Fifteen Years Ago “War” Crashed into the United States

Is war ethical?  Any war?  This war?

More importantly, are we remaining an ethical society because of this ongoing war?

With so many emotions, physical suffering, and opinions we cannot answer these questions very easily since first it must be determined if the clash is a just one and if all peaceful actions were exhausted prior to the start of the conflict. 

September 11, 2001…It seems like only yesterday yet it has been fifteen years of constant battles with an enemy that claims no country of origin, seeks no spoils of war, and has no sovereign army of troops.  Regardless many of their “warriors” believe it is a true battle of good vs. evil.  This might be the first war in history to be soldiered by a majority of misled children, disheartened youths, and fanatically indoctrinated loyalist who seek to wreak havoc against a way of life; with nothing to gain but chaos and the love of their vengeful God.

I, like many, were caught up in the happenings of that day.  Traveling as usual, I was on an aircraft when havoc struck in New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC. I lost friends on that September morning.  Still more friends survived the violence of that day only to live with the painful memories of those horrific events.  The people who died on that beautiful September morning were not waging war against anyone, they did nothing to deserve that fate; it was just another normal day in their lives. We quickly learned that these “acts of war” were committed by a group of Muslim extremist who proudly took credit for the atrocities against ordinary civilians.  Looking back often, especially on the anniversary, I wonder if I have healed.  Of those who lost loved ones, did they truly recover?  America, have we come to grips with the real foe or are we fighting an unrecognizable enemy with no end in sight?

To answer this last question we can consider the latest findings of the Pew Research Center survey.  It paints a broad picture of the country’s sentiments toward the Muslim community here in the U.S.

These are some of their findings:

About half of Americans (49%) think at least “some” U.S. Muslims are anti-American, greater than the shares who say “just a few” or “none” are anti-American, according to a January 2016 survey.  On the other hand, the same survey also found that most Americans (59%) believe there is a lot of discrimination against Muslims in the U.S. today and even more (76%) say discrimination against Muslims in the U.S. is on the rise.

Nearly half of U.S. adults (47%) say they do not personally know a Muslim, while a similar share (52%) do know at least one person who is Muslim.

These feelings do effect our decisions and interactions with others and thusly can affect our spiritual nature as well as our ethical and moral state of mind.  To be ethical in our dealings with all races and creeds we have to address these issues.  To be in a state of spiritual purity we must be able to forgive and harbor no ill-will.  My answer, mine alone, can only be found in depths of my own heart.  In reflection, I would like us to consider the story of the professor who asked his physics students, “Did God create everything?”  The entire class replied, “Yes”.

Nodding his head in agreement, he asks, “Does evil exist in the world?”  Once more the entire class replied in unison, “Yes.”

“Then if God is the essence of good; did God create evil and if so why?”

The class was totally silent, with no one offering a reply.  The professor looked perplexed as he strolled through the classroom isles.

“Obviously you were not listening when we spoke about darkness.  We all agreed that there is no such object as darkness because darkness by definition in not a thing it is a state caused by the absence of light.  So it is with evil, it is not an object to be created; what it isn’t is what really matters; it is the absence of love.  If God created the Universe, He would have created objects; evil is not a person, a place or thing, it is the absence of love.”

That story has stuck with me for many years.  Going back through the list of very bad people whom I have met in my life, through getting to know them, it became clear that love was missing from their lives.  The pain in their eyes was tangible to the point of misery.  There was no hope, no joy, and definitely no love in them.  As with darkness, it surrounds anything that enters its presence.  When we make decisions we have to be careful to not allow other people’s biases to affect what we know is right and just.

When I reflect on the science lesson and the feelings of the American people outlined in the survey results above, it becomes clear for me that society, out of fear, is creating an internal enemy by choosing to blame a community instead of those individuals guilty of a crime.  Is that ethical or moral?  It is not for me to judge if someone is evil or not, that is between them and their God but I do believe that we have to use common sense and the facts when gauging future threats.

As a Country, we pray and remember the victims of the 9/11 tragedies, remembering that some whom we lost were innocent Muslims living their lives with love in their hearts.

Anthony “Tony” Boquet, the author of “The Bloodline of Wisdom, The Awakening of a Modern Solutionary”

If this is my last post, I want all to know there was only one purpose for all that I have written; to have made a positive difference in the lives of others.