I downloaded the speech Obama gave in Russia to that graduating class and read it during lunch today. I was really impressed. I'm sure some right-wingers think Obama should have made strong statements about human rights to put the Russians in their place, but that would have been totally inappropriate. Instead, he presented to the students a very healthy worldview which showed how Russia's interests line up with those of the United States. It was very well done.
Then tonight, I caught the tail end of Sean Hannity. He was taking individual lines out of the speech, twisting them around, and finding fault. It takes no intellect to do that, which is why Hannity can manage it so well. The typical grade schooler can take a line out of context and criticize it. That's child's play. I'm sure I could do it with the Sermon on the Mount.
You must take speeches of this nature in their entirety. Likewise with the Cairo speech, which I heard live and thought was magnificent. But I'm sure Hannity picked it apart that night. It's a petty, intellectually dishonest game. (Olberman does the same thing to things Republicans say.)
Hannity ended by making a comment like this: "It's my view that you don't negotiate with evil. You defeat it."
Now THAT'S scary. That's the Dick Cheney doctrine. So instead of talking to Russia--and North Korea, Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, China, etc.--the United States should DEFEAT them? Like, go to war? And people listen to this crap and go "Amen! Tell it, Sean!"??????
More importantly, is this the way a "one nation under God" settles disagreements with other countries? Does Jesus advocate aggression, military or otherwise, as the primary way to deal with your enemies? As Christians, we have a responsibility to discern the mind of God when it comes to citizenship. Rush and Sean give me zero insights into that.
Career-wise, I've been hanging around and writing about and cheering on churches and pastors for the past 25 years as my denomination's Communications Director.
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