In the wake of recent school shootings, various Letters to the Editor (LTEs) from individuals of religious conviction, seem to suggest that only those who do not trust God, risk being killed by a gunman. So, the ones killed in school massacres had it coming because they didn’t trust someone’s favorite fantasy figure? That’s not only the most stupid I have read since the last God-inspired LTE, but also the cruelest.
Instead of trying to explain why bullets can’t identify and avoid hitting alleged God-fearing people, let us try facts. Australia adopted strict gun laws after the Port Arthur massacre in ’96, pretty much stopping mass shootings. The Scandinavian countries have strict gun laws and are as “god-less” as any secular country. Gun incidents are rare and exclusively committed by religious loonies. In a single, tragic 2011 massacre in Norway, the religiously obsessed right-winger said he prayed to God during the shooting. He advocated a turn from Protestantism back to Catholicism, claiming that only the Christian Cross could unite Europe, – raising suspicion that he must have flunked history.
Most wars have been fought for religious reasons, while no American mass shooter has been found to be without some religious fantasies. “Faith” has no more protective power than prayers have the power to heal the injured and wake up the dead.
Jorg
You wrote, “Most wars have been fought for religious reasons…. ” WWI, WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War… the American War for Independence, the American Civil War?
Jorg, we disagree on many subjects, but I’m guessing if we sat down over a cup of coffee, we would find that we could find common ground on a lot of issues.
Gun violence… Today is June 6, 2018. Since January 1… over 1100 people have been shot in the city of Chicago, and 178 of them have died. How many have been shot and killed by the police? One. Plus, Chicago has some off the toughest gun control laws you will find anywhere. So, let’s dispense with unhinged claims of police brutality and religion being the reasons guns are used to kill.
It’s a false narrative. Stats from Australia and Scandinavia are used to fan the emotional flames that consume most of the dialog surrounding how we should address unacceptable gun violence in America.
Let’s have a real conversation. Let’s look to the reasons why too many turn to guns for answers to their problems. Will you have the courage to post this comment? We’ll see…
Ray Fowler
Redwood City, CA
Thank you, Ray, for giving me an opportunity to expand on the role of religion in wars. First, it is an historic fact that most wars in the past were inspired by religion, including of course, the Crusades. You question a few more recent wars. Just google “WWI and religion” and “WWII and religion”, and you’ll understand the impact of religion. Being a devote Roman Catholic himself, Hitler’s anti-Semitism played a key role in getting the German Catholics behind him. In his “Mein Kampf”, he brags about doing God’s work to exterminate the Jews, – and not only in Germany, as we have seen. Both the Vietnam and Korean wars were partly fought to stop the “godless Communists”. Even when the Soviet Union was fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan in the late 70’s, we were foolish enough to get involved to “stop the godless Communists.” Why couldn’t we have staid out of it and let the Russians be stuck with the Taliban problem? No, we had to side with the Taliban, – after all, they were “religious”, – like “us”. Also, without religion’s unfortunate grip on the American population, neither Bush nor Trump would have made it to the WH, – and in all likelihood, we would not have started the Afghan and Iraq wars. Even 9/11 might have been avoided, since there were signs that Bush ignored, in addition to him firing American linguists at the Monterey Institute because they were gay, leaving intercepted documents with clues to the pending attacks untranslated until after the horrible events. Perhaps it is easier for me, as an Atheist, to understand how religion has messed up world affairs, – and still does.
However, I agree with you when you state: “Let’s have a real conversation. Let’s look to the reasons why too many turn to guns for answers to their problems.” Of course, we should, but we should also make sure that guns aren’t as easily obtainable as they are today, partly because of NRA’s control of the US Congress. Why does anyone need assault rifles, except for mass killing of other people? I have no problem with guns in the house for self protection, just in case. But, they should be under secure lock and only accessible by the one with a permit, which again should require a thorough background check and be revoked in case of gun mishandling. That’s how it is handled in Germany and Scandinavia!
Jorg Aadahl, thanks for the article post.Really thank you! Great.
Jorg! I knew we could find some common ground!
Guns should not be “as easily obtainable as they are today.” We agree. Does anyone really need an assault rifle? No. Background checks? Yes. Requirements to keep guns safe? Yes. Does the NRA control Congress? We’ll need to unpack that one… Yes, the NRA is hugely influential on Capitol Hill, but not because of their money. They are influential because they are the quintessential supporters of the Second Amendment, and Senators and Representative alike know that millions of non-NRA members, like you and me, have “no problems with guns” for personal protection. We’ll come back to gun regulation.
Now, your claim that “it is an historic fact that most wars in the past were inspired by religion.” Jorg… I’m going to challenge that statement. What credible, accurate, and relevant sources would you cite to support such a claim? You say you Googled “WWI and religion” and ““WWII and religion.” If you Google “World War I and causes” then “World War II and causes,” you will not find religion listed as a cause for those conflicts. Try it. You will find nationalism, militarism, imperialism, and alliances listed as the causes of WWI, and you will find militarism and fascism as well as expansionism as the root causes of WWII.
I did research a list of nearly 200 wars throughout history. The description of each war included an estimate of the number killed. Those figures were supported by 185 scholarly citations. Let me report the results for wars involving over 1,000,000 deaths. Before Emperor Constantine embraced Christianity in 313 AD, more than 55 million persons died in wars. Those wars were not inspired by Christianity or Islam (which was not founded by Muhammad for almost another 300 years). After Emperor Constantine forbade the persecution of Christians, over 160 million deaths (not including World Wars I and II) may be attributed to wars primarily in Asia and Europe that were not inspired by religion. (Of that total, the Mongols are responsible for 30 million deaths.) The most significant number of deaths associated with religion would be the Crusades and the Spanish conquest of the Americas as well as wars fought by the Ottoman Turks in Europe. They total 35 million and 5 million, respectively.
World Wars I and II resulted in about 90 million deaths. Horrible. However, those wars simply were not inspired by religion. Japan did not invade Manchuria to replace Taoism with Shintoism, and the Nazis did not subjugate most of Europe for religious reasons. Those conquests were primarily efforts to get other peoples’ stuff… it’s that simple. One last item to consider… Mao Zedong is responsible for killing 35 million (or more) of his people, and Stalin is responsible for killing at least 15 million of his own people. Both Mao and Stalin were atheists. So, when you look at the inhumane history of humanity, you will find that most wars in the past were not inspired by religion.
Coming full circle to gun violence… you and I agree that something must be done and the sooner, the better. Today is Saturday, June 9, 2018. Since January 1 of this year… 1135 persons have been shot and 185 of those victims have died from their wounds in the city of Chicago. One American city. That’s beyond sad. Plus, Chicago has some of the toughest gun control measures on the books. So, we desperately need to start that conversation about how to reduce gun violence. Things like background checks and safety requirements should unquestioningly be a thumbs up. Then, let’s figure out what we can do about the conditions in our cities and towns that lead to gun violence. We can do this!
Ray Fowler
Redwood City, CA
Just a brief comment for the record, Ray. It is a matter of definition, but I don’t see much difference between religion and communism. The main purpose is to keep followers in line and under control. The difference is that communist leaders are visible, and just as powerful as invisible religious gods, although some people claim to see their “god” here and there and everywhere. Stalin himself was religiously trained and hardly a true atheist, since he set himself up as a communistic “god” figure and forbid competition from other religions, – and gods.
Jorg, no one can argue that you feel organized religion and totalitarianism are synonymous. That’s the way you feel, and that’s OK. However, you will not find any reference materials, e.g. a dictionary or thesaurus, that lists them as synonyms. It’s really not as you say, “a matter of definition.” Yes, religions typically have a set of beliefs that their practitioners embrace, and communist regimes also have a set of beliefs to guide the lives of their workers. That doesn’t transform religion and communism into synonyms. The NBA also has a set of beliefs and guidelines for their players, but having some sort of basketball league “doctrine” does not mean Steph Curry may be compared to a religious zealot or Kevin Durant compared to a card carrying, bag totin’ communist.
Here is where religion and communism differ in a most dramatic fashion. A practicing Catholic contacts a priest or bishop and renounces his faith. What happens? Nothing. The practitioner is free to walk away. Now, let’s put a worker living under Stalin in the same predicament. The worker goes to a Party official and renounces communism. What happens? Well… let your imagination fill in the blanks. You are free to practice a religion (or no religion) of your choosing, but you are not free to select and practice another economic system inside a communist regime. That’s a big, big difference.
I’m not really sure how your feelings about religion and communism play into your claim that religion has inspired most wars in history. That hasn’t happened; the record shows otherwise. What about the following? Two communist regimes in modern times killed at least 50 million of their own people… those people were not combatants and they were not rebelling against their communist rulers. (BTW… the 50 million death estimate is very likely way too low). Can you find any examples in history where such events like these have been inspired by religion?
Hey! Why are we off topic? We can kick around philosophical and ideological differences all day long. Let’s get back fixing the gun violence problems in our country.
Ray Fowler
Redwood City, CA