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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR - October 17, 2006
Dear Editor,
Revenge is the normal response we read about in the headlines when someone has been wronged. The search for revenge is what makes more and bigger headlines than the original crime. Drug traffickers will use automatic weapons to exact revenge.
People who don't carry guns will ask the courts to get revenge for them. When they believe that sentences imposed by the courts on their behalf are too lenient they lobby progressive governments to increase punishment (revenge). As a last resort they will vote for extreme governments who promise to increase punishment.
This is the accepted norm in our society despite warnings from psychologists that revenge does not bring the closure that the victims crave and expect. Conversely, hatred and the thirst for revenge often create mental instability and otherwise decrease the longevity of the victim.
We look on the Amish people as being backward and ignorant because of their lifestyle choices, but what I saw on TV today was a deeply moving experience. Instead of crying out for revenge, the Amish families in Pennsylvania prayed for forgiveness for the deranged man who killed their little girls. In this one respect, these humble people carry out the wishes of their teacher, the man who told them to turn the other cheek.
And this is a divine law that very few of his followers actually practice.
Through this simple act of selflessness the Amish people will profoundly change many North American lives for the better. Personally, I don't know how I'd react under similar circumstances, but I'd like to think that after the initial shock I could do the same.
Sincerely,
HPToews, Princeton
Letter to The Editor;
Maybe we could put a series of mini - power dams on the Tulameen and Similkameen rivers which would also allow us to conserve the water before it disappears and becomes just a faint memory.
At the present river levels it wouldn't take much to drink Princeton dry. Now that would truly be a tragedy !!
Regards,
Joe Schwarz, Princeton
