Sam Harris

I feel horrible and conflicted. I am truly sorry for the pain and suffering of the Pakistani people. There is another part of me, however,  that is saying "now you know what its like to be crushed in a building". Frankly, I havent even watched the news or read the articles as I did during the tsunami and Katrina/Rita.

The same people who danced in the streets on 9/11 and still call us the Great Satan are now receiving US relief aid.

How much aid is the Muslim world pouring into Pakistan?

As a secular humanist I know all about generalizations blah, blah, blah, but, thats how I feel. Whoever said people thought rationally? I feel guily about feeling this way, but, why hide from my true feelings?

Anyone else admit to these feelings?

Just a tad. I just like to think that our aid is helping the families of my Pakistani friends. But like you, I feel a poor country who thinks nuclear weapons are worth their cost, is misguided.

Rod

I know what you mean. I live a few blocks north of the WTC site. What I’d like to ask is, how about India and the other areas equally affected by the earthquake? Why is the media concentrating almost solely on Pakistan?

This has been a period of astonishing disasters. The tsunami, the two hurricanes in the Gulf, the destructiveness of this earthquake. We’re awfully selective about where our attention goes. We’re paying almost no attention to the results of the hurricane that slammed into Mexico a few days ago and its trail of devastation. There’s extensive flooding in NJ, Pennsylvania, upper NY state, and at least parts of New England right now, and we’re barely being told what’s happening or where. What bothers me most is that the financial help will go to those areas that get the huge media coverage while the victims in other areas are left to shift for themselves as best they can.

interesting how religious people spin bad events, if it happens to a infidel its god’s punishment, if it happens to a believer its a test of faith.

Yes, the media is barely covering the fact that Bush is effectively abandoning the poor in the Gulf, asking all of nation’s the poor to pay for relief with cuts in Medicaide etc while still lobbying for his tax cuts to the very wealthy.

Is the money better spent in Pakistan, Iraq, etc. ? Im am not an isolationist by any means, but, Sam’s book gave me an epiphany as to my feelings and tolerance of those who don’t tolerate me and in fact wish to destroy me.

I have reconciled my proud Liberal label with this conflicted emotion.