Hateful words may not break your bones but it can break your heart and spirit, which takes a lot longer to heal than broken bones. It can break friendships, marriages and turn brother against brother. Almost two thousand years ago James wrote an entire chapter of the Bible about the tongue, “a restless evil full of deadly poison.” Most of us have had words said about us that deeply damaged our reputations or maybe cost us a job and friends. Its not the passing words of anger that cause the most damage but in the creation of distorted words of half truths and lies.

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We see websites that distort the truth and are full of hate. Some people listen to this hate mongering that is filled with poison and evil mindedness. They become so immersed in hate that they can’t distinguish truth from fiction. Just one example of what happens, In May, James von Brunn walked into the Holocaust Museum and killed a guard. He was stopped before he could kill others. Von Brunn had a long history of participation in groups that feed on hatred of Jews. He maintained a website which spewed poisonous words of venom. Venom that sent him on his quest for blood.

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Language shapes reality. When Jews, Muslims, or illegal immigrants or any other minority are spoken of in a dehumanizing way, when they are tarred with the brush of “other” we are only a step away from violence. Words have power. We can use them to create words of truth and goodness or we can allow our tongues to be infected with deadly poisons. We can use words to spread truth or we can use them to create malice and hatred.

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We can fight evil by paying attention to words in which we surround ourselves, by what we read , listen to and watch. Do the words we listen to dehumanize others, are they more interested in spreading hate and fear than truth? If so we need to turn off the computer, TV, or radio, put away the book and discuss the truth based on facts, not half truths and innuendo.

We combat hatred by watching our own tongues. We can ask ourselves three questions before we pass on any information. Is it true? Will it help anyone? Do we want the whole world to know we said it? If we can answer yes to all three questions then it’s safe to pass it along. Otherwise, we could be guilty of more harm than we can imagine. Lies and half truths breed hatred and evil. We can turn away and refuse to participate. It’s up to us to promote the kind of world we want to live in.

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http://socyberty.com/history/America-the-beautiful/

http://writinghood.com/writing/creative-non-fiction/

http://socyberty.com/issues/creation-or-evolution/

http://quazen.com/reference/biography/the-first-ladys-roots-in-georgia/

Is Anyone Immune?

From world leaders to the man who lives around the corner, sex has claimed the lives of countless men who failed to control their urges and lived to regret it. When the wife of a man discovers he has been sleeping around, it can be the end of the road for that man’s marriage and by extension, his family life. Then there is the political candidate running for office and with every chance of claiming a powerful and lucrative position only to find it all goes up in smoke when a tabloid newspaper reveals his indiscretions to the world.

Reputations Ruined

How many times have we seen newspaper and television reports revealing the secret lives of people in the public eye, effectively ruining their careers. Especially so, and deservedly, when it is revealed their sexual deviancy falls into the area of child pornography. There have been some high profile cases in recent years including that of former pop star Gary Glitter who was convicted of child abuse. As well as destroying his reputation, he has also come to be viewed as a hate figure. Don’t expect to hear any of his records played on radio!

Talking of radio, the big story in the UK in recent weeks has been that of the indiscretions of the two idiots Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand who somehow thought it was funny to make obscene calls to Andrew Sachs, using very sexually explicit language. Just another example of how sex can be at the root of self-inflicted problems. Yes sex can bring pleasure, but can also bring heartache if sexual urges are not kept in check.