Thoughts on the Past Week

There have been a number of events this past week that have touched us in some way. I hardly know where to begin.

The Virginia Tech murders last Monday broke our hearts. I grieve for those who were killed and all their families and friends. I also feel sad for the family of Cho Seung-Hui. I don't know what to think about Cho himself. Just going off newspaper reports, it sounds like he had serious mental issues, but how much those affected the evil choices he made, I don't pretend to know. So I am left simply grieving for the tragedy of it all.

There were anniversaries for three past tragedies this past week, too. The Branch Davidian compound in Waco (14 years), the Oklahoma City bombing (12 years), and the Columbine murders (8 years). Even though I was about 3 miles north of the OKC bombing site, I still remember clearly walking across the office and feeling the ground shake beneath my feet.

On Wednesday the US Supreme Court voted 5-4 to uphold the national ban on partial-birth abortion. I am thankful for that--that's a barbaric practice that shouldn't even exist. However, the whole abortion issue belongs to the states, not the Federal Government. Doesn't anyone ever read the Constitution anymore?

Abortion brings feminism to mind. I just do not understand feminists in general. I can understand a few basics, like being able to vote and own property, for example. What I don't understand is abortion, tearing men down in an attempt to build women up, and expecting men to become like women in their viewpoints. Men and women are different. We have marvelous freedom and equality in the USA. Yet our culture is permeated with accusations of sexism and oppression (among other things). I am constantly amazed at the contorted lengths feminists go to in order to show that everything is sexist and oppressive to women. The Middle East is one example of a place where it really is difficult to be a woman. We aren't living in those conditions. And I suspect that even there, most men love their wives and treat them well. I wonder--how respectful of their husbands and sons are feminists? Or do they consider that a one way street--in their own direction, of course.

I continue to ponder the issues of the day and try to think things through. Sometimes it is hard to sort it all out. I will keep working at untangling the threads.