Conflict

Others,

Iraq now has a constitution with rights written into it, but the representation is compromised by double talk.

Sadam Hussein's Socialist Baath party was Sunni. Now the state is controlled by the Shiite majority, but the government is regarded as corrupt. The state will be corrupted by an unfair advantage for the majority until it learns to represent the various minorities.
http://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/revisiting-iraq/

The Iraqi constitution states that there is freedom of religion after declaring that Islam is the official religion for the state.

Being in time is an important determinant in leadership. Heidegger offered a philosophical view of being that promoted economic recovery, but his affiliation with the partisan politics of the Nazi party corrupted his philosophy. It was exclusionary rather than inclusive.

Discrimination rules when others are excluded from the social dimensions of being. They are excluded on the characteristics of birth, social status, religion or party affiliation.

Iraq is regarded by many as the cradle for civilization in the Middle East, yet the code of Hammurabi listed the death penalty as the consequence for many infractions that were lesser in offense than murder.

While the code provided a basis for starting evidentiary investigation for accusations of crime, judgment was largely determined by the proximity of the accuser’s social status to the emperor. The code also initiated concern for restitution, but it was rudimentary. As mentioned earlier, judgment often resorted to the death penalty as retribution when restitution was deemed to be too complicated.

Respect for liberty is earned in the context of the law. We are born with rights, but we also earn them by showing respect for the rights of others. While there are times when offending the rights of an individual offends the rights of others, exclusive emphasis on the rights of individual elitists or opportunists does damage to the representation of justice in society.

The elitist advantage has been used to increase the prosperity of the wealthy over that of the people since the start of civilization. It needs to be corrected.

Many have appealed to God in affecting correction throughout time. The following re-write presents the appeal with contemporary language.


Agreement with Inclusion.
1Kgs.8, Ps.84, Josh.24, Eph.6

Congress
was the goal that stood
before the assembly.

They said, “LORD,
there is no God like you
in heaven or on earth.
You keep your promise
with love. You established
the pact for alliance
with your Beloved.
Keep the promise
for intervention
through faith in Christ.

Will God dwell on earth?
The highest heaven
cannot contain the essence
of the Creator,
much less the house
that has been built to honor
the promise.

When a foreigner prays,
then hear this in your dwelling place
and do what can be done
to honor the request.

My soul longs for the courts of the LORD!
My heart rejoices in the living God!
The sparrow has built her home;
the swallow has a nest for her young;
The temple of my God is home
for the Spirit of promise.

How dear your dwelling is!
Happy are they who dwell in your house.
They will always be praising you.
Joyful are those who find their strength
in praising you; whose hearts are set
on finding truth with faith in you.

One day in your house
is worth many more spent elsewhere.
It is better to stand at the threshold of the temple
than to dwell in the luxuriant homes of the wicked.

Revere the LORD.
Do your work with sincerity and faith.
Put away the gods that your ancestors had served.
Don’t serve those who exalt themselves
in the land where you are living.
As for my household and me
we will work for what’s best.

Be strong. Use power to build goodness.
Stand against the wiles of the deceiver who seeks to destroy.
Our struggle is not against flesh and blood.
It is against the authorities who use cosmic force
to promote destruction It is against those who use
authority to promote oppression with war, genocide and crime.

Stand strong therefore with truth and justice.
Walk with good news for peace through alliance.
Seek to win enemies to friendship to expand the alliance,
but do not compromise the search for goodness.
Spirit gives life. Flesh is the instrument for goodness.

Those who go through the valley that had been desolate
will find a place of springs. Rains have covered it with pools of water.
They will climb from height to height to scout the land
The God of gods will reveal himself from Zion.

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Appeals for correction are often made to a larger political body. If a dispute was not settled fairly by the county, the state is contacted. If it is not resolved by the state, the nation is invoked. When it is not reconciled by the nation, international convention is referenced.

The song “I Was Here” calls for putting goodness in action as a means for promoting reconciliation prior to that dispute the leads to conflict and retribution in accord with the elitist advantage.

Beyonce – I Was Here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i41qWJ6QjPI

“I was here. I live. I love.”

Being in time requires love to work for inclusion.

Love others. Love your enemies.

Steve K.