Off-topic

[Eric]

Don't we have one or two members from NY? I hope they are safe.

E

[AjIsCoool]

with you Bob C. in your reply to BigFrank, just want to share my thoughts.
Religion is never the problem with our life, but the miss-understanding, miss-using with intention or whitout is the true problem, ( using religion to kill and to give an excuse to kill is the problem)
Because i am a Muslim i should mention this to you to see what i mean. The prophet Mohammed says "that a women went to Hell, because she locked a cat and left here without food or water until the cat died, and a man went to Heaven because he help a thirsty dog to drink" and he said in War to his army:
Don't kill a child, women, old people, don't burn a tree, a house, a shop or a temple or a church don't take money from anyone or enter a house without permission, only kill those who wants to kill you as defending yourself"
and all he things that happend to America is disobey the commandment of Alah and the Prophet.
I am sorry for this but i just want to explain what do i mean by using religion to achive thier plotical issues.

[Sean Sedwards]

Klaus has agreed not to add to the debate and I think we've had enough responses to his original posts. Further pointed remarks directed at any contributors would be contrary to the spirit of the thread and I will feel obliged to delete them.

Regards - Sean

[roman]

I agree with you in all points.

[raffon]

Not mine. Thought I'd pass it on.

TANSTAAFL

[AjIsCoool]

it is not time for an artistics comments, but i like this photo that raffon posted, " it tells it all"

[jclements]

Thank you for your words. I find they are important because they serve to educate and enlighten those of us who are not familiar with the tenants of your faith.

I SINCERELY hope that all of us seek to educate ourselves FIRST BEFORE passing judgement on or taking actions against others.

America IS a great country, BUT, like other nations, we have not been "perfect". In MY OPINION, we have failed horribly in the education of our population at large.

If you have ever observed "the man of the street" segments of various late night television shows, you soon become aware how truely ignorant some of us are. I don't pretend that I am immune from such accusations either, but hopefully I will continue to become less ignorant.

I feel we (our society) all need to know the relevance of our place in history, understand the issues of national politics, and the characteristics of social behavior and NOT ride on the heels of convenient slogans.

That said, there should be no doubt that what has transpired in New York was WRONG. The murder of innocent people can not be justified.

It is now OUR RESPONSIBILTIY to make sure that after any actions we take individually or collectively as a nation or as a world community, we can look back upon in pride and honor. Remember, this is will become part of our children's heritage.

[smorg]

...they are reporting on Fox News that Logan Airport in Boston is still closed. I don't know what's happening with the CorelWorld Conference, but keep Gary and the others in your mind until he gets home safely.

[UnHoly]

This article was written by Leonard Pitts Jr. of the Miami Herald:

They pay me to provide words that help make sense of that which
troubles the American soul. But in this moment of airless shock when hot
tears sting disbelieving eyes, the only thing I can find to say, the
only words that seem to fit, must be addressed to the unknown author of this
suffering. You monster. You beast. You unspeakable bastard.
What lesson did you hope to teach us by your coward's attack on
our World Trade Center, our Pentagon, us? What was it you hoped we would
learn? Whatever it was, please know that you failed.

Did you want us to respect your cause? You just damned your cause.

Did you want to make us fear? You just steeled our resolve.

Did you want to tear us apart? You just brought us together.

Let me tell you about my people. We are a vast and quarrelsome
family, a family rent by racial, social, political and class division, but a
family nonetheless. We're frivolous, yes, capable of expending tremendous
emotional energy on pop cultural minutiae-a singer's revealing
dress, a ball team's misfortune, a cartoon mouse. We're wealthy, too,
spoiled by the ready availability of trinkets and material goods, and maybe
because of that, we walk through life with a certain sense of blithe
entitlement.

We are fundamentally decent, peace-loving and
compassionate. We struggle to know the right thing and to do it. And we are,
the
overwhelming majority of us, people of faith, believers in a just
and loving God.

Some people-you perhaps-think that any or all of this makes us
weak. You're mistaken. We are not weak. Indeed, we are strong in
ways that cannot be measured by arsenals.

IN PAIN
Yes, we're in pain now. We are in mourning and we are in shock.
We're still grappling with the unreality of the awful thing you did,
still working to make ourselves understand that this isn't a special
effect from some Hollywood blockbuster, isn't the plot development from a Tom Clancy novel. Both in terms of the awful scope of their ambition and the
probable final death toll, your attacks are likely to go down as the worst
acts of terrorism in the history of the United States and, probably, the
history of the world. You've bloodied us as we have never been bloodied
before.

But there's a gulf of difference between making us bloody and
making us fall. This is the lesson Japan was taught to its bitter sorrow the
last time anyone hit us this hard, the last time anyone brought us such
abrupt and monumental pain. When roused, we are righteous in our outrage,
terrible in our force. When provoked by this level of barbarism,
we will bear any suffering, pay any cost, go to any length, in the pursuit
of justice.

I tell you this without fear of contradiction. I know my people,
as you, I think, do not. What I know reassures me. It also causes me to
tremble with dread of the future. In the days to come, there will be
recrimination and accusation,
fingers pointing to determine whose failure allowed this to happen and
what can be done to prevent it from happening again. There will be
heightened
security, misguided talk of revoking basic freedoms. We'll go
forward from this moment sobered, chastened, sad. But determined, too.
Unimaginably determined.

THE STEEL IN US
You see, the steel in us is not always readily apparent. That
aspect of our character is seldom understood by people who don't know us
well. On this day, the family's bickering is put on hold.
As Americans we will weep, as Americans we will mourn, and as
Americans, we will rise in defense of all that we cherish.
So I ask again: What was it you hoped to teach us? It occurs to me
that maybe you just wanted us to know the depths of your hatred. If
that's the case, consider the message received.

And take this message in exchange:

You don't know my people. You don't know what we're capable of.
You don't know what you just started.
But you're about to learn.

[Eric]

"...and I will feel obliged to delete them."

Please do not censor anybody’s input
People are angry
Whether at God or terrorism
how can a God who made man "in his own image"
allow this to happen?

People need to vent their spleen
If someone is angry toward the terrorists
For perpetrating this heinous act
Then somebody is angry towards God for allowing it to happen

Do not censor
It is so wrong
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