Pastor Way,

You make a good point, "news" can only be understood when we have something to compare it to.

The first hostage was beheaded in Iraq and it was a terrible thing...and all Bush's fault, and all because we had invaded Iraq. And we need to get out of there, and how many more killings can we stand, etc., etc., etc.,

A week later three children were beheaded in Baltimore, but nobody was up in arms, or blamed the police chief for allowing it to happen, or said how we should get out of there.

I grew up a mile away from Detroit, when during the 70's and 80's Detroit used to be the "Murder capital" of the nation. Consider this piece from the Det. News last Oct.


[quote:77c223a3bf]
The violent death rate in Detroit over this [30 year] period-17,000 killed out of a population of one million-is greater than that of Lebanon during its civil war, when 44,000 died out of a population of nearly four million. The rate is higher than in the 20-year civil war in Sri Lanka, in which an estimated 64,000 have died out of a population of 19 million. The death toll in Detroit is five times the number killed in Northern Ireland during the same period of time-3,300 people out of a population half again as large as Detroit's.

While Perkins hails the current year's projected murder toll of 300 as a "30 percent reduction in the homicide rate," this total is larger than the number killed in all but one year of "the troubles" in Northern Ireland. And similar figures could be produced for other large American cities-New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Philadelphia.

[/quote:77c223a3bf]

In a pop. of less than 1 million people (I seem to recall the last census figures being between 800,000-900,000) 183 people have been murdered in the city since the beginning of the year. That's about 1 a day.

And while I'm on a role, and venting. Did anyone find it funny the week before Memorial Day, that while decrying the Bush Admin. for not doing anything to prevent 9-11, the papers were at the same time discrediting Ashcroft because he raised the terror alert level for Memorial Day weekend, and papers expressed doubt about the reliablity of Ashcroft's sources.

__________________
Janice
AKA Professor Plum

Following in the footsteps of Christiana and heading toward the Celestial City!

"I know you believe you understand what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant. " ~ Anon.