BS: Being a Martyr is better a footballer

Subject: BS: Being a Martyr is better a footballer
From: Jack the Sailor
Date: 21 Aug 04 - 03:38 PM

nobody lives forever

Subject: RE: BS: Being a Martyr is better a footballer
From: Jack the Sailor
Date: 21 Aug 04 - 03:42 PM

Sorry about the cryptic title. It shoud read "Being a martyr is better than being a football player. Above is an interview with a 15 year old unsuccessful martyr/suicide/homocide bomber. The label depends on your point of view. It is very sad.

Subject: RE: BS: Being a Martyr is better a footballer
From: Jack the Sailor
Date: 21 Aug 04 - 04:15 PM

Its a really, really sad story.

He gave two reasons
They killed his friend
He was forced to go to school.

I feel like I know this kid and it fills me with pity. I knew rebelious kids growing up. Some of them were called delinquents. If there had been Nazis or Commies down the road from them I'm sure they would have volunteered to do the same thing. What a sad sad thing.

Subject: RE: BS: Being a Martyr is better a footballer
From: Jack the Sailor
Date: 21 Aug 04 - 04:49 PM

Carol just pointed out that I have not been clear in my meaning. Here is what I meant to say from the start.

The story of this boy touched me. I see some real humanity in it and while I certainly don't condone the action I can see what lead him to do it. Kids are rebelious and pliable at that age and they act out. Imagine how one of us might have acted when we were in that rebelious stage, had we seen one of our friends killed. When I was a boy the Communists were the current enemy and the war with the Germans was fresh in the minds of our parent's generation. That memory was clearly passed on to us. One of my teachers told us of seeing ore ships torpedoed right in our harbour. As a child I shared their hatred of this recent enemy.

I used the word NAZIs instead of Germans so as not to refer to current Germans but to the Germans who made war so near our own soil. If those Germans had occupied our land, we'd have fought them tooth and nail and 30 years later my generation would have been called upon to resist. Many of them would have. Maybe I would have.

I guess I wrote a story in my head when the interview touched me. I didn't express myself very well. I hope this is better.

Subject: RE: BS: Being a Martyr is better a footballer
From: Peace
Date: 21 Aug 04 - 09:19 PM

Jack, you have said it very well. Whew. Kinda puts some of the squabbles around here into perspective. Great post.

Subject: RE: BS: Being a Martyr is better a footballer
From: Peace
Date: 21 Aug 04 - 09:24 PM

Another thing: The picture that struck me very forcefully is the one of the two soldiers standing near the kid. The soldiers are kids themselves. What the hell kind of world does that to its children?

Subject: RE: BS: Being a Martyr is better a footballer
From: GUEST,John O'Lennaine
Date: 22 Aug 04 - 07:47 PM

I have never experienced a war zone so I can only try to imagine what horrors this kid must have seen to give him such a casual disregard for his own life, while still placing great value on the life of his friend.

Multiply this kid by millions. That's a problem that will take generations, if not centuries to alleviate, and the process has yet to be started.

John