KILLINGS

I'm so deeply troubled by the mass killings in our world.  I know it's not a "new" thing.  But since Sept. 11, 2001, I have been wounded in many ways by the senseless killings some have made against innocent (and guilty) human beings.

I have long valued the freedoms we enjoy (or used to enjoy) in the USA, and in much of the Western world.  It seems as if there is a "force" (i.e., Satanic, evil) that wants to destroy it.  And from my perspective, the justification put forth by the killers & their associates seems ill-conceived.

I agree with many who blame religion, in general.  The message seems to be "kill your enemy, kill the guilty."

I became aware lately of an online organization called King's Tower Productions who, with Mythicist Milwaukee, present a YouTube called "TOP 10 Killers in the Bible."  Narrated by Jozef Richards, it is one of his series called "Holy Shit," and it lists the Bible's most prolific killers.

To summarize (human beings killed):

1.  THE PHARAOH:  (estimated) 50,000  (Hebrew firstborn male babies, except for Moses)
2.  JEPHTHAH:  (estimated) 62,001  (Ephraimites, including one who could not say Shibboleth properly and was therefore murdered)
3.  ESTHER & MORDECAI:  75, 813  (the King, 10 sons of Haman, anyone who is even remotely against Jews, celebrated today by Jews as Purim, on the 14th & 15th days of the Jewish month Adar)
4.  GIDEON:  120,002 (Zebah and Zalmunna (who were murdered) and the Midianites, using trumpets)
5.  ANGEL OF THE LORD:  185,000 (Assyrians)
6.  MOSES:  (estimated) 269,002 (murdered slave in Pharaoh's court, a man who swore - had him stoned to death, 3,000 of his own people (after the Golden Calf incident), XXX,000 Amelekites (held up staff to win).  (not sure about who all were the remaining people killed.)
7.  JOSHUA:  322,036 (12,036 confirmed kills, 36 murders) (in Moses' army) (31 kings by sword, and all their subjects) - = approx. 1% of human population at the time.
8.  DAVID:  (estimated) 370,124 (152,661 confirmed kills, 207 murders) (Goliath, 200 Philistines (he kept their foreskins at the request of King Saul, whose daughter David wanted to marry), some of his own people, and more Philistines).
9.  ASA:  1,000,000 kills (Ethiopians) (worlds population at the time (est):  50,000,000; therefore, Asa killed 2% of the world's population).
10.  GOD:  (estimated)  24,994,828 (his people, other people, ALL life except Noah et al)

Total (Top 10 only):  27,448,806

It's no wonder people who believe in such trash, myth or not, feel justified in taking innocent lives in the name of their religion.