attacks.
Have you noticed some common traits, albeit to different degrees, between these two groups of people?
1) Both were so fixated on their own grievances and purported injustices that they did not spare a thought on the pain and suffering they inflicted other innocent parties. In fact they don’t seem to mind the disrepute that their actions brought on their own country, in the case of the Thais, and their own religion in the case of the Mumbai terrorists.
2) “The end justifies the means” seems to be their overriding concern. But alas, if they would only look at the long term implications of their actions, they would see that they only served to thwart whatever long term aim they were harbouring.
3) They were all pawns being manipulated by higher hands; evil forces which have no qualms about sacrificing them.
Like other bloggers, I absolutely condemn the Mumbai terrorists for their cruel disregard for innocent lives. But I also feel pity for them. They thought they were serving God and their sacrifices would win them a place in paradise. But what a big disappointment it is going to be when they awake to find themselves in hell instead. They will have all eternity to regret their actions. Indeed there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Have you noticed some common traits, albeit to different degrees, between these two groups of people?1) Both were so fixated on their own grievances and purported injustices that they did not spare a thought on the pain and suffering they inflicted other innocent parties. In fact they don’t seem to mind the disrepute that their actions brought on their own country, in the case of the Thais, and their own religion in the case of the Mumbai terrorists.
2) “The end justifies the means” seems to be their overriding concern. But alas, if they would only look at the long term implications of their actions, they would see that they only served to thwart whatever long term aim they were harbouring.
3) They were all pawns being manipulated by higher hands; evil forces which have no qualms about sacrificing them.
Like other bloggers, I absolutely condemn the Mumbai terrorists for their cruel disregard for innocent lives. But I also feel pity for them. They thought they were serving God and their sacrifices would win them a place in paradise. But what a big disappointment it is going to be when they awake to find themselves in hell instead. They will have all eternity to regret their actions. Indeed there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
5 comments:
It is also pretty dumb to think there is a hell, or heaven.
You're right. All educated, intelligent people know that we evolved from monkeys.
Are we so sure that terrorism is due to religious differences? While violence against innocent bystanders is to be condemned, the more pertinent question is why would these people be drive to such atrocities in the first place?
There will be extremists in any society. And extremism doesn't have to be rooted in religions. It can be based on perceived discrimination based on ethnicity, tribe, language, colour of your skin or even the colour of the shirt you wear on National Day.
I think these groups of people use violence, politics and religions, to further their groups devious interests. The Nazi of Germany and the militarist of Japan in WWII are good examples of such evil forces.
Dear blogger of Bad News on the Doorstep,
Let me first apologise for leaving my request on your comments page, as I couldn't reach you through any other way. I am a PhD candidate from the Communications and New Media programme at the National University of Singapore, and my research examines blogging and collective action. "Bad News on the Doorstep" came up in my sampling process and I am writing to you to seek your valued participation in a survey.
WHAT is this study about?
Without saying too much to bias your responses, my study concerns bloggers' online usage, their social networks and their participation/non-participation in activism. Whether you have participated or have not participated in any activism activity, your responses will be vital in helping me gather empirical evidence on blogging and its effects.
WHY should you help?
There has been much talk in the media and in the parliament on the rise of blogging and online discourse. But do blogging really impact civic participation? How does it do so? Your responses to the simple survey will go a long way in contributing to the nascent field of research on blogging in Singapore.
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The survey involves easy-to-answer questions (e.g. Yes/No, ratings of “1” to “5”) and will take only about 20 minutes of your time. Based on your preference, I can conduct the survey via email (or any other ways you prefer). Just send me an email and I will forward you the survey form.
Please help!
Bearing in mind the potential difficulties in getting an adequate sample for such a study, I would like to stress that every single participation counts. In addition, this study has been approved by the NUS Ethical Review Committee. You have my complete assurance that all your responses will be kept strictly confidential and your identity anonymous.
Do visit http://www.fas.nus.edu.sg/cnm/research%20students/2006_grad_carol.htm for a brief write-up of my profile (please cut and paste if the link doesn't work). Being a student with no funding support, I am bearing all research costs and appealing to your goodwill (and hopefully curiosity?) to take part in this study.
I look forward to hearing positively from you soon. Thank you for reading this and giving my request your due consideration.
Best regards,
Carol Soon
(Emails: wtsoon@nus.edu.sg and carol_soon@yahoo.com.sg)
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