This is not a comment about the weather

I read articles and stories of how children are being used, trained and sent by parents to become soldiers in this awful heavily armed conflict and war going on in Syria, Iraq and the Middle East right now.

A friend of mine sent me this article from ROAR Magazine: ISIS fighter in Kobanê: “Erdoğan has helped us a lot"
Actions, thoughts, riots and outbreaks are all part of a chain reaction of something. There is no clean slate - there is no erase of history - there is definitely right and wrong - but there is not one solitary approach.
There is no definite good and evil - one or the other - that is a simplification of life, humanity - and perhaps a tool to guide us trough life - but in the wrong hands it is a tool of evil and doom.

Who am I to judge.

BBC News: Islamic State crisis: The 13-year-old on 'righteous path'

AP in a detailed report: Islamic state group recruits exploits children

I am not christian, I am brought up in a western society. The kingdom of Sweden. A country that in modern time has taken pride in remaining neutral during WWII. Remaining outside military alliances like NATO. Having been spared from war since 1815. Really?
We have on paper stayed out of taking active part in war. We are not members of NATO, but they do have a huge lot training going on on Swedish soil. And allowing German troops on Swedish rail roads during WWII - and in 2013 being one of the top 11 largest arms exporter - in the world. We might compromise - but neutral - rally?

Still, I am brought up in a western society. In a country that hasn't been torn up by war times, that is not facing daily air strikes or violent domestic acts of terror.

The Swedish Social Democratic Party has been playing a leading role in Swedish politics since the 20th century - democratic socialism trough reforms not revolution. I may not be christian or a person of a specific religious belief. Neither do I believe that ideology can replace faith.
But I believe in the strength of people - as individuals, together as a group. I believe that my responsibility for society does not stop at my door step. It does not stop with my actions alone. We are all responsible for the society we are apart of - and the history written this very moment.

ROAR Magazine is reporting "Erdoğan has helped us a lot", In Mark Lowen's BBC-article above, he is reporting from the Turkey-Syria border about a mother, a 13-year-old boy and the words of Mohamed, 21 - having two younger brothers willing to die and kill - and not being able to impinge them at all.
Are they personally responsible? Are they the ones to judge? What can this thing, justice, do in this very moment?

Who am I to judge.

Is Erdoğan's unwillingness to protect Kobanê on the other side of the Turkish border to blame? The action or the man - his presidency or person? Was it his or maybe Turkey's responsibility to protect Syrian border town, important to many in the region. Or perhaps, or at least, allow others, to arm them self and pass trough the country of Turkey.

In this country of mine - people are not allowed to carry weapons for protection. I am not allowed to carry a knife in public (stated in the Swedish law 1988:254). I don't even know how to get a gun - I would not want to have one and I would not like my neighbour to have one either.

But who am I to judge.

In Kobanê, Mosul, Raqqa the terms of daily life are not the same as mine. Neither in Turkey, Syria, Iraq or Lebanon. My religious or political believes will not put me in harms way. My families or mine affiliation with almost anything - will not put any of us in harms way. Political change will not put us in harms way. Private, commercial or political influence will not drastically change our every day life.
The well fare of my geographic region is not exposed to the same kind of actions - caused by chain reactions to the chain reactions to the chain reactions we are seeing around us.

The climate of my geographic region is harsh. The big latitude difference from south to north do make a difference - a majority of people do live in the southern parts. But during the winter seasons we have persistent temperatures between -4 to 2 °C (25 to 36 °F) - not unusual -15 to -10 °C (5 to 14 °F) or lower. Infrastructure - hosing, electricity and heating is of the essence. Fresh and nutrient food as well.

I will not try comparing the terms of daily life. I would appear stupid and narrow to say the least. And not to point fingers - but as a sign of the unawareness of the modern society - one of the responses to a newspaper street survey after a couple of substantial electricity outages last winter due to harsh weather, heavy snow and trees falling like domino causing great damage to vital parts of the power grid - "I am not dependant on electricity in my every day life. I live in the capital of Sweden."

But this is not a comment about the weather. This is not a comment about who to blame. This is a comment about responsibility and how far your responsibility goes.

You will be the judge of that.

And as a second comment to the tremendous accounting of children being recruited to armed extremist forces - they are our children. We have written the history and context of the world we have brought them into.
We are responsible - to the last extremity.
We are responsible for to the personal and cultural value of the modern society - and world wide.

Deferring to that - world wide web - software companies Google, Microsoft, Apple, social media communities Twitter, Facebook - without even getting up you can communicate with whom ever, no one and everyone. And considering that, I would like to plant the idea, that those companies above, are also responsible.

We should not judge others. But for our children to be able, to without even getting up, getting influenced without having enough prior safe guarding urge to resist or even scrutinize what is happening - they are the perfect target.

How precious isn't that young child - how exposed and fragile isn't human life. We cannot build armour strong enough to protect us from the harm from actual weapons. We cannot exclude evil or build walls protecting us from all substantial harm. There is no height high enough to give the absolute safety. There is no difference between you and me. We are all in the end only flesh and bone - the strength of your bone only subtly differing from mine.

Finally - who am I to judge. I will speak, I will care and I will not deny being liable. But I will not try to win - I will not attempt to fight - it will only hurt flesh and cause pain.