If we get nuked?

[Guest Plissken]

We the U.S. are bullying other countries to stop building nukes because we "assume" that they are building nukes. They say that if they are in possession of nukes they do not have the self-control to use it wisely.

It's funny though that the U.S. has nukes and we are the only ones that used it TWICE against Japan.

[Guest Plissken]

"Turning the other cheek" only applies to personal insults. It has to do with how we repsond to daily personal conflicts.  For example if someone gossips about us, we are not to take revenge by gossipping about them.  We are not to return insult for insult.

That admonition has nothing to do with the rules of war, and self defense when life is being threatened.  A nuclear attack would be the supreme act of war, and retaliation would be a moral imperative.

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Is that your interpretation of the Bible?

[M45510G1C]

A nuclear attack would be the supreme act of war, and retaliation would be a moral imperative.

By logical extension, it was then Japan's "moral imperative" to retaliate against the US after we bombed them...

[Guest yod]

A nuclear attack would be the supreme act of war, and retaliation would be a moral imperative.

By logical extension, it was then Japan's "moral imperative" to retaliate against the US after we bombed them...

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that is right...and they would have if they had not been utterly defeated and destroyed first. Can you imagine what Hitler or Stalin or Mussolini would have done if they had the bomb first? I shudder to think of it.

History lesson #1

The world is ruled by the aggressive use of force.

[M45510G1C]

Nice try, if I remember my history, didn't Japan start the whole mess by a dastardly sneak attack kiling some 2,400 Americans?

This is correct.

BTW, conservative estimates figure by using the bomb as we did it saved at least 300,000 American lives and several milion Japanese.

Potentially true, we really have no way of knowing this.

You ignored my pint, however. Another poaster said that:

A nuclear attack would be the supreme act of war, and retaliation would be a moral imperative.

The logical extension of that reasoning is that is would have been Japan's "moral imperative" to retaliate against us for our attack.

Can you imagine what Hitler or Stalin or Mussolini would have done if they had the bomb first?

It most certainly would have been terrible. I am not defending Japan, or any of the Axis forces.

The world is ruled by the aggressive use of force.

That is truly a shame. That being the case, however, does not justify agressive use of force.

[Guest yod]

That is truly a shame. That being the case, however, does not justify agressive use of force.

I agree to an extent.

There are such things as evil in this world. A response to evil can be just as destructive (even more so as in Japan) but that is caused by the evil initiator...not the defensive reaction.

But the world WILL be ruled by the most aggresive use of force whether it be good or evil. Shall we sit and wait for evil to rule us?

The Lord never told Israel to wait for an attack before responding to evil.

[M45510G1C]

That being the case, however, does not justify agressive use of force.

Of course it does, survival is the object, not being liked.

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Brother, if survival had been Christ's objective, where would we be today?'

The objective is not to bel iked, either, you are correct. It is to love God, and, by extension, to love our neighbor.

[M45510G1C]

The Lord never told Israel to wait for an attack before responding to evil.

this is really where I struggle. Perhaps I am too cynical. The Jewish people at that time must have had a great faith in their leaders.

How can we truly know if our leaders are, indeed being directed by God?

We can take them at their word, sure, but look where that got the Germans.

Lest we forget:

*These images are somewhat disturbing, at least to me.*

http://www.nobeliefs.com/nazis.htm

There truly is a very delicate balance between defending against evil, and becoming an oppressor yourself.

Edited January 11, 2005 by M45510G1C