I did it. I Googled “Innocence of Muslims,” the "film" that set the Mideast on fire Tuesday, and watched a portion of it on YouTube, basically until I got sick of it (I'm surprised I got as far as I did.)
The main reason I did it was to see if it was something linkable on the newspapers main site. If you go to this story you will not find it there.
Guess that answers that question.
I actually laughed in some places, but not because of the storyline, which I generally did not get, but because it was such a cheesy film.
But the fervor it caused in the Islamic world is not a laughing matter.
Is this the fault of the filmmaker. As an American I say no. And along with that I thank God every day I am an American.
We have freedom of speech. It's a concept not known in some parts of the world, and maybe nowhere in the world to the extent it is here.
America allows me to express my opinion that religion may be worth dying for but it is not worth killing for and that if you think it is you are in the wrong religion.
Some say all religions have their faults, and I agree — we all are human and therefore come with faults — but killing another human being for a film, that really wasn't worth the money used to pay for it in my mind, is not a fault, it is wrong, it is cowardice, it is a sin.
Some say they are animals, but even most animals will not attack without cause, and a cheesy film and its excerpts on YouTube are not a just cause.
In poor taste? Yes, I think there are better ways to address the controversy of faith.
As an American am I angry the flag was treated as it was in Egypt Tuesday? Yes. As a Christian would I be angry if Jesus were treated in a similar film? Yes.
Would it be worth any life? Some say it one was worth it more than than 2,000 years ago.
And if more believed that then maybe there would be less of yesterday.
Hassler writes for the News & Eagle and can be reached at violeth@enidnews.com
Comment on this story here or at facebook.com/enidnews.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
California stinks ... tell me some real news.
I have fond memories of my one visit to the golden coasts of California: I was a senior in high school and on my last fling with classmates, many of whom had been a constant for the past 12 years of my life.
We were young, and we didn't care about politics, real estate prices and the cost of living.
Now, you literally couldn't pay me to live in California, because I couldn't afford it.
However, a major chunk of the population somehow has managed to do so, but I bet many are wishing this week they were somewhere else.
The reason: It really does stink. There has been a foul odor wafting across the beaches of southern California, and scientists seem to think the cause can all be traced back to global warming.
See story here
It is getting harder to refute the existence of global warming, as the ponds and lakes dry up and the season shift our part of the world.
While I am not convinced global warming is caused by man, I cannot say anymore I do not think it exists, because it is awfully dry out there.
It apparently can be smelled across California, and it can be seen and felt in Oklahoma, even in Enid: where I and a few friends and our children managed to bake while at an outside fundraiser this weekend and when everyday I visit my horse in his stall and wonder what color his hair used to be on a face coated with dust.
There has been turns in the earth's patterns before, and while some scientists cry this is different I can't help but hope for the return of frigid winters that kill the ragweed and the pollen and signal the return of normal climate in our neck of the woods.
But until that time, I worry ... like when our rural well site went dry last summer and we had to go deeper for a water source that for a decade had not been an issue. I worry when I see the farm ponds dry up, even deep ones that never had done so prior to the past two summers.
And while I know many local residents think the city doesn't know what it is talking about, I worry when I see sprinklers around town all for the sake of keeping a yard green. Why? In these times I almost see that as a scarlet letter. Maybe brown is the new green.
I worry when I see corporations using a large amount of our drinkable water when they could use their resources, perhaps, to build their own treatment plants. It's just easier and maybe in the shortrun cheaper to use up the aquifers, but what will the price be in the future. Maybe it's time for the city to rework its corporate contracts.
I admit I never thought too much before these past two summers about letting the water run while I brushed my teeth. It gave the hot water heater time to catch up, after all.
But these days I teach my son to shut off the tap while he brushes, and I'm sorry to say that it has come to that. I worry about his future, and what steps he will one day have to take for his kids.
Hassler writes for the News & Eagle and can be reached at violeth@enidnews.com
We were young, and we didn't care about politics, real estate prices and the cost of living.
Now, you literally couldn't pay me to live in California, because I couldn't afford it.
However, a major chunk of the population somehow has managed to do so, but I bet many are wishing this week they were somewhere else.
The reason: It really does stink. There has been a foul odor wafting across the beaches of southern California, and scientists seem to think the cause can all be traced back to global warming.
See story here
It is getting harder to refute the existence of global warming, as the ponds and lakes dry up and the season shift our part of the world.
While I am not convinced global warming is caused by man, I cannot say anymore I do not think it exists, because it is awfully dry out there.
It apparently can be smelled across California, and it can be seen and felt in Oklahoma, even in Enid: where I and a few friends and our children managed to bake while at an outside fundraiser this weekend and when everyday I visit my horse in his stall and wonder what color his hair used to be on a face coated with dust.
There has been turns in the earth's patterns before, and while some scientists cry this is different I can't help but hope for the return of frigid winters that kill the ragweed and the pollen and signal the return of normal climate in our neck of the woods.
But until that time, I worry ... like when our rural well site went dry last summer and we had to go deeper for a water source that for a decade had not been an issue. I worry when I see the farm ponds dry up, even deep ones that never had done so prior to the past two summers.
And while I know many local residents think the city doesn't know what it is talking about, I worry when I see sprinklers around town all for the sake of keeping a yard green. Why? In these times I almost see that as a scarlet letter. Maybe brown is the new green.
I worry when I see corporations using a large amount of our drinkable water when they could use their resources, perhaps, to build their own treatment plants. It's just easier and maybe in the shortrun cheaper to use up the aquifers, but what will the price be in the future. Maybe it's time for the city to rework its corporate contracts.
I admit I never thought too much before these past two summers about letting the water run while I brushed my teeth. It gave the hot water heater time to catch up, after all.
But these days I teach my son to shut off the tap while he brushes, and I'm sorry to say that it has come to that. I worry about his future, and what steps he will one day have to take for his kids.
Hassler writes for the News & Eagle and can be reached at violeth@enidnews.com
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