Let us not forget about EVIL

There are many differences between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. But one of the main reasons that I hope Obama wins the Democratic nomination - even if I am a bit nervous about his policies should he win the presidency - is that unlike the Clintons, he has a real idea of "Evil." To the Clintons, "Evil" is "those who oppose us." To many in America (not just "liberals") "evil" is "misunderstood people" or "victims of abuse, reacting." But scripture teaches, and experience bears out, Evil is a very real thing and it is embraced by many in our world. This commentary reminds us that even in a week without many headlines about atrocities, Evil is alive and strong in our world.

"A suicide bomber killed 14 people at an opening ceremony for a Sri Lankan marathon. More than 90 others were wounded."

In Israel, Haaretz reported that an Arab woman has been shot in an attempted honor killing. She was to be the ninth female member of her family to be killed. "Eight women from this family were murdered in the past six years, all in connection with 'family honor.'" Male relatives had murdered them all because they brought shame on their Muslim family by not marrying the men picked for them or otherwise disobeying family religious dictates.

These are only the news items of the last seven days. I purposely chose a period without dramatic headlines. And, of course, no news came out of North Korea, which continues to be the world's largest concentration camp.

One of the bright points of the Bush presidency has been his ability to talk about Evil and the urgency of confronting it. I don't cotton to the idea of preemptive war, but we need to stay ahead of the curve and not allow Evil a foothold in our nation or our hearts.