The Moral Sense and How it has been Misused

I am dismayed when I hear John McCain who seems never to have seen a war he doesn’t like...

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(PASO ROBLES, Calif.) - The essential meaning of the Moral Sense is that it defines the difference between what is Good and Evil, which is not the same as the meaning of what is acceptable and what is not, which is subject to interpretation depending on the values and norms of each of man’s social community and lifestyle which depends on their circumstances and need.

It is a worldwide phenomenon not all of which fit the mold of the Christian West as it sometimes appears the West would like to have them.

The Near East no longer is the problem it once was, and significantly it still exists as a conglomeration of nations that for the most part get along with Christianity and each other; No Korea being the only belligerent at times, but this is likely to change in time.

Since the United States, in 1848, following its war with Mexico, became a nation bounded by oceans, its government assumed an empirical nature by acquiring Pacific islands including Hawaii, Guam, Samoa. in 1898 -1910 it fought what became the Unknown War with Filipinos which ended when the Philippines granted the U.S. a naval base in exchange for its freedom. Alaska was bought from Russia in a friendly exchange known as Seward’s Folly (or icebox), a bargain of immense value

Christianity became the Religion of State under Emperor Constantine in 313 A.D. who, when Rome later was invaded by Visigoths, moved to the Eastern part of his domain where he changed the name of Istanbul to Constantinople. Rome considered itself the First Rome and rightful leader of Christianity, but Constantinople became the Second Rome when the Emperor used it as the seat of his power. The Eastern Church, though Christian, was known as the Orthodox wing because it never deviated from Christian practices, unlike Rome which became highly political. In the 6th Century Rome tried to force its will upon Orthodoxy, but failed which led to the first Schism of the Church in the 11th century.

In the 7th Century, Islam emerged and its popularity with Arabs caused it to spread widely among them in Spain, North Africa, Egypt, Arabia and points east from the Adriatic Sea including Afghanistan, Iraq Iran and as far as India. Poland retains its ties to Rome, but Orthodoxy is the dominant religion of Eastern Europe. Russia considers itself the Third Rome after Constantinople fell to Islam. Orthodoxy is dominant in the northern part of Eastern Europe, Islam in the south,

Afghanistan, and Iraq stand alone in the Middle East as Moslem nations whose cultures have hardly changed for centuries. They are tribal in nature whose peoples are governed and dominated by their religious leaders either Sunni or Shiite. Iran is a more cultivated Islamic nation whose Shah was friendly toward the U. S. and died there, after which Shiite Ayatollahs returned from exile to assume power and have held it ever since. Yet, the people have expressed opinions in the streets contrary to their leaders and it may not be as strict an Islamic nation as its leaders would like it to be.

Today, August 16. 2011, it was reported that Iraq is another Forgotten War, and it is amazing how closely it resembles the Philippine Forgotten War of one-hundred years earlier. But there is another concern about the Iraq War which though over, the U.S. still has some 45,000 troops on the ground that are to be withdrawn in their entirety by the end of this year. The concern is that they may not be, and I consider that unacceptable. The U.S. should not be considered Iraq’s police force. Whatever the circumstance, we must withdraw if the U.S. is ever to be free of Iraq.

Pakistan was part of India until its preference for Islam caused it to separate and become its own nation. The Afghan war and the killing of Osama bin Laden by American Seals revealed a rift in the concord of the our nations that probably existed for some time, but this incident seems to have brought it to the fore because of Pakistan’s Islamic tendencies. It appears Pakistan was harboring Osama bin Laden while the U.S. gave Pakistan billions of dollars a year as a supposed ally against Al Qaeda.

Arab nations in No. Africa and on the Arabian peninsula have suddenly decided to put an end to the tyrannical one-man rule they have lived under for so long with the object of creating democracies in its place. Syria resists and has killed several thousand of its citizens. I suspect in time all tyrants will fall and that the Mediterranean and the Arabian Peninsula will become democratic eventually. It remains to be seen just how it will happen.

In my opinion, the U. S. should quit both Iraq and Afghanistan, bring all troops home, eliminate the expense of maintaining foreign outposts and devote its attention to domestic affairs first, and then with Arab nations seeking to become democracies where there is more chance of success.

The world has been totally embraced now, and after so many years it is time to regroup, recover and use our resources for the good of all Americans. I am a believer in always preparing for the worst, but hoping for the best, which does not include defending Iraq or Afghanistan from themselves. Charity begins at home, and that is done most effectively provided we have the manpower and the will to think of America first. Having satisfied that goal, we can devote our attention to the needs of others.

I am dismayed when I hear John McCain who seems never to have seen a war he doesn’t like, and Senator Lindsay Graham of S.C. who wants America to establish an enduring presence in Afghanistan by building military air bases there for our use in perpetuity. It isn’t necessary or even practical; in the first place such a presence would not likely be acceptable, and in the second, America has already planted the seeds of change which must be watered by the Afghans alone if they are to change. Let it be!

Our good intentions would be better served in helping the nascent Arab states achieve their freedom from tyranny by creating democratic governments which would have an added effect on the Afghan people who might want to help themselves enter the 20th if not the 21st century.

Kenneth G. Ramey, Salem-News.com's Religion and Philosophy Writer, confronts the hard issues of politics and religion from a logical point of view that combines interesting insight with history into the truth, or lack thereof, that underlies the strengths and weaknesses of the Religious Right’s determination to use American politics for its own misguided, or selfish, interest. It’s rare for a writer to balance his writing between religious values and the secular guarantees of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights with the knowledge that Ken possesses, and to do it so effectively.

Ken was born in Minnesota but was raised in California since 1932. He is the youngest of four boys raised by his mother alone during the dark years of the Great Depression. He Graduated from SFSU in the 1970s when in his mid-forties, majoring in Spanish North American History, and added three years of post-graduate study, much of it in Philosophy and Religion. We live at a critical time in history and believe Ken's views represent the view of many who are tired of the commercialism and false interpretations about religion today. Watch for Ken's articles on religion, philosophy, politics and history. View articles written by Kenneth G. Ramey You can email Ken at: darken1@sbcglobal.net