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The simple thoughts

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 Open to discussion
 

Hello to all today:

Okay to continue on...thank you all for commenting and I have so many responses I have to decided to dedicate this post to responding and opening up more questions...or simple thoughts.

The earlier question was 'If one commits suicide for a cause would s/he be considered as a martyr?'

Dazey brought up the point about the WWII Japanese pilots. So here is my question about them. If one commits suicide during the time of war because it was more honorable for them to die in war than come home and die, then how is that martyrdom? If they flew their planes to kill others and themselves, then they would be considered heroes and not martyrs in their country...right? If they gave their lives more for the reasons of pride and honor than that of their spiritual or political beliefs that would not make them martyrs. It seems like they were not permitted or taught that there were other options than dying a "honorable" death by sacrificing their lives....so I guess I'm trying to ask if death by suicide is martyrdom if one is taught to that action and there are no other options available to them?.....Thanks Dazey for bringing this up...it's good stuff!

Rosie thank you also for your comparison between martyrdom and the children on the playground. That makes really good sense to me! You helped me see something else that needs to be asked. Rosie said that it's the ones who are killed in the name of freedom that are the martyrs. This is to say that suicide bombers are not martyrs because they submit fear into others and force them to conform. And to this I ask...Is there response (that of killing themselves) not a response of the fear they feel? My personal knowledge of the subject leads me to believe that the middle-east suicide bombings are directly related to the fact that these men and women feel as though their freedoms are being taken away. They have a belief system that is being challenged, and they feel their entire culture is at stake. To rectify this they have taken drastic measures to ensure their beliefs will always be upheld. If martyrs are killed in the name of freedom, then are there ever any REAL martyrs?

BethAnne also commented on the suicide bombers. She said "Suicide has no honor in it. A martyr is a person whose death inspires others." So I ask...inspires others how? If one kills him or her self and that death causes others in the same belief realm to take up arms and fight for their cause...is that not inspiration? Many times I think to sacrifice your own life is much more glorified than to simply fight. (I don't think its more glorified...but the media and often times others seem to point in that direction) If one commits suicide and while he does kills 20 opposers...then there is inspiration in that unfortunately! What if one man goes in and blows himself and 20 men up and this act alone causes his own people to stop and look at the violence they are enflicting...and this one act inspires others to stop the violence...is this a positive inspiration and then considered martyrdom?

I thank you all for commenting...jchess, raggety, and Moody. You have given me a lot to think about. I will be doing much more research on the topic, and I think I am going to write on suicide bombers...mostly because it is a big topic right now in our world. Please don't think that I am by any means supporting the killing of innocent people, but I just want to see both sides of martyrdom...and how each culture defines the term. I will be sure to write more...maybe tomorrow...I have a history test tomorrow and right now I need to change directions and simply study!

Thank you all
Thanks for stopping by:
Nik

Posted by nikki rae at 2:16 PM - 5 Comments   Add a Comment  
 

 Phylisophical thought
 

Hello to all today:

Today I want to pose a question to you all. Please reply whether you agree, disagree, or simply want to add a statement...or if you have any cool sites for me to visit concerning this topic.

I have to write a paper in philosophy about martyrdom. I have only started my research so this may seem a little choppy, and for that I apologize.

Okay... so martyrdom is defined as having been killed for refusing to deny religious or political beliefs, or the hardship and endurance involved in making sacrifices for a cause.

This is the question I pose: If one commits suicide for a cause would s/he still be considered a martyr?

In all religions that have settled here in the West there is not one that I can say I have heard suicide is considered the same as a martyred death. I know that the middle east is on a rampage with suicide killers. I have heard that their religious beliefs encourage suicide killings...however, I do not know this to be true, and I do not know how to find more info on the topic.

If they do hold beliefs such as the one above, I do not fault them for following their traditions. Just as I do not fault those who participate in the taking of communion.

This is what I do not understand. To be considered a martyr you must die for your cause. What if you were going to be killed anyway, and you chose to die to by your own hand and mind instead of by your enemies. Are those people still considered martyrs?

Again, going back to the middle-east muslims...they die for a cause. They risk their lives for their beliefs...but in the west they are viewed as savage beasts...which is amazing considering our own ties with religion, and the fact that Americans almost always applaud those who are willing to risk their lives for a cause (I guess as long as the cause doesn't interfere with our own beliefs... yea I know...that's for another post).

Then you have sacrifice. Which is suicide, sometimes. If you willingly make a decision to forfeit your life for a god or a belief...isn't that still suicide? Isn't suicide the taking of your own life, whether it be by your hand or anothers...isn't it the mind that initiates the act?

So there's my question
Thanks for stopping by:
Nik
Posted by nikki rae at 6:49 PM - 8 Comments   Add a Comment  
 

 Man bashing
 

Hello to all today:

Okay here we go...diving into one of the great mysteries of all time. Why are we here? NO! What happened to the dinosaurs? NO! Is there a great divine being? NO! Why is the sky blue? NO!...OK I think you get the point. The question I pose is why the HELL can't a man do one little tiny task.

Background:
Last night I made the comment...hey we need a new coffee table.

More Background:
Boyfriend broke last coffee table...because he lost at a NCAA football game!

Prior Background:
So I tell boyfriend and friend {Mex} that tomorrow {which is now today} it would be great if they would TOGETHER go and pick up a coffee table while I was away at school.

Both agree in unison that my wishes will be obeyed. I call boyfriend today around 2pm and Mex still isn't awake and boyfriend is playing a game on the computer. So I say GO AND WAKE MEX UP AND GO GET THE COFFEE TABLE...PLEASE. To which he says he will!

Two hours later:
Boyfriend calls while he is at the store and asks if this certain coffee table is okay. Now mind you we do NOT have camera phones so he is sending the picture through osmosis! Since I am not in tune with my inner spirit...I haven't tapped into the inner depths of my brain like he has I state I can't see the table, so as long is the damn thing fits into my specifications that were written down last night it will be fine.

My specifications:
1......The table needs to be SQUARE.
2......The table needs to be made out wood.
3......The table needs to be small but convenient.
4......The table needs to be dark or black.
5......There is to be NO glass in the table.

These are the questions that arose last night from my specifications.
1......Can there be drawers?
..........I don't care either way!
2......Does the top need to be flat or can there be edges?
..........I don't care either way!

Present:
Boyfriend and Mex have gone to ONE store and looked at ONE table. Then as they called me again for the FOURTH time asking for info I exploded.

"If you like the damn table and it meets my five specifications then please by all means buy the damn thing! If for some reason the table meets all five points and you do not like it then leave it alone."

It took two men 3 hours to get ready and look at one table. Then they didn't even get the damn thing....they went to drop off the truck and grab something to eat.

Needless to say I will be looking for a coffee table tomorrow by my lonesome self. It may be better that way...actually I'm worried about when they walk in the door.

Now I must go finish straightening my hair, read my German note cards, prepare my next speech, iron my clothes for the game tonight, all while explaining to boyfriend why dirty clothes go in a hamper....Not on the floor.

Thanks for stopping by:
Nik
Posted by nikki rae at 5:14 PM - 15 Comments   Add a Comment  
 

 The Hidden Poem
 



Sitting on wet grass
Bugs zip past my ore
...with wings a thousand times too small
My mind traces back to
...dandelions tangled in golden hair
...young smiles with missing teeth
Bumblebees fight for the pollen from a single white rose
The rose of death
The fallen of the two
...departs to the others
...lies with the dead
...lands in the sweet taste of Satan's juices.
God looks down
...sadly states the loss to the followers
...each animal
...each flower
...each sand grain
...each fallen leaf
......they all carry a name
It shows how insignificant we all must seem
...when viewed upon by the highest of the high
Mother nature
...blesses us with the seeds of her groin
Father time
...destroys us with his hand
...balanced and strong
...holds unto our soul
We remember
...all those things
...waiting a lifetime to forget
We are placed on a balance
...only to see who will falter first
We look around
...only noticing those people
...wishing for things we don't have
We envy
...with no cause
We regret
...until we tear at ourselves
We are
...hungry for the knowledge it seems no one posses
Love will be our
...highest desire
...only flaw
We will become
...trapped inside a maze with no rights
...a statistic in another age
Our life
...is so others will understand those things they need not know
We will die
...together
...somehow apart
We will
...cry at the same innocence
...follow in honest, blind footsteps
...have no choice but to hover in the dreams of others

These will be our days and we will never understand why

Nik
Posted by nikki rae at 5:21 PM - 5 Comments   Add a Comment  
 
 Icon
 

Thank you all who responded to the Icon help wanted message. I love to get feedback from you guys since you all are the ones looking at my blog.

I have chosen #1...this may change one day, but it lifts my spirits today.

Thanks again...
Nik
Posted by nikki rae at 4:59 PM - 4 Comments   Add a Comment  
 
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  About Me
Author: nikki rae
From Nashville, TN, USA
 
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This blog is about serious thoughts that jog through my brain in about 5 minutes a day
 
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