We Don't Persecute Other Religions

I was talking with the nurse who was taking my height and weight. I seem to have decreased in height, not in weight. There is always a decrease, a diminution, a thinning, a weeding out, a certain sparseness, a diminuendo of those things which I fancy render one attractive and a corresponding accentuation of the characteristics we share with the troll species.

So, we were speaking of religion. (We seem to be a lot like those inhabitants of Constantinople Gibbon talks so much about: if you ask the greengrocer how much are leeks today, he answers that the Son is consubstantial with the Father, and so on.)
We spoke of Christianity and Islam. She said that whatever one thinks of Christianity, at least we here in this country do not kill people for their religious beliefs.

Now, interestingly enough, this was the day when about 6 Branch Davidians who escaped the bonfire in Waco were to be released from prison. I mentioned them. She was silent. I was embarrassed over being so combative. I'm usually not so quick, either. I think this was also the day when the Chinese leader was received at the White House.
I know it is difficult to believe that the good old USA killed people over their religious beliefs. The Branch Davidians' religious beliefs must have been secondary to some other beliefs which rendered them outside the rules of civilization. And the tragedy must have been a mistake. While we are about propping up the indefensible, Abu Ghraib was an aberration and reflects nothing about the people in whose name that war is fought. The intent of an evil act changes homicide to manslaughter.

However, the end result is the same from the victim's point of view. If you were to formulate a legal canon and a philosophy of morality strictly from the viewpoint of victims, not the intent of the perpetrator, the distinction between homicide and manslaughter might disappear. It is not clear whether God shares our forensic distinctions.
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