{"id":4345,"date":"2015-02-10T06:19:56","date_gmt":"2015-02-10T11:19:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=4345"},"modified":"2015-02-10T06:55:06","modified_gmt":"2015-02-10T11:55:06","slug":"parenting-terrorism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=4345","title":{"rendered":"parenting & terrorism"},"content":{"rendered":"

(Oblige me briefly on today\u2019s odd combination and thus creative frame of reference…)<\/em><\/p>\n

\"run\"<\/a> <\/em><\/p>\n

While this is not a parenting blog, I have learned some things via parenting I otherwise would have missed. Let me be completely transparent: sometimes those lessons mean complete failure and falling flat on my face; it\u2019s hard to parent consistently well.<\/p>\n

There are moments I\u2019m not proud of — times I\u2019d like to take back… times I said the wrong thing, did the wrong thing, played helicopter parent, bulldozer parent, or some other odd role where I only served to get in the way. I meant well, but actions always speak louder than words.<\/p>\n

The area in which parents arguably get most in the way is in discipline. No doubt that \u201ca father only disciplines those he loves,\u201d but sometimes our discipline fails to focus on what\u2019s most important.<\/p>\n

As the parent of multiple children, for example, one of the things I\u2019ve had to learn is to deal with what\u2019s current. If one of my sons makes a significant error in judgment, I don\u2019t chastise the children who are uninvolved; I don\u2019t bring up — nor nurse or rehearse — the previously forgiven sins of another. If one child behaves foolishly, I do not chide the other two. And if only one son is disobedient, I don\u2019t focus my attention on the other children. When a parent fails to focus on what\u2019s most important, we then fail to parent well.<\/p>\n

As referenced in our most recent\u00a0post, the Intramuralist is concerned with Pres. Obama\u2019s focus on rooting out the seemingly increasing, radical Islamic terrorism. Less than 48 hours after a man in captivity was burned alive by the terrorists last week, the President used his public podium to compare the current violence to centuries-old Christian sins. I am struck by his contrast — how he spoke so intentionally specifically<\/strong><\/em> about the ancient perceived sins of Christians, while at the same time, he continued to speak so intentionally vaguely<\/strong><\/em> about current Islamic terrorism. The contrast is striking.<\/p>\n

Obama will not utter the phrase, \u201cIslamic terrorism.\u201d He will not say \u201ckilling in the name of Allah.\u201d In less than two weeks the White House is hosting a summit that was organized after the radical Islamic attacks in Paris. What\u2019s it called? “A Summit on Countering Violent Extremism.” In the 282 word, White House press release, there exists not a single reference to the Islamic adherence the terrorists continually proclaim.<\/p>\n

Is Obama weak on terror? From this limited vantage point, I cannot discern such with certainty. I do believe, however — based on his consistent, continual omission of the Islamic faith the terrorists profess — that he is weak on rhetoric. After his comparison to the Crusades, my sense is\u00a0his focus is off. My concern is not alone; it is shared across the political spectrum…<\/p>\n

From NBC News\u2019 Andrea Mitchell (never known for her conservatism): “You don’t use the word Crusades, number one, in any context right now. It’s just it’s too fraught. And the week after a pilot is burned alive, in a video shown, you don’t lean over backwards to be philosophical about the sins of the fathers. You have to deal with the issue that’s in front of you or don’t deal with it at all.” <\/em><\/p>\n

From Thomas Ashbridge, a historian at the University of London in a statement to ABC News: \u201cIt is true to say, that by modern standards, atrocities were committed by crusaders, as they were by their Muslim opponents; it is however, far less certain that, by medieval standards, crusading violence could be categorized as distinctly extreme in all instances.\u201d<\/em> Ashbridge added that he doesn\u2019t have a problem with Obama reminding the world that the Christian Church \u201cadvocated violence, and at times even encouraged its adherents to engage in warfare,\u201d but to suggest a causal link between ISIS and the distant medieval phenomenon of the Crusades is \u201cgrounded in the manipulation and misrepresentation of historical evidence.\u201d<\/em> Obama\u2019s focus is off.<\/p>\n

Like I said, it\u2019s hard to do this consistently well. Terrorism is\u00a0undoubtedly\u00a0difficult to effectively thwart. But let\u2019s start by focusing on what\u2019s most important — by speaking specifically about the current problem. Then let\u2019s quit attempting to include the \u201cother children.\u201d Note: they are not involved.<\/p>\n

Respectfully…<\/p>\n

AR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Oblige me briefly on today\u2019s odd combination and thus creative frame of reference…) While this is not a parenting blog, I have learned some things via parenting I otherwise would have missed. Let me be completely transparent: sometimes those lessons mean complete failure and falling flat on my face; it\u2019s hard to parent consistently well. … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “parenting & terrorism”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[504],"class_list":["post-4345","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-event","tag-obama-national-prayer-breakfast"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4345","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4345"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4345\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4358,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4345\/revisions\/4358"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4345"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4345"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4345"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}