Re: Questions

Paul S. Rhodes (sadecamus@ezl.com)
Fri, 08 Aug 1997 11:39:12 +0000

Eric Watt Forste wrote:
>
> Paul S. Rhodes charges:
> > become a petulant, fatuous grump like most of the veterans on this list
>
> So am I included in that "most", or were you saying "most" when you really
> meant "one"?
>
> I am truly interested in your opinion of the practice of burning witches
> and heretics, since you've been plumping for Aquinas again. It seems to me
> that Nietzsche says some very embarrassing things, but he never gets quite
> as embarrassing as Aquinas does when Aquinas is writing in his most
> naively "faithful" moments.
>
I respond:

Well, had I been so careless as to write "most" for "one", then
undoubtedly I would have meant a certain wanna-be poet from Seattle,
whose posts from about two months ago were, to put it very mildly, a bit
on the crotchety side, but I don't think I was that careless.
In answer to your other question, yes, in fact, I am all for the
burning of heretics, especially if they are as dangerous to the healthy
flourishing of soul and life as the Cathars and Albigensians were. They
probably thought the Crusaders were doing them a favor, burning their
evil, Satanic bodies and thereby liberating their souls. Gnosticism, my
good Mr. Forste, is a vicious evil and sometimes it must be fought by
any means possible. Ask the parents of the San Diego 39 if they would
have preferred that the authorities had at least locked up that Manichee
of all Manichees, Mr. Do Applewhite (or Applesauce in deference to
Lambda C) before he had the opportunity to infect their sons and
daughters with his heresies. I should think that a great many of them
would say "Yes!"
By the way, falsehood has no rights.

Tootles,

Paul S. Rhodes

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