For discussion

[eyelidlessness]

What is cowardice?

I seem to have a different understanding of it than the rest of this country. Can someone explain it with the subtlety I'm missing?

Comments

[madscience]

I like the Marine Corps definition: doing the right thing, at the right time, for the right reasons. If your actions fail any one of those three tests, you might be chickening out...

[eyelidlessness]

So, since it came up in the context of 9/11, I think I'll bring that into it.

I think it's fair to say that saying it was the "right thing" is complicated and unclear, the reasons are many and varied so that's also complicated and unclear (though the reasons expressed by bin Laden are right as far as I'm concerned), and the time would have been, assuming the other two criteria are met, as good as any. Yeah?

[madscience]

If I remember correctly, it came up in the context of Bush linking the Iraq war to 9/11.

In my opinion, the Iraq war was the right thing (overthrowing an oppressive dictator... the fact that we essentially put him in power in the first place notwithstanding) at the wrong time (ten years too late, at least) for the wrong reasons (Iraq had absolutely nothing to do with 9/11; the invasion was a political blowjob for King Fahd.)

[sabotabby]

I have much the same problem.

[eyelidlessness]

Yeah but you're Canadian. You're supposed to have a different understanding of things than us.

[quietgrrl]

[eyelidlessness]

That still gives me the wiggins.

[sammhain]

There are a lot areas to cover really depending on the situation.

The biggest thing in my mind is not taking care of something or making other people take care of it for you because confronting it head on is difficult or potentially dangerous.

Letting petty fear dictate your actions, and circumstance depending letting legitimate fear (fear of death/imprisonment/grevious bodily harm)dictate your actions