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Rick Santorum and the "Eye of Mordor"
The Pennsylvania senator says the war in Iraq is a lot like "Lord of the Rings."
Tim Grieve [2006-10-17]

  • The Ones Who Walk Away

    I had the same thought as Blu. If Santorum is right, then he seems to be saying that the tens (or hundreds if you believe the recent estimates) of thousands of Iraqi lives lost due to the war are acceptable losses in order to keep the USA safe.

    I'm reminded of another fantasy story: "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas" by Ursula K. Le Guin. Quotoing Wikipedia:

    Omelas is a utopian city of happiness and delight, whose inhabitants are intelligent, cultured and refined. Everything about Omelas is pleasing, except for the secret of its happiness: the good fortune of Omelas requires that an unfortunate child be kept in filth, darkness and misery, and that all her citizens know of this on coming of age.

    I leave it to the reader to decide whether the multitude of Iraqi (and US) lives lost is better or worse than the one unfortunate child of Le Guin's Parable.

    -- Jon
    [Read Jon's other letters]
    Tuesday, October 17, 2006 12:25 PM
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