Events

I recognize that world events have shaped my life.  9 11 had a huge impact on me.  The first Iraq war in '91 had a profound influence on me.  Princess Diana's death shocked me and was one of those I remember where I was when I heard events, as was 9 11.  9 11 made me feel angry.  It gave me a strong feeling of solidarity with our American cousins (I was quite anti American in my youth).  It made me feel unsafe and question the ethics of preemptive strikes, or rather weather it was really unethical.  I became a big supporter of just war.  The protesters taking down the fence in Quebec make me question weather we've become too soft as a society.

I used to, and maybe I still do, believe that most Muslims were good people, that it was the radicals who were to blame for the violence.  The rise of ISIS, the killing of Christians in the Middle East, and the events in Ottawa--the shooting--have me reevaluating my values.  Does Islam teach violence?  Is it ever okay to be racist?    Are we too soft?  Are our western liberal values more important than 100 000 lives?  How about one life?  At what expense do we purchase our values?  Do we stubbornly hang on to them at all costs?  Have we lost if we change them?  Have we lost if we are destroyed hanging on to them?  When do we protect ourselves by going after our enemies?  When is it okay to push back?

It's been said that the world changed after 9 11.  But, individuals changed after 9 11.  Events change me.