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ld or
hese
card.
'ill of
der-
tand
r de-
y for
hope
ome
lear-
ebolt
View
and
vhis-
atrol
from
leS.
J. All
alker
dand
pas-
it us
:as -
s the
L one
;tand
ages
ass!"
thnic
ttries
v liv-
Vhen
s" in
the
,nnor
.llyn
hose
rical
ting
'ated
I. We
' and
lines
lling
oles,
lried
s in
ohn
Readers" €]ournal:
Be wary of religious leaders
Editor, The Journal:
The Egyptians and Greeks and
Romans had many gods. So did
the many cultures throughout the
world.
There seems to be no end to
prophets to whom God or his mes-
sengers have spoken, and yet this
one and the same god tells them
different things! That should give
rise to some doubt by the members
of all the faiths as to what these
prophets are saying. For certain-
ly, there is only one God and He
is not prone to error, whereas,
these prophets were all men, hu-
man beings, like you and I, and
are capable not only of error, but
of disingenuousness.
• Leadership in organized reli-
gion is greatly coveted, for with
it comes great power and great
wealth in tithes and endow-
ments.
But today, three major religions
that are so intolerant of one an-
other - Judaism, Christianity and
Islam _ are actually of a common
origin. That origin is the prophet
Abraham, who about 2000 B.C.
preached the concept of one God,
thereby replacing the gods of fer-
tility, rain and fire, etc. Just one
god, creator of all these things
and mankind as well.
Judaism: Abraham had two
Sons, Isaac and Ishmel. Isaac
continued the teachings of his fa-
ther, and Judaism traces its roots
to Isaac. Ishmel will not play a
part until the coming of the Islam
prophet Mohammed, thousands of
years later. Judaism grew by word
of mouth until about 1000 B.C.
when Moses spoke with God in
a private conversation and wrote
the Ten Commandments. His
teachings led to the five books of
Moses and eventually the Torah.
Judaism divides: The ,Jewish
faith split in two with the com-
ing of Jesus. Jesus claimed to not
only speak with God but to be the
son of God. This was the one and
same God of Abraham and Juda-
ism. Not all Jews believed this to
be true. Those who did, together
with all new converts to the teach-
ings of Jesus, were now a separate
religion, Christians.
Islam: About 600 years after
the birth of,Jesus, a wealthy mer-
chant, Mohammed (said to be a
direct descendant of lshmel), pro-
fessed to have spoken to the angel
Gabriel, who told him that neither
the Jews nor the Christians had it
quite right and proceeded to tell
Mohammed how things should
be. Mohammed wrote these new
rules as the Koran, with which
he established a new religion in
Arabia, the home of Ishmel and
Ishmel's many other descendants.
This religion is known as Islam,
and its followers are known as
Muslims.
Islam divides: When Moham-
med died in 632 A.D. there was a
power grab for the control of the
Islam faith, resulting in a war
between two factions, the Sunnis
and the Shiites. The Sunnis were
allied with Mohammed's widow
Aisha, and the Shiites were al-
lied with Mohammed's son-in-law
Ali. This power struggle, fueled by
mutual hatred and indiscriminate
murder, goes on to this day.
Christians divide: The Chris-
tians have divided into Catholics
and Protestants and Mormons and
many more. New sects and cults
spring up constantly, with char-
ismatic new "prophets." Fortunes
have been made while expanding
from humble tents to "televange-
list" temples.
God not divided: In the end
analysis, no one needs a go-be-
tween to speak to God. Be wary of
leaders of any faith who tell their
flock that followers of all other
faiths are going to hell. This could
NOT be the wish of God for any
of His followers, who all worship
Him but just in different ways.
Our religions mayhave divided,
but He has not!
Ray Tate
Hoodsport
Detentions are un-American
By ANTHONY PIEL don't actually bring criminal create a new category of person
Thanks to the application of charges against him. Do you fol- and label every "rebel" American
the Freedom of Information Act, low the logic'? in the rebellious colonies as an "il-
tape recordings have become Illogic aside, the U.S. Consti- legal enemy combatant," to be im-
available of the military hearings tution is really quite explicit: "In prisoned indefinitely without trial,
held at Guantanamo to determine all criminal prosecutions, the ac- as the United States is now doing
whether detainees are "unlawful cused shall enjoy the right to a in Guantanamo? What would our
enemy combatants." Listening to speedy and public trial, by an history textbooks today have said
these tapes confirms one's worst impartial jury; to be informed of about the British of yesterday?
fears of what has been going on the nature and cause of the accu- What will the history books of to-
behind closed doors at Guanta- sation; to be confronted with the morrow say about Americans of
namo. witnesses against him; to have today?
The tapes demonstrate that compulsory process ibr obtain- What can Americans do to
many, if not most, of the Guanta- ing witnesses in his favor, and to avert this historical shaming of
namo detainees have in fact been have the assistance of counsel for America? To begin with, patriotic
wrongly arrested, tortured, con- his defense." Every one of' these Americans can take advantage
vlcted without evidence or wit- constitutional conditions is being of the shift in balance of power
nesses and denied elementary due violated at, Guantanamo. in the U.S. Congress and Senate.
process. The tapes revealed in one All Americans are concerned They can call on their legislators
• case that the detainee had been to confront terrorism and bring to curb an executive branch gone
previously indicted, tried and ac- criminals to justice. But there is wild. They can close down Guan-
quitted in a national court, but no need to violate the U.S. Con- tanamo. They can bring the CIA,
Was promptly picked up by CIA stitution in order to do so. If we NSA, FBI, Homeland Security
agents as he left the courthouse give up our constitutional rights and the Pentagon back under the
and was spirited away to Guan- and freedoms, the terrorists have rule of reason, the rule of law and
tanamo, where he was secretly won the battle. That's what they the rule of the American people.
Incarcerated without knowing the want us to do. The mistreatment They can bring back the "Fourth
charges against himorhavingthe of Guantanamo detainees, as re- Estate" to fulfill the mission of
°Pportunityto see the evidence or vealed in the tape recordings, a free and responsible press in
Ppeal to a court of law, all in rio- is un-American, undemocratic, America.
ation of the express terms of the un-Christian, unconstitutional, Patriotic Americans must initi-
I5.S. Constitution as well as inter- unlawful, unnecessary and an ate full investigation of how the
national law. unprecedented violation of the current situation in Iraq and in
The U.S. Constitution asserts Geneva Conventions and other Guantanamo got so tragically out
that "No person shall be deprived international treaties and agree- of control. It may be necessary to
of life, liberty or property without ments to which the United States prosecute and convict some of the
due processoflaw. Nor shall any is signatory, perpetrators, to pass a message
Person" be subjected to "cruel and If these violations of American that will ensure that this violation
unusual punishment." The terms and international principles of of law and morality, this shaming
ao person" and "any person" pre- law are going on in Guantanamo, of America, will never again be
clude the possibility that the Con- which receives at least a modi- foisted on the American people.
stitution recognizes any category cum of attention from the press What is at stake is nothing
of Person, such as "unlawful en- and humanitarian organizations, less than a mandatory return to
e ,,
ray combatant, who is not en- what must the offenses be like in American principles, American
titled to the due process of law. To the CIA-run secret gulag prisons, values and the rule of American
.PUrPort to create such a category hidden from our eyes elsewhere law.
is to advocate violation of the U.S.
around the world? One shud- Anthony Piel, aresidentofSha-
Constitution. ders to think. It more than meets ron, Connecticut, is a former legal
The Guantanamo tapes reveal the predictive warnings of Dos- counsel of the World Health Orga-
that detainees are treated and toyevsky, Kafka and Orwell. nization. This piece was originally
Prosecuted as criminals and ira-
Hypothetically, what if circa printed in The Lakeville Journal
Prisoned as if they were proven
criminals, but without actual 1776 the British had decided to in Connecticut.
trial. Indeed, practically none of
the Guantanamo detainees has
ever been brought to trial in a court
of law. The bizarre theory of the
legal counsel to the U.S. adminis-
tration is that so long as a person
is never brought to trial, the gov-
ernment does not have to respect
aY of the constitutional rights af-
rded criminal defendants.
The illogic is striking: You can
subject a person to cruel and un-
USual treatment, so long as you
C-[ASSIFIED ADS
FILL
BILL
15 words for s6.50
tall
The IHmal
426-4412
r (00SCRATCH t
HIGHLAND
LAYER
CRUMBLES OR PELLETS
YOUR CHOICE
50-lb. bag
1015680,
281350
7.99
CRACKED
CORN
50-lb. bag
112151
6.49
ROLLED
RATION
With molasses.
50-lb. bag
10449/
I LIVESTOCK
BLEND
50-lb. bag.
07826500
RABBIT
RATION
50-lb. bag
t05411
8.99
f
ALFALFA
90-# bale
Quantity Price Break
1-9 Bales ......... 10.99 ea
10-19 Bales ..... 10.64 ea
0-29 Bales ..... 10.39 ea. J
INTEGRITY
10.99
INTEGRITY
7 99
SUET CAKE
/
1.49 each
OIL
SUNFLOWER
SEED
GARDEN 201bs.
81121
22-LB.
BIRD SEED
] ':i Wild bird food
I attracts many
i species of birds.
Pay for three
; 20lb. bogs. Get 6
Ibs. free!
81995
Hardware
First & Mill, Shelton
BRAND 426-4373 or 426-2411
MondoySaturdoy 7:30-6
5.99 each Sunday 8:30-5
Thursday, January 4, 2007 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Page 5
ld or
hese
card.
'ill of
der-
tand
r de-
y for
hope
ome
lear-
ebolt
View
and
vhis-
atrol
from
leS.
J. All
alker
dand
pas-
it us
:as -
s the
L one
;tand
ages
ass!"
thnic
ttries
v liv-
Vhen
s" in
the
,nnor
.llyn
hose
rical
ting
'ated
I. We
' and
lines
lling
oles,
lried
s in
ohn
Readers" €]ournal:
Be wary of religious leaders
Editor, The Journal:
The Egyptians and Greeks and
Romans had many gods. So did
the many cultures throughout the
world.
There seems to be no end to
prophets to whom God or his mes-
sengers have spoken, and yet this
one and the same god tells them
different things! That should give
rise to some doubt by the members
of all the faiths as to what these
prophets are saying. For certain-
ly, there is only one God and He
is not prone to error, whereas,
these prophets were all men, hu-
man beings, like you and I, and
are capable not only of error, but
of disingenuousness.
• Leadership in organized reli-
gion is greatly coveted, for with
it comes great power and great
wealth in tithes and endow-
ments.
But today, three major religions
that are so intolerant of one an-
other - Judaism, Christianity and
Islam _ are actually of a common
origin. That origin is the prophet
Abraham, who about 2000 B.C.
preached the concept of one God,
thereby replacing the gods of fer-
tility, rain and fire, etc. Just one
god, creator of all these things
and mankind as well.
Judaism: Abraham had two
Sons, Isaac and Ishmel. Isaac
continued the teachings of his fa-
ther, and Judaism traces its roots
to Isaac. Ishmel will not play a
part until the coming of the Islam
prophet Mohammed, thousands of
years later. Judaism grew by word
of mouth until about 1000 B.C.
when Moses spoke with God in
a private conversation and wrote
the Ten Commandments. His
teachings led to the five books of
Moses and eventually the Torah.
Judaism divides: The ,Jewish
faith split in two with the com-
ing of Jesus. Jesus claimed to not
only speak with God but to be the
son of God. This was the one and
same God of Abraham and Juda-
ism. Not all Jews believed this to
be true. Those who did, together
with all new converts to the teach-
ings of Jesus, were now a separate
religion, Christians.
Islam: About 600 years after
the birth of,Jesus, a wealthy mer-
chant, Mohammed (said to be a
direct descendant of lshmel), pro-
fessed to have spoken to the angel
Gabriel, who told him that neither
the Jews nor the Christians had it
quite right and proceeded to tell
Mohammed how things should
be. Mohammed wrote these new
rules as the Koran, with which
he established a new religion in
Arabia, the home of Ishmel and
Ishmel's many other descendants.
This religion is known as Islam,
and its followers are known as
Muslims.
Islam divides: When Moham-
med died in 632 A.D. there was a
power grab for the control of the
Islam faith, resulting in a war
between two factions, the Sunnis
and the Shiites. The Sunnis were
allied with Mohammed's widow
Aisha, and the Shiites were al-
lied with Mohammed's son-in-law
Ali. This power struggle, fueled by
mutual hatred and indiscriminate
murder, goes on to this day.
Christians divide: The Chris-
tians have divided into Catholics
and Protestants and Mormons and
many more. New sects and cults
spring up constantly, with char-
ismatic new "prophets." Fortunes
have been made while expanding
from humble tents to "televange-
list" temples.
God not divided: In the end
analysis, no one needs a go-be-
tween to speak to God. Be wary of
leaders of any faith who tell their
flock that followers of all other
faiths are going to hell. This could
NOT be the wish of God for any
of His followers, who all worship
Him but just in different ways.
Our religions mayhave divided,
but He has not!
Ray Tate
Hoodsport
Detentions are un-American
By ANTHONY PIEL don't actually bring criminal create a new category of person
Thanks to the application of charges against him. Do you fol- and label every "rebel" American
the Freedom of Information Act, low the logic'? in the rebellious colonies as an "il-
tape recordings have become Illogic aside, the U.S. Consti- legal enemy combatant," to be im-
available of the military hearings tution is really quite explicit: "In prisoned indefinitely without trial,
held at Guantanamo to determine all criminal prosecutions, the ac- as the United States is now doing
whether detainees are "unlawful cused shall enjoy the right to a in Guantanamo? What would our
enemy combatants." Listening to speedy and public trial, by an history textbooks today have said
these tapes confirms one's worst impartial jury; to be informed of about the British of yesterday?
fears of what has been going on the nature and cause of the accu- What will the history books of to-
behind closed doors at Guanta- sation; to be confronted with the morrow say about Americans of
namo. witnesses against him; to have today?
The tapes demonstrate that compulsory process ibr obtain- What can Americans do to
many, if not most, of the Guanta- ing witnesses in his favor, and to avert this historical shaming of
namo detainees have in fact been have the assistance of counsel for America? To begin with, patriotic
wrongly arrested, tortured, con- his defense." Every one of' these Americans can take advantage
vlcted without evidence or wit- constitutional conditions is being of the shift in balance of power
nesses and denied elementary due violated at, Guantanamo. in the U.S. Congress and Senate.
process. The tapes revealed in one All Americans are concerned They can call on their legislators
• case that the detainee had been to confront terrorism and bring to curb an executive branch gone
previously indicted, tried and ac- criminals to justice. But there is wild. They can close down Guan-
quitted in a national court, but no need to violate the U.S. Con- tanamo. They can bring the CIA,
Was promptly picked up by CIA stitution in order to do so. If we NSA, FBI, Homeland Security
agents as he left the courthouse give up our constitutional rights and the Pentagon back under the
and was spirited away to Guan- and freedoms, the terrorists have rule of reason, the rule of law and
tanamo, where he was secretly won the battle. That's what they the rule of the American people.
Incarcerated without knowing the want us to do. The mistreatment They can bring back the "Fourth
charges against himorhavingthe of Guantanamo detainees, as re- Estate" to fulfill the mission of
°Pportunityto see the evidence or vealed in the tape recordings, a free and responsible press in
Ppeal to a court of law, all in rio- is un-American, undemocratic, America.
ation of the express terms of the un-Christian, unconstitutional, Patriotic Americans must initi-
I5.S. Constitution as well as inter- unlawful, unnecessary and an ate full investigation of how the
national law. unprecedented violation of the current situation in Iraq and in
The U.S. Constitution asserts Geneva Conventions and other Guantanamo got so tragically out
that "No person shall be deprived international treaties and agree- of control. It may be necessary to
of life, liberty or property without ments to which the United States prosecute and convict some of the
due processoflaw. Nor shall any is signatory, perpetrators, to pass a message
Person" be subjected to "cruel and If these violations of American that will ensure that this violation
unusual punishment." The terms and international principles of of law and morality, this shaming
ao person" and "any person" pre- law are going on in Guantanamo, of America, will never again be
clude the possibility that the Con- which receives at least a modi- foisted on the American people.
stitution recognizes any category cum of attention from the press What is at stake is nothing
of Person, such as "unlawful en- and humanitarian organizations, less than a mandatory return to
e ,,
ray combatant, who is not en- what must the offenses be like in American principles, American
titled to the due process of law. To the CIA-run secret gulag prisons, values and the rule of American
.PUrPort to create such a category hidden from our eyes elsewhere law.
is to advocate violation of the U.S.
around the world? One shud- Anthony Piel, aresidentofSha-
Constitution. ders to think. It more than meets ron, Connecticut, is a former legal
The Guantanamo tapes reveal the predictive warnings of Dos- counsel of the World Health Orga-
that detainees are treated and toyevsky, Kafka and Orwell. nization. This piece was originally
Prosecuted as criminals and ira-
Hypothetically, what if circa printed in The Lakeville Journal
Prisoned as if they were proven
criminals, but without actual 1776 the British had decided to in Connecticut.
trial. Indeed, practically none of
the Guantanamo detainees has
ever been brought to trial in a court
of law. The bizarre theory of the
legal counsel to the U.S. adminis-
tration is that so long as a person
is never brought to trial, the gov-
ernment does not have to respect
aY of the constitutional rights af-
rded criminal defendants.
The illogic is striking: You can
subject a person to cruel and un-
USual treatment, so long as you
C-[ASSIFIED ADS
FILL
BILL
15 words for s6.50
tall
The IHmal
426-4412
r (00SCRATCH t
HIGHLAND
LAYER
CRUMBLES OR PELLETS
YOUR CHOICE
50-lb. bag
1015680,
281350
7.99
CRACKED
CORN
50-lb. bag
112151
6.49
ROLLED
RATION
With molasses.
50-lb. bag
10449/
I LIVESTOCK
BLEND
50-lb. bag.
07826500
RABBIT
RATION
50-lb. bag
t05411
8.99
f
ALFALFA
90-# bale
Quantity Price Break
1-9 Bales ......... 10.99 ea
10-19 Bales ..... 10.64 ea
0-29 Bales ..... 10.39 ea. J
INTEGRITY
10.99
INTEGRITY
7 99
SUET CAKE
/
1.49 each
OIL
SUNFLOWER
SEED
GARDEN 201bs.
81121
22-LB.
BIRD SEED
] ':i Wild bird food
I attracts many
i species of birds.
Pay for three
; 20lb. bogs. Get 6
Ibs. free!
81995
Hardware
First & Mill, Shelton
BRAND 426-4373 or 426-2411
MondoySaturdoy 7:30-6
5.99 each Sunday 8:30-5
Thursday, January 4, 2007 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Page 5