The War On Drugs

Last night I sat in a living room with a dozen or so Christians--mostly Quakers--who had all either been employees or ministers within jails and prisons at some time in the past. The group discussed various aspects of lobbying to reform our current criminal justice system. All have had first-hand experience with the shortcomings and injustices of the current system and the human suffering that results.

Before long, the discussion moved towards reform of drug laws. After all, substance abuse plays a role in the vast majority of arrests. We were all surprised to discover that we shared a common view about the War On Drugs: That it has been a tragic disaster and that the solution lies in decriminalization of drugs and a more therapeutic, instead of punitive, approach to dealing with drug use.

This was a group of mature, "respectable" Christians ranging in age from late 40's to mid-70's. All of us had learned through our experiences that incarcerated people are just that: people. The War On Drugs has, to a large extent, been a war on people. And the aftermath of war is always suffering and destruction.

Sean Hannity on loving your enemy

I'm not a fan of either Sean Hannity or Michael Moore. Both men strike me as zealots, operating on opposite fringes of the political/social continuum. Neither man seems to have any qualms about bending (or breaking) the truth in order to push their idealogical agenda.

But this recent exchange between Hannity and Moore--which took a theological turn--was too rich to ignore:

HANNITY: Do you want to gut our military?

MOORE: You're afraid of a few hundred guys on monkey bars?

HANNITY: No, millions.

MOORE: Millions?

HANNITY: Millions that buy into Islamic fanaticism.

MOORE: Millions who are going to attack us.

HANNITY: I believe there's millions of people that believe there's virgins in heaven if they commit a suicide bombing.

MOORE: Well, listen, all religions have their fanatics, wouldn't you agree with that?

HANNITY: Some, not all, but most, probably.

MOORE: Including ours?

HANNITY: Are you one?

MOORE: I'm a religious fanatic? Yes, I am, actually. I believe that when Jesus said that you're to love your neighbor...

HANNITY: As yourself.

MOORE: ... as yourself, you're to love your enemy. Do you love your enemy?

HANNITY: I don't hate you, by the way.

MOORE: Do you love your enemy, though?

HANNITY: Yes, I do.

MOORE: You do?

HANNITY: I do.

MOORE: So you love Al Qaeda, then.

HANNITY: No, I don't love them. I love them in the sense that I want to destroy them.

MOORE: I don't think that's the love Jesus was talking about.

QuakerQuaker

Wow, the QuakerQuaker website has had a MAJOR facelift since I visited it last!
Check it out!

http://www.quakerquaker.org/