{"id":7425,"date":"2023-10-11T23:39:03","date_gmt":"2023-10-11T23:39:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/?p=7425"},"modified":"2023-10-13T20:47:41","modified_gmt":"2023-10-13T20:47:41","slug":"un-vote-surprise-october-7-event-and-student-protest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brendans-island.com\/catholic-citizen\/un-vote-surprise-october-7-event-and-student-protest\/","title":{"rendered":"UN Vote Surprise; October 7 Event and Student Protest"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"BBC
October 10, 2023: death at a music festival, surprise at the United Nations.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Yesterday’s news from the United Nations was a surprise to me. But not as nearly-shocking as what happened back in April, 2022. I’ll get back to that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a>Even so, I’m impressed that Russia’s continued ‘Nazi hunt’ in Ukraine has failed to win the approval of ‘right-minded’ people: particularly those running developing territories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“Russia fails to rejoin UN’s human rights council<\/strong><\/a>“
Phelan Chatterjee, BBC News (October 10, 2023)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Russia has failed to get re-elected as a member of the UN’s human rights council.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The state was expelled from the top human rights body last April after its forces invaded Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“It had hoped getting a fresh three-year term would highlight divisions between UN member states over whether or not to keep supporting Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“But Bulgaria and Albania won the two seats allocated for Eastern European countries instead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The vote came days after a Russian missile attack that killed 52 people in the north-eastern Ukrainian village of Hroza.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Russia received 83 votes in favour from the UN’s 193 general assembly members, while Bulgaria got 160 and Albania got 123….”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\"Maps<\/a>Yesterday’s remarkable Human Rights Council vote wasn’t as surprising \u2014 almost shocking \u2014 as last year’s UN General Assembly Resolutions ES-11-1, ES-11-2, ES-11-3, (March 2, April 6-7, 2022).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those resolutions criticized Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine, and demonstrated to me that this is not the world I grew up in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back in the day, I’d have expected at least token support for the Worker’s Paradise: along with condemnation of Yankee Imperialism with a side order of ‘it is the fault of the Jews’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking of which, killing folks at a music festival and other discontinuations of life has led to unpleasant consequences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which inspired something that did<\/strong> remind me of my ‘good old days’. Student protest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“Growing backlash over Harvard students’ pro-Palestine lette<\/strong>r<\/a>“
Madeline Halpert, BBC News (October 10, 2023)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“A letter from Harvard University student groups blaming Israel for violence in the region has drawn a backlash from prominent alumni and US lawmakers.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The letter, authored by the Harvard Undergraduate Palestine Solidarity Committee, stated that students ‘hold the Israeli regime entirely responsible for all unfolding violence’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“It was co-signed by 33 student groups….”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

I still haven’t heard what Hamas had in mind when they killed folks at the Supernova festival, nearby communities, and “military installations”. Maybe they were innocently collecting hostages, and got sloppy. I don’t know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My country’s cultural history suggests that the righteous cause may have been the “dance, music, art and drinks”, as BBC News put it. (“Supernova festival: How massacre unfolded from verified video and social media<\/a>“, BBC News (October 9, 2023))<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That sort of ‘Satanic’ merriment has been a burr under the saddle for Americans who seem to believe that ‘blessed are the miserable, for they shall spread misery’ is a beatitude. And that’s another topic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Israeli government’s failure to apologize for the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack does seem to be getting attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>Preference and Prayer<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

\"Danijel<\/a>I’d vastly prefer living in a world where sitting down over a nice cup of tea and calmly discussing why killing around 1,200 Jews and taking others hostage was okay, and why it’s the fault of the victims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sitting down and calmly discussing part, at least. I don’t see executing folks at a music festival as proper behavior. Even if they were<\/strong> enjoying the music. And kidnapping, even for some ‘noble cause’: I don’t think that’s nice, either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There’s nothing that I can do, in what my culture calls “practical terms”, about what’s happening in the Middle East and Ukraine. And elsewhere, for that matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But I can pray that somehow \u2014 by what would seem like a miracle \u2014 self-righteous thugs and their minions would change their minds about killing folks they don’t approve of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or at least be prevented from causing more death and suffering than they already have imposed on music-lovers, kids, and others who committed the offense of being at the wrong place at the wrong time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Uff da.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Brian<\/a>Seriously, though. Prayer couldn’t hurt. Might even help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More of my take on living in a non-ideal world, but thinking we can do better:<\/p>\n\n\n\n