Some are celebrating 100 years of flight today, and interestingly, others are mourning it. With the Internet you can always find someone who disagrees with what’s happening, but it’s especially poignant when used to raise moral questions.
While President George W. Bush is honoring the 12-second achievement of the Wright Brothers, some are mourning the anniversary of a war machine (link via bloggedy-blog), arguing that planes have always been intended for military purposes, and now even the commercial version is an environmental hazard and a tool of the upperclass.
While I don’t think we can so quickly dismiss the airplane as a weapon of war and death, it is a point worth considering. How much of life do we honor and revere without noting the negative aspects in this complicated world.
On a lighter note, facing expectations that Bush might announce a new moon mission today, actor John Travolta volunteered for the first mission while introducing the president. The president responded by saying, “We shall call him moon man from now on.” (AP via Knightopia)
Is it any surprise that every positive has some negative somewhere? I guess this is just the nature of politics. If Bush says something is good, then all the Leftists have to come out and say that it’s bad. And if we ever have a mostly-liberal president, it’ll be the other way around.
If they’re going to mourn the airplane, they should also mourn fire, the knife, air conditioning, the computer, etc. They’ve all been used for evil. Oh, and I bet some animals had to die to create the shoes they’re wearing, too! Maybe I can come up with some more stuff if I think for awhile.
Do I need to continue?
PS> The phrase “Moon Mission” makes me think of Dr. Evil.
Man, just like anything he creates, can be used or act in good or evil ways.
So… I’m supposed to dislike the airplane because it’s been used in war and causes pollution, though it’s made going to places I NEVER would have seen possible, makes so many aspects of our lives cheaper, etc?
Oh well, the human race wouldn’t know what to do if it couldn’t find something to complain about.
I’m sure there would be a lot of missiologists who would credit the advent of the airplane as a huge boost to the global evangelistic mission of the Church. Without flight, the Gospel would not have spread as far and as quickly in our modern times, as it has. And that’s a pretty good thing.
Many would think of the Internet in the same way. It was created for military purposes, but who knows the mind of God? It’s possible that God’s ultimate purpose in the Internet (like the airplane) was to accelerate the work of evangelism and missions.
On a different note: Isn’t it ironic that several people died on their way to the Wright Brothers celebration when their plane crashed? Go figure.