The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord Essay -- CSA Identity

The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord What does the word "terrorist" bring to mind? Without even seeing the accused, most people in this country automatically assume this person is Middle-Eastern and Muslim. Although Stern's Terror in the Name of God focuses mainly on Islamic terrorists, it begins by addressing terrorist acts of a more homegrown variety. Stern interviews American terrorists here in the United States. The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord or CSA, a group of radical Christians, became one of the "most violent white supremacist centers of the 1980s" (Phelps). Members lived communally on a 250-acre compound near the Arkansas-Missouri border (Barkun 428). The group "came to accept the teachings of Identity Christianity," which, according to Stern, means seeing "Anglo-Saxons as the 'true Israel,' America as a sacred land, and the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution as a God-inspired, Christian inheritance" (17). Followers of Identity Christianity also expect to be present for doomsday (Stern 17). In fact, the members of the CSA believed the Apocalypse was imminent (The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord). As Kerry Noble (minister and second in command of the CSA explains, "we are Christian survivalists who believe in preparing for the ultimate holocaust" (Paranoia as Patriotism). And that is exactly what they did. The organization set up an "Endtime Overcomer Survival Training School," which offered a course in military tactics, "Christian martial arts" and urban warfare (Paranoia as Patriotism). All male members of the group trained in every aspect of military action (The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord) and each was issued full military gear,... ...right." The Village Voice [New York] 25 Mar. 1997,36-38. Alt-Press Watch (APW). ProQuest. W.E.B. DuBois Library, Amherst, MA. 11 Oct. 2007 . Stern, Jessica. Terror in the Name of God. New York: HarperCollins, 2003. Van Boven, Sarah, and Seibert, Sam. "Prep work." Newsweek 126.7 (14 Aug. 1995): 4. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. W.E.B. Du Bois Library, Amherst, MA. 10 October 2007. silk.library.umass.edu:2048/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=9508147623&site=eh ost-live&scope=site>. Wheeler, Tim. "McVeigh could tell some tales." People's Weekly World [New York] 26 May 2001, National Edition: 13. Alt-Press Watch (APW). ProQuest. W.E.B. DuBois Library, Amherst, MA. 11 Oct. 2007 . The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord Essay -- CSA Identity The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord What does the word "terrorist" bring to mind? Without even seeing the accused, most people in this country automatically assume this person is Middle-Eastern and Muslim. Although Stern's Terror in the Name of God focuses mainly on Islamic terrorists, it begins by addressing terrorist acts of a more homegrown variety. Stern interviews American terrorists here in the United States. The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord or CSA, a group of radical Christians, became one of the "most violent white supremacist centers of the 1980s" (Phelps). Members lived communally on a 250-acre compound near the Arkansas-Missouri border (Barkun 428). The group "came to accept the teachings of Identity Christianity," which, according to Stern, means seeing "Anglo-Saxons as the 'true Israel,' America as a sacred land, and the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution as a God-inspired, Christian inheritance" (17). Followers of Identity Christianity also expect to be present for doomsday (Stern 17). In fact, the members of the CSA believed the Apocalypse was imminent (The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord). As Kerry Noble (minister and second in command of the CSA explains, "we are Christian survivalists who believe in preparing for the ultimate holocaust" (Paranoia as Patriotism). And that is exactly what they did. The organization set up an "Endtime Overcomer Survival Training School," which offered a course in military tactics, "Christian martial arts" and urban warfare (Paranoia as Patriotism). All male members of the group trained in every aspect of military action (The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord) and each was issued full military gear,... ...right." The Village Voice [New York] 25 Mar. 1997,36-38. Alt-Press Watch (APW). ProQuest. W.E.B. DuBois Library, Amherst, MA. 11 Oct. 2007 . Stern, Jessica. Terror in the Name of God. New York: HarperCollins, 2003. Van Boven, Sarah, and Seibert, Sam. "Prep work." Newsweek 126.7 (14 Aug. 1995): 4. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. W.E.B. Du Bois Library, Amherst, MA. 10 October 2007. silk.library.umass.edu:2048/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=9508147623&site=eh ost-live&scope=site>. Wheeler, Tim. "McVeigh could tell some tales." People's Weekly World [New York] 26 May 2001, National Edition: 13. Alt-Press Watch (APW). ProQuest. W.E.B. DuBois Library, Amherst, MA. 11 Oct. 2007 .

Crime and corruption among the police officers how safe are we Essay

How Are Safe We? When killers are finally put to â€Å"justice†, for most, there is an immense sigh of relief knowing that they will be able to sleep well at night. However, with hundreds of police officers roaming around in the streets, are people ever really safe? According to the judicial system, yes, that’s what they’re here for.   To make us feel safe. So why is it then, that as time goes by, people seem to not just fear the cops, but even view them as killers themselves? That is because the only real difference between a killer and a cop is a uniform. When someone commits a crime, specifically murder, the ideal is that they receive a punishment that is best suited for them. John Wayne Gacy, also known as the killer clown who raped and murdered at least 33 males, was sentenced to death and executed in 1994 by lethal injection. Bowling Green State University conducted a study on Police Sexual Misconduct (2014). They found that many cases of sex-related crimes were often during work hours, and even had victims younger than 18. They also found that most of these cases went unreported, and why wouldn’t they? Who can one go for help when those who are supposed to make society feel â€Å"safe† are the same people causing fear? Michael Medved from U.S. Today tells us to â€Å"slow down† because he believes that the cops are the good guys. In an article written and published in U.S. Today, Medved states that statistics from the Bureau of Justice show that crime has reached an all-time low in 1991, and apparently it onl y continues to decrease. Again, that is most likely due to the fact that not many crimes are reported, especially not those committed by cops themselves. The only difference between Gacy and the cops on the street is that people have an idea about how many victims he had. Society is clueless as to how many rape victims a cop has, let alone how many the entire cops have all together. Criminal law has a way of separating those who are in danger from those who cause the danger. Of course, there are those who believe the justice system to be corrupt, and they wouldn’t be wrong. Messerschmidt, author of Criminology: A Sociological approach, states that â€Å"if a police officer kills someone, the killing is not murder, according to criminal law, if it is reasonable under the circumstances and if it occurs in the lawful execution of police duties.† The loophole here, a cop could simply claim self-defense, it was justifiable since often times officers feel â€Å"isolated and vulnerable,† (Medved). Then again, Alton Sterling was on the ground when he was shot by Officer Blane Salamoni, as well as Vernell Bing, shot to death simply because he got outside his car. There has been an increase in the use of deadly force by the police recently. All over social media, news, and radio, we are constantly watching police kill people, specifical minorities. It is hard to ignore history and view this as a sudden problem that is new to society, it is a song we’ve heard more than once. Yet, we still manage to make the serial killers like Dean Corl, Larry Eyler, Ted Bundy, and Ed Gein seem like the only ones capable of cold-blooded murder. When looking at Jenkin’s analysis (Messerschmidt, 39), serial killers had no more than â€Å"350 to 400 murders each year during the 1980s†. According to a site on facebook labeled â€Å"Killed by Police†, 1,207 people killed by the police in the year 2015, and according to an article by Dr. Q, called How Many People Have Been Killed by the Police? they had 457 arrest-related deaths. However, the number could most certainly be higher, since Dr. Q expressed his concerns with just how inaccurate the number could be due to the fact that the estimates included in the report â€Å"only count homicides committed by police that were determined to be legally justified by a government agency.† I believe that often, we as a society don’t want to come to the realization that the people who most likely deserve to be inside bars are the ones who are making the arrests. We should watch out for police as much as we do for strangers who are acting funny because the reason cops are more dangerous than any other hate-filled organization out there is that in the end, it doesn’t matter if the cop is black or white. Corruption sees no color, therefore, we are all in danger. Both subjects, killers, and cops, have committed crimes that unspeakable and questionable. The sooner we are able to see the two as similar, the sooner we can come up with ways to put a stop to such corruption.    Works Cited Mejia, Paula. â€Å"Why Cops Get Away With Rape.† Newsweek. N.p., 22 Feb. 2016. Web. 16 Sept. 2016. . Stinson, Philip M., John Liederbach, Steven Brewer L., and Brooke Mathna E. Police Sexual Misconduct. N.p., 2014. Web. 16 Sept. 2016. . Medved, Michael. â€Å"Slow Down, Police Are the Good Guys: Column.† USA Today. Gannett, 21 Aug. 2014. Web. 16 Sept. 2016. . Kindy, Kimberly, Wesley Lowery, Steven Rich, Julie Tate, and Jennifer Jenkins. â€Å"Fatal Shootings by Police Are up in the First Six Months of 2016, Post Analysis Finds.† Washington Post. The Washington Post, 7 July 2016. Web. 16 Sept. 2016. . Q, Dr. â€Å"How Many People Have Been Killed by the Police?† Massachusetts CopBlock. N.p., 15 Sept. 2013. Web. 16 Sept. 2016. .   

Night - 654 Words

| Night: By Eli Wiesel Essay Word Count:665 By: Carlos Guerrero Prof. Ted Johnston English 1301 TR 11:30 08 November 2014 We can know the end of the story just by knowing that Ellie Wiesel wrote the book. We know it because this book is about survival. Physically we know Ellie Wiesel survived the holocaust, but does any psychological or spiritual part of him died during the holocaust? Elie Wiesel wrote about all the horrible torture, brutality, degradation, lost, and inhumanities he suffered by the Nazis just because he’s Jewish. Considering Elie was just a teenager, all he had to go through could turn his faith, religion, humanity, or beliefs. Before the Nazis took Elie and his family we could notice that Elie was a†¦show more content†¦Even though Elie did everything he could to keep alive his father, after the horrible run on the winter storm, he died and obviously affected Elie emotionally. Elie Wiesel’s spiritually journey started as he learned the Cabbala; he tries to survive as the horrors of the holocaust caused him to question everything he has learned about his faith and god. Moshe speaks the words that some up Elie struggles for faith. Moshe said â€Å"I pray to the god within me that he will give me the strength to ask him the right questions.† If we pay attention to the questions Elie asks through the story we can notice that his perspective of faith, God and humanity became deeper. It didn’t died, but they changed in a way Elie could understand why everything possible could happened. By the conclusion of the book everyone Elie loves and everyone he met along the way are either death or disappeared. Elie finds himself completely alone and transformed from the trusty teenager he was at the beginning of the story. His body is a skeleton he doesn’t even recognize, but his faith was shuttered as well? Elie didn’t know in what to believe or if it is anything he could believe in. When the camp comes together to celebrate Russian shauna rather from drawing strange from this celebration Elie raging asks â€Å"What does your grandeur mean Master of the universe, in the face of all these cowardice, this decay, and this misery?† Don’t be fooled, this scene doesn’t mark a loss in Elie’s faith.Show MoreRelatedShadow of the Night619 Words   |  3 PagesShadow of the Night On a freezing, dark blue night of Li, in the Village of Li-Marta. This was an old little village, the houses were nothing but ash and rubble except an old abandoned barn. The barn had creaking floor boards and a rotten wooden roof. In this abandoned barn there lived a young and confident farm boy; his clothes were ragged and full of holes. The young boy was called Rye named after the agricultural god Ren-Rye. 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