This week The Guardian carried a story about Russian dissidents jailed for so-called “fake news” and “denigrating the Russian military.” Journalist Maria Ponomarenko for her story of the Russian bombing of the theater at Mariupol will serve 6 years; Ilya Yashin got 8 for decrying the butchery at Bucha; Moscow council member Alexei Gorinov will serve 7 for his opposition to Putin’s invasion.
At her sentencing, Ponomarenko stated, “No totalitarian regime has ever been as strong as before its collapse.” Censorship takes many forms, from fatwas to imprisonment to complaints by parents about rainbow colors on a school in Long Valley. People afraid of views that oppose their own always try to shut down the discussion. As Stephen Hopkins says in the musical 1776, “I never heard of an idea that was so dangerous that we couldn’t talk about it.” Ideas and open discussion constitute the lifeblood of democracy.
Prayer for the Day
Turning away from the problems in the world around us,
We do not see their connection to our daily lives;
But you, O God, call us to care about people in faraway places,
For our lives are not so different from theirs.
Awaken us, O Holy Spirit, so we are open to others
Challenging us to make hope triumph over fear and repression.
In the name of the One who is our strength,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen
Thoughts for the Day
As long as I don’t write about the government, religion, politics and other institutions, I am free to write about anything.
- Pierre-Augustin Beaumarchais, French comedy writer (1732-1799)
There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but one must take it because it’s right.
- Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King (1929-1968)
O Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not come?
Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will not save?
Why do you make me see wrongdoing and look at trouble?
Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise.
So the law becomes slack, and justice never prevails.
The wicked surround the righteous – therefore judgment comes forth perverted.
Habakkuk 1: 1-4
Theatre in Mariupol
In front of the theatre is the Russian word for children
1200 inside – 600 died in the Russian bombing