I knew our President was a super fun guy, but this video clip DEFINITELY confirms it. While watching the Inauguration Balls, I thought I saw President Obama hip check a citizen while dancing. Those in the room with me swore that it was his wife. However, I was correct and here's the video to prove it.
On another positive note, an Executive Order against torture was made today. Read it by clicking here This pleases me because I feel that my faith implores me to be against any act of torture. It is the government's ethical responsibilty to protect human dignity of friend or foe. I am interested to see how this order and the pending Gitmo closing play out.
Executive Orders can however be overturned by future Presidents, so I am hopeful that laws will be passed according to these ideals and steps be taken to ensure that we treat those in our custody in ways that we would expect others to treat our own citizens while in their custody.
LEARN MORE: Visit the following websites to learn more about the fight to ban torture:
Campaign to Ban Torture
National Religious Campaign Against Torture
Evangelicals for Human Rights
INTERACT: What are your thoughts on these things- from the Hip Check to the Executive Order?
4 comments:
I am embarrassed by our government's use of interrogation methods that at best fall into a morally grey area. I firmly believe in the golden rule. Do unto others... we would be human outraged if we subjected our troops to tactics like waterboarding in order to elicit information. We cannot deny the rights of others under the false guise of security. We must seek to preserve the dignity of even our enemies. On another note our president is so legit =)
One - I love you and your boyfriend.
Two - I am one of your more shallow friends, who while agreeing with you regarding torture, really just wants to watch the hip check Obama video.... which is not working. :(
I am super pumped about the executive order against torture, and the closing of Guantanamo. I think what has been done--in our names--is unconscionable, and even worse considering the flimsy "evidence" being used to hold some innocent people (we know at least some of them are innocent) indefinitely, thousands of miles from their homes and families, for years, while subjecting them to torture and refusing them any legal recourse. Many of these people are regular citizens, just like you and me, who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, or enemies of the wrong people. Many of them, certainly, are criminals. But we protect the rights of ALL human beings because, as President Obama said in his DNC speech in 2000, when ONE person's rights are violated without due process, ALL of our rights are in danger.
Waterboarding is torture. I can say that unequivocally, and I'm glad that Eric Holder did, too. It is no more "simulated" drowning than holding a person's head under water until just before he or she loses consciousness is "simulated" drowning. It is the use of terrible violence to elicit information--which, as far as I understand it, is torture as such.
This isn't "24," and we aren't Jack Bauer. We're a nation of people who can choose to respect human rights or allow or government to perform heinous acts in our names. I'm glad that we're moving away from the latter, and I hope that we can make it a permanent step.
Also, I'm always a fan of dancing executives.
Melissa, I love that video of Obama dancing. It's neat to see him dancing like that and just having a good time. I was amazed to learn how many formal balls were held. I'm sure that was an exhausting night for Mr. President and his wife.
I'm rather ho-hum about the executive order on torture. This is one of those times where it would be nice to just sit on the couch in hurt commons and chat for a few hours with you about this. Obama made a move on his second day of office that allowed federal funding of international abortions. And, honestly, I'm sitting here in tears just thinking about the children, imagebearers of God, who have no defense and no voice who we are callously murdering, daily. To me- these issues with torture and guantanamo pale in comparison with what Obama has done regarding protecting the unborn. And, while those issues of torture are important, it seems strange that our President would regard life as sacred in one circumstance and protect the injury of individuals, but on the other hand, he is pursuing the death of other sacred lives. His second day of office. It must have been some priority. As you can see, this mom of three is still pretty torn up about it. I will still try to respect our President, but he's not making it easy right now.
I hope you will appreciate my candidness and not find offense to it. I do want to unite under this President, but, like I said, he's not making it easy.
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