I would rather see the invaders leave Afghanistan, WAR is always about land and or resources and then uses religion to fuel it, this war has nothing to do with Freedom!
It started with Russia, remember, now you have America. The Americans have always been invaders. It is put quite simply in this video clip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLzo9pOXa-s
Wow....... Now I know why politics and religion are "no-no's" to talk about in lodge...lol I could have taken the high road about this one like Bros Beathard and Courtemanche did and just ignored those comments. But like Bro. Luke, I had the overwhelming urge to say something. My original message was going to be quite lengthy and angry sounding, but I took me a little "woo-sah" time and cooled my head a bit and thought about a lot of things (which I highly recommend Brothers do...lol). I took that little breather because Mason or not, we are entitled to our own opinions and views of things. Instead of just going off and throwing insults back, I decided I would try to educate you on the subject matter in hopes that you can make more informed comments in the future and maybe think about things a bit before you say them and end up insulting a large group of people. Especially a statement and allegation that you have made to the audience that you made it to.
As both of us are Masons (I have no reason to not believe you are not one, and so I give you the respect of that bond we share), it would have been wrong of me to say some of the things I originally wanted to post on here. No matter how uninformed and INSULTING your comments were to not only myself and my countrymen, but also our troops and civilians that are or have ever donned a uniform and served our country no matter the cause or time period. Obviously, I myself fall into both of those categories and of course I have an emotional tether to what is going on in both theaters of war we are currently involved in, as well as to other veterans of any conflict.
Brother, I assume that you are not American from the wording of one of your posts and also the lodge that you list in your signature block (Madoc Marmora Tweed #48) is listed on the internet as a lodge from Ontario Canada. If I am incorrect on this assumption and there is another lodge by that name in the U.S. that I missed on my search, I do apologize.
With your nationality being from Canada, I think that it is very hypocritical of you to insult America in the manner and venue that you did. Did you not know that Canada also has troops fighting in Afghanistan?? They have been there right along side the Americans since pretty much the beginning. To date, there have been 156 Candian service members that were killed in action in Afghanistan. The first one unfortunately was killed back in 2002. Just six months after the first American troop lost his life. That most recent Canadian that gave his life was just days ago, on May 28! That 156 is only service members killed in action. That does not counting those that were wounded or even civilian deaths or woundings.
So, Canada has been right there alongside America during all of this. They are just as "guilty" of whatever you accusing Americans of. Going by your stance on things, you are saying your own country is just as bad as America and that your own troops are the same "invaders" as ours. Do you think less of Canada or the Canadian military now? Probably not (and I hope that you wouldn't think less of them).
The other thing I wanted to touch base on is the link that you chose to post in support of what you were saying about America. Brother, if you are going to try to insult Americans by using a link to a video, try to use something that is made by someone else other than Michael Moore...lol Especially when you are trying to preach to a mostly American group of men. I have seen that video before. If I am not mistaken, it is from Michael Moore's "Bowling for Columbine" movie which is about gun rights and laws in America (bout 95% positive it is). Michael Moore IS one of the most hated men in America. He is hated on both sides of the political spectrum. That is not just "this man's opinion" as I can pull up a lot of different sources of polls that show how little he is thought of in this country. Even some of the most left wing celebrities want to distance themselves from him. Aside from personal opinions about Michael Moore and his rhetoric, using him or any of his productions in this manner is not credibile whatsoever. For each video clip that you show me, I can show you clips of several of THE people that he interviewed while filming that come out after the release saying how he falsified things, twisted facts to support his agenda, and even cut parts of the film out to prove his point.
Aside from that, the cartoon has nothing to do with Afghanistan or any other war for that matter. Yea, it mentions the Revolutionary War and the Civil War, but the video is produced about America's "fascination" with guns and people owning them. Anyone that has any clue about American history really could only laugh at that video as it just tries to use completely unfactual information and spinning it with made up details to make someone believe what Michael Moore believes. Seriously? The Colt six shooter was designed to kill the slaves that were "uprising"????...lol I'm just making the point with this to use something more credible than something like that.
Anyway, I do value talking politics and having good discussions and debates over issues. I value getting to hear others' opinions and why they feel the way they do about something. I totally respect your right to think a certain way and voice those thoughts and feelings, and I even totally welcome it. But when you come to a discussion forum that is based in America (last I checked, I thought the title of this site said Masons of Texas, which Texas is a state in the U.S.) and insult Americans for being "invaders" and having being involved to the extent that we are in Afghanistan (and also insult our troops that we love and support no matter the cause), I believe that there is a mistake in judgement there, Brother.
I have no problems at all when Masons from Canada or anywhere else joins in our discussions. In fact, I welcome you and what you have to say with open arms, and I think that that goes for most of the other Brothers here as well. If you don't support the wars we are currently involved in, there are plenty of Brothers here that will discuss things with you openly and as men. My point is, maybe you could have worded things or approached things in a different manner than you did and not come off so insulting to the pride we have in being American and the pride we have in our brave troops.
Brother, I know that I am not the only one that saw your post as insulting (whether some take that "high road" and ignore it all together or not), and this post was not meant insult you back. But rather to inform you of some things (mainly the way you approached it all) as I don't see how anyone that is slightly educated on this subject matter can make a claim like that (or at least in the manner that you did) and still have a leg to stand on. I really do hope that we are still on the square and can still understand and appreciate the word "brotherhood".
Lol, just IMHO