In his Feb. 11 letter “Take action against extremists,” Dennis Rozario questions President Obama’s loyalty. He took offense to the president’s remarks, after condemning ISIL’s beheading of the Jordanian pilot, that Christians should not get on their high horses, that atrocities have been committed in the name of Christianity. Rozario believes that Obama’s comment is stupid and there’s zero moral equivalence in comparing the actions of ISIL to Christians.
Obama was speaking at the National Prayer Breakfast, so his comments were directed at Christians. Also, his remarks are heard around the world. There is a lot of resentment for us; we backed several tyrannical vicious leaders in the region so we could get oil — Saddam Hussein and the Shah of Iran for the short list. We need to knit bonds with other cultures, but with caution. As we teach our children, use words not violence to get your message across.
I hate what ISIL did and is doing. But I also hate what Adolf Hitler did, what the KKK did to African-Americans (you remember them, that good ‘ole white CHRISTIAN organization that’s still active) they lynched, and sometimes when a person is hung, they are decapitated.
So yes, get off our high horses and try to understand others’ cultures. Terrorism is terrorism. Both of our cultures have their radicals. We all have prejudices. We need to keep an open mind and learn to live with others. We need to lead by example.
