The Cultural Divide

Everywhere you turn, you can get a sense of the world becoming more divided and hostile. It happens locally, nationally, and globally. Memphis is plagued by violence as demonstrated by its rank as one of the ten most dangerous U.S. cities. Even over the Thanksgiving holiday, a time when people generally stop and reflect on their blessings, Memphis still deals with violent crime as a dozen shootings are reported over the weekend.

There’s the kind of violence that occurs among civilians and then there’s the kind of violence that comes from the police force that is supposedly there to protect and serve. That’s what happened recently in New York City. In trying to arrest a man for selling illegal cigarettes, the police take him down by force where later the man was declared dead at a nearby hospital. Was the takedown by a chokehold responsible for his death? It seems unclear through some reports but it certainly could have been a contributing factor.

Then there’s the much publicized fatal shooting of a man in Ferguson, Missouri by a police officer. By some accounts, which later turned out to be false statements, the man was turning away from the police officer when he held up his hands and yelled, “Don’t shoot.” However, the officer involved was not indicted and was cleared of all charges. That hasn’t changed the overall mood of the country, however, as evidenced by several protests taking place in major cities throughout the U.S.

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The Wisdom of the World

By dierregi @ Morguefile.com

The world has gone crazy. It’s no surprise to anyone, or least anyone that isn’t living in a cave or has their head buried in the sand, to see how bad things are all around us. In Iraq, news reports tell us about the horrors of beheadings by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Though, apparently ISIS is small potatoes compared to the governments of Saudi Arabia, Iran, North Korea, and Somalia with regards to torture, persecution, beheadings, and other forms of execution.

Then there’s another Islamic terrorist group called Boko Haram. This militant group is so radical that to say they kill, steal, and destroy doesn’t touch how extreme they are. According to CNN, “(they have) bombed schools, churches and mosques; kidnapped women and children; and assassinated politicians and religious leaders alike.” They’re widely known, however, for recently kidnapping hundreds of schoolgirls. In a more despicable move, the group forced these Christian girls to convert to Islam and to be sold as slave brides, and thus revealing their complete disregard toward the value of human life.

The atmosphere isn’t any better in Israel either. They’re under constant attack by Hamas, another Islamic terrorist organization. It’s not that the rocket attacks are infrequent, either. It seems like Israel is constantly under threat considering 11,000 rockets have been fired since 2005. And for Israel to protect themselves, they use air strikes to target the terrorists. But Hamas is depraved enough to use human shields and then cry foul when civilians are hurt or killed. And to show that nothing is sacred in their attacks toward Israel, Hamas even uses their own mosques as terrorist facilities.

Violence is everywhere. Even in the United States there are problems with anger and the use of violence. Use Ferguson, Missouri as an example. Because a white police officer defended himself against a black man that appeared to have been attacking him, the entire community and a large portion of the country is experiencing civil unrest. Did the officer shoot the young, black man unprovoked? Answering questions to get to the truth doesn’t seem to matter much, it seems. CNN, an international cable news network forgets that people are innocent until proven guilty. But in their eyes, prior to knowing the truth through a trial by jury, they declare the officer to be guilty by saying he “shot and killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black teen.” Is that the truth? Does the truth even matter? As it is, major cities throughout the U.S. are bracing for protests that could potentially turn very ugly very fast.

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