An Iraqi's Blog Results in Questions for the Reader

Good evening. If you're reading this, you've found my Blog. It's kind of a journal and kind of a "thinking with my fingers on the keyboard" thing.

I was not planning to write this evening, but I saw an interesting Blog that I will direct you to if you have the time and inclination to read it. It's by a young woman living in Baghdad, Iraq. Check out Baghdad Burning at http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/ . Start at the beginning. She's not too happy with our President, the war in the Middle East, and the Iraqi elections. It's a good look at what's going on in the minds and lives of some of the Iraqis. She can't speak out there, but she can speak out on her Blog.

Proves that Blogs can be good cathartics. I have no experience living in a Country where my religious freedom is non-existent. I feel for her. I wish that President Bush would make it clear to the leaders in Iraq that they MUST have religious freedom as we have in the USofA. If we don't insist and Iraq's new Constitution doesn't list it, much of what we've fought for will disappear. We're not just fighting for oil or to prove something, we're fighting for people's inalienable rights to religious freedom and to live life in a democratic environment.

I do hope that Iraq will meet the challenge and become a beacon of freedom in the Middle East. One Man One Vote. One Woman One Vote. No more of this "a woman equals half a man." Where do men think they come from? A rock? A hole in the ground? Men are born from women. Women should be honored by men. Men should defer to women. It's just plain and simple uneducated for men to mistreat women in any way. I don't care what "religion" you use to justify your abuse of women. Abuse is abuse. Abuse by a man of a woman is NOT proper; it is NOT acceptable in a civilized society. How can a man place his own mother or wife or daughters in a position to be harmed because some "religion" claims he must do so? What about a man's love for his family? What about a man's inner knowledge that such behavior is not good, just and right? Every person has a conscience. Some are not 'formed' and some are inadequately formed or incorrectly formed. But the knowledge of good and evil or of right and wrong are still resident inside a person.

What about YOU? How do you feel about men abusing women? Do you think a person should have the RIGHT to raise questions about his religion's tenets if he thinks those tenets are wrong because they promote abuse of another person? What about the women being abused? Do they have the RIGHT to accuse a religion of intolerance towards women? Does a woman have a right to choose which religious thought she wants to practice?

Deep questions late at night. Makes me thankful that I live in the USofA. Makes me pray all the harder for G*d to work His miracles in Iraq. Ur of the Chaldees. Home of Abraham. A special place in G*d's plan of salvation.

For more on Roman Catholicism
http://www.newadvent.org

+Pace e Bene+