Syrian Rebels Execute Two Children!

[Hypnotoad]

I must be the only one that doesn’t understand the point of this thread. Don’t get me wrong I don’t think people should be indifferent towards these types of things, but why should we act like we are amazed they are happening?

Plus in all fairness this thread seems a little bit lite on the facts. No information has been provided as to why these “children” are being executed, and no proof as been given that these are the “rebels” in the Syrian conflict. For all we know this could be one side posing as the other for propaganda purposes. Another thing that isn’t being taken into consideration is the idea that these children could actually be combatants. Anyone who does not take such a possibility into consideration would be someone who is very ignorant of the fact that rebels in most third world countries are children, some even younger than the ones in the video.

Also the middle east has been using children in war since the biblical times, which is why when you read the Old Testament there are times were God says the Hebrews should also kill the children of those they fight against. Why? Because those children were being used during war, they were combatants, and not only that if they were left alive they would continue the feud when they became adults.

Nothing new under the sun.

 

[Robert_Sock]

I would claim that Justice is actually a who, it’s God Himself.

Anything that offends God is contrary to Justice.

And for us Catholics, that can be the only measure.

I agree!

 

[Robert_Sock]

That isn’t “justice.” Justice is to render to each according to his due (FYI, this is the Church’s definition). If it doesn’t prevail in all respects, then it isn’t justice.

No wonder you don’t think social justice is possible; it’s your unique, and very stringent, definition!

The question then becomes, how do you propose to institute justice in respect to the Syrian crisis?

I don’t have a clue! All I did was to raise the question of whether social justice will prevail!

 

[LibralAteoJesus]

Well said. People don’t realize that that area of the world has known nothing but wave after wave of invasion throughout its history, often subjugated by cruel and powerful rulers. It is mind-numbing to read of the brutality that was inflicted upon these people through the past 4,000 years. The Enlightenment never did shine on the Middle East.

Are you sure about that statement? In the dark ages of Europe where minorities were persecuted, Middle east was having an enlightenment age.

 

[Timothysis]

No wonder you don’t think social justice is possible; it’s your unique, and very stringent, definition!

Actually, that is the Church’s definition of “Justice.”

I don’t have a clue! All I did was to raise the question of whether social justice will prevail!

But you always raise the question…you tell us that it is very easy to eradicate extreme poverty but can’t tell us how. You also can’t tell me what “social justice” means. I appreciate your anger at the injustices of the world but I also seem to remember you stating that you were “appalled” at the fact that your fellow Catholics did not agree with many of your notions. There will always be injustice in this world. We shouldn’t numb ourselves to it but we also have to realize that we can’t fix it.

 

[triumphguy]

One of the crimes against humanity is using children as soldiers.

The kids do not do it by free choice… even if they think they do.

Child soldiers need help, therapy, and a chance to be children not execution.

This is not the middle ages, nor yet the OT.
vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/migrants/pom99-00_81_84/rc_pc_migrants_pom81_blume.htm

The International Labor Organization recently included “forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflicts” as one of the “worst forms of child labour” along with “all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom and false or compulsory labor.” A new ILO convention sets 18 as the minimum age for military service, and recently 174 member states of the ILO adopted a convention on the problem.[5]

In addition, the practice of of using child combatants is a direct violation of the spirit of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and article 38 in particular, which sets 15 as the minimum age for recruitment and urges states to set the limit at 18. This is a form of forced displacement, often involving kidnapping and seizing children from homes, schools, sports fields, and frequently from refugee camps, which are warehouses of potential soldiers for all sides in conflicts. For the latter, their lives are marked by multiple displacements with all the consequences.

 

[Timothysis]

Are you sure about that statement? In the dark ages of Europe where minorities were persecuted, Middle east was having an enlightenment age.

First, the “Dark Ages” is a misnomer that was prevalent in days past; the prefered term for the period from 476 to 1517 is the Middle Ages. And persecution of “minorities” (whatever that means) was not limited to any certain time frame but has been a sad reality throughout all of history.

Second, the Middle East has often had eras of learning and knowledge. Our modern day western culture has its roots in the Middle East. But like all civilizations, the Middle East has waxed and waned. In any event, by Enlightenment, I meant that the Middle East has not had a period of recognizing the inherent rights and dignity of individuals that has led to the development of law and culture reflecting these rights (at least in modern times). The Islamic culture, depending on which branch of Islam prevails, can be brutally harsh. Ottoman rulers could hardly be described as enlightened despots. Besides, muslim rulers spent as much or even more time fighting against each other than the “infidel.”

 

[tabycat]

I must be the only one that doesn’t understand the point of this thread. Don’t get me wrong I don’t think people should be indifferent towards these types of things, but why should we act like we are amazed they are happening?

Plus in all fairness this thread seems a little bit lite on the facts. No information has been provided as to why these “children” are being executed, and no proof as been given that these are the “rebels” in the Syrian conflict. For all we know this could be one side posing as the other for propaganda purposes. Another thing that isn’t being taken into consideration is the idea that these children could actually be combatants. Anyone who does not take such a possibility into consideration would be someone who is very ignorant of the fact that rebels in most third world countries are children, some even younger than the ones in the video.

Also the middle east has been using children in war since the biblical times, which is why when you read the Old Testament there are times were God says the Hebrews should also kill the children of those they fight against. Why? Because those children were being used during war, they were combatants, and not only that if they were left alive they would continue the feud when they became adults.

Nothing new under the sun.

Some of the combatants in the American Civil War were what we would consider to be children, because they were under 18 and some as young as 12 or 13 years old. Jesse James was 16 when he was in William ‘Bloody Bill’ Anderson’s band and the was a 12 year old (can’t remember his name) lied about his age and some how got into the US Navy during WW 2 and ended up on a warship and in combat in the Pacific.

 

[triumphguy]

Some of the combatants in the American Civil War were what we would consider to be children, because they were under 18 and some as young as 12 or 13 years old.

vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/migrants/pom99-00_81_84/rc_pc_migrants_pom81_blume.htm

1. Issues of justice

The existence of child soldiers is partly due to the proliferation of small arms. Modern technology puts a destructive power into the hands of infants that has never been known before in history.

a. A culture of weaponry

One of the great multi-national industries of the world is in arms production. In some countries, advertisements for hand guns can be found in daily newspapers. Often they use a language so extolling their beauty and effectiveness that one easily forgets that guns are intended to maim and kill people. There are airline companies that use their captive film-watching audience to advertise national arms industries. In one that I personally saw, the voice of the presenter had the friendly and confident tone that one might hear on the radio offering a package tour to the Holy Land or a new toy for children. The effect is to “sanitize” products with lethal purposes, making them seem “user-friendly” and therefore “people-friendly.”

The technology of miniaturization is also part of the arms trade: Small is beautiful. That is why the AK-47 assault gun and the M-16 rifle can turn a nine year old into a lethal weapon. Children have been used in war since time immemorial, but as drummers, porters, cooks, messengers, spies, and sex objects. But only recently have weapons become small enough to make any little David a Goliath-killer. When swords were the main weapons available, a ten year old was no match for a 20 year old seasoned soldier. Today a ten year old can fire 600 rounds per minutes into his target. The M-16 is even called the “transistor radio” of weapons.

Light arms are also cheap, solidly constructed and durable. An AK-47 costs between US$10 and US$30 and is a lifetime investment; they last, passed on from generation to generation When many people own them-55 million have been produced since 1947-they become part of the culture, like tricycles and wristwatches.

 

[Brendan]

No wonder you don’t think social justice is possible; it’s your unique, and very stringent, definition!!

Timothy is correct in that. That was exactly how Aquinas defined the Virtue of Justice.

The CCC defines it as

Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor.

-CCC 1807

 

[Robert_Sock]

Timothy is correct in that. That was exactly how Aquinas defined the Virtue of Justice.

The CCC defines it as

-CCC 1807

But Timothy adds to that by saying that justice must prevail in all respects, which makes it virtually impossible to achieve in a truly global respect.

 

[Brendan]

But Timothy adds to that by saying that justice must prevail in all respects, which makes it virtually impossible to achieve in a truly global respect.

But what offenses against God (which is the true heart of Justice) should be tolerated?

Or what should we NOT give to people that they are owed?

 

[Robert_Sock]

But what offenses against God (which is the true heart of Justice) should be tolerated?

Or what should we NOT give to people that they are owed?

No offenses against God should be tolerated, but we do not live in a perfect world and justice will therefore fail in some respects. But in the respects that it is successful, it is to be commended. Perfect justice ought to always be sought, even if it is never achieved in all respects.

 

[Timothysis]

But Timothy adds to that by saying that justice must prevail in all respects, which makes it virtually impossible to achieve in a truly global respect.

You are saying, then, that injustice is good as long as it is used as a means to achieve an end. Do you not see the contradiction?

 

[Robert_Sock]

You are saying, then, that injustice is good as long as it is used as a means to achieve an end. Do you not see the contradiction?

That’s not at all what I’m saying. I’m saying that perfect justice does not exist in our imperfect world. We must always strive for perfect justice, even if it is unattainable.

 

[Timothysis]

That’s not at all what I’m saying. I’m saying that perfect justice does not exist in our imperfect world. We must always strive for perfect justice, even if it is unattainable.

Brendan has already asked:

But what offenses against God (which is the true heart of Justice) should be tolerated?

Or what should we NOT give to people that they are owed?

What is your answer?

 

[Robert_Sock]

Brendan has already asked:

What is your answer?

No injustice should ever be tolerated!!!

 

[Timothysis]

No injustice should ever be tolerated!!!

Pie in the sky, Robert, pie in the sky.

 

[Robert_Sock]

Pie in the sky, Robert, pie in the sky.

All I did was answer your question. What would your answer be?

 

[Timothysis]

All I did was answer your question. What would your answer be?

Saying “no injustice should ever be tolerated” is like saying that no one should go to bed hungry or no one should be killed unjustly. It isn’t reality. You even take exception to the concept that Justice should prevail in all aspects. I know your heart is in the right place but you must remember that it is the intellect and not emotions that should rule.