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Warning! Graphic photo in the article linked...
Mob burns woman as witch in New Guinea
PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea — A mob stripped, tortured and bound a woman accused of witchcraft, then burned her alive in front of hundreds of witnesses in a Papua New Guinea town, police said today after one of the highest profile sorcery-related murders in this South Pacific island nation.
Hundreds of bystanders, including many children, watched and some took photographs of Wednesday's brutal slaying.
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You forgot the 20th century heritage of cannibalism. They used to have dinner after the BBQ.
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Didn't forget... but they seem to have mostly gotten over that little cultural quirk.
This one is apparently (from another article, which now I can't find...) is on the UPSWING.
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We used to do the same thing.
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Speedy wrote:
We used to do the same thing.
So because we USED to do it, it's perfectly OK now? Of course... what was I thinking...
"He did it too" isn't a legal, moral, ethical, or practical defense.
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FWIW.. this sort of thing is continued proof of the societal benefits of a robust education for all. In the first world, we understand, even at a young age, bacteria, viruses, and illness. We don't blame witches.
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testcase wrote:
[quote=cbelt3]
You forgot the 20th century heritage of cannibalism. They used to have dinner after the BBQ.
::o
We know missionaries in irian jaya, and generally they say cannibalism stopped about 20 yrs. ago, but a lot of people think it's happened a lot more recently on an occasional basis. It's a whole different world over there, and I think rather than shun them, you have to gently bring them into the modern world. Unfortunately, that's not really happening. The people there have been exploited and abused, and many are pissed, as I understand it. My mom and step dad did a medical mission there, and came back with some outrageous stories. It's like no where else. kj.
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I can't imagine living in a society that puts people to death for crimes they didn't commit.
Oh, wait.
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A crime like this one is horrible, but it was motivated by ignorance. IMO, crimes like shooting a little girl for going to school, or killing health workers who are trying to inoculate poor people against polio are in a sense even worse, because they seem to be motivated as much by hatred as ignorance.
However, is it not possible that "civilized" societies like ours may also have beliefs and attitudes that will be judged as hatefull or ignorant by observers in the future?
