Beyond Shenanigans

Did they feel the children weren’t traumatized enough?

I am enough of a relativist to dislike deeming things ‘good’ or ‘evil’, but I am not so far gone as to think the words are without meaning. Regardless of how desperate a cause is, it’s never justifiable to militarize children. It’s actually one of the sure signs that the cause is better lost anyway. The Israelis don’t actually pose an existential threat to the Palestinians in the sense that they are storming the gates. While I would absolutely agree that Israel has committed actions and acts that may individualy described as atocity or ethnic cleansing, there is clearly no mass program to murder every Arab in Palestine. I call evil on Hamas. This is way beyond shenanigans.The television show itself is a bizarre hijack of the concept of children’s television. The relative sophistication of the effort is remarkable considering how primitive it’s intentions are. This isn’t the first time the children of Palestine have been ‘drafted’ by the adults who should be protecting them, but this sort of effort does not merely represent a step backwards in the Israel/Palestine conflict; it represents a degeneration of the nature of the conflict.

Of course, the abuse of children is not limited to that corner of the Earth. It happens everywhere. I find that last story particularly outrageous. It’s worth reading all the way through because just when you think you’ve reached the most unbelievable part of the tale, it grows even more monstrous. Here’s a quote from early in the story:
“Are you a Christian?” a woman in her 70’s hissed across the newsroom conference table at me Monday morning, as she quoted from scripture. Why had the paper dredged up this story, she wanted to know. “The rest of the boys want justice,” I replied. “Tell ‘em to get over it,” she snarled. “Just tell ‘em ‘tough!’”
What the old woman wants the boys to ‘get over’ was their rapes by Brad Stowell, a scoutmaster who raped dozens of boys, The Boy Scouts of America knew as early as 1991 that he was a sex abuser, yet continued to keep in charge of kids. The Mormon Church is involved as well. It’s rather compelling reading. It’s at least as scandalous as the Boston fiasco presided over by Cardinal Law, yet the MSM hasn’t touched it at all. Apparently they’re very good at keeping a lid on things out in Utah.
I suppose if there’s a common theme in either of these stories, it’s about what happens when adults forget their true responsibilities and put stupid earthly things ahead of the only responsibility we truly have. In Gaza they sacrifice their children for their religion and their paramilitary organization. In Utah they did it for their religion and the Boy Scouts.