Much has been made of the biblical passages on the sights of military rifles being used in Iraq and Afghanistan.
What questions arise in your mind?
- Why those passages?
- What if passages from The Quran were inscribed? Who'd be offended?
- What discussions have there been in barracks and transport vehicles among the service men and women?
- Who was aware of this before the big news break this week?
- Does the inscription break a government rule that bars proselytising by American troops?
- Will it create more of a reaction if troops are captured as they will be perceived as being on a crusade against Islam? (Isn't that already part of the equation since some Muslims consider the killing of non-Muslims a religious right and honour? Some Christians would think on similar lines though with reversal of targets.)
- Can we keep politics, religion and ethnicity in it's proper places and not borrow from one to promote the other?
- If there'd been anything else much going on this week would it have made headlines?
- Who have I offended on all sides of this conversation?
"The inscriptions are subtle and appear in raised lettering at the end of the stock number. Trijicon's rifle sights use tritium, a radioactive form of hydrogen, to create light and help shooters hit what they're aiming for.Markings on the Advanced Combat Optical Gunsight, which is standard issue to US special operations forces, include "JN8:12," a reference to John 8:12: "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, 'I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life,'" according to the King James version of the Bible.The Trijicon Reflex sight is stamped with 2COR4:6, a reference to part of the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians: "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ," the King James version reads."
The Times Live in South Africa reports, "Gary Tallman, a US Army spokesman, said the service was not aware of the markings. But Army acquisition experts will determine if Trijicon violated any procurement regulations, he said.
Munson, Trijicon's sales director, said the practice of putting Bible references on the sites began nearly 30 years ago by Trijicon's founder, Glyn Bindon, who was killed in a plane crash in 2003. His son Stephen, Trijicon's president, has continued the practice."
What have I missed in this conversation?
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