Submitted: 7 June 1999

The Ways of the Refugees...Wrong?

by Solarria

"How goes it Baresh?" she asks. "Not here for a drink today, but there's something I'd like to respond to...a man entered here last week-Darkstars was his name?-and what he said saddened me. He spoke of how several refugees burned the body of a fallen comrade.

"That's not what saddened me, mind you. What saddened me was how close-minded this man was. What he said just before he left rather disturbed me: 'We must show the refugee's our ways, take them to the cleric guild and temple and show them...'

"If you ask me, these refugees have been through enough. They don't need an ethics lesson from us. This man Darkstars has obviously not experienced other cultures a lot. The refugees have been here two weeks at most. How can we expect them to trust us enough to leave their dead in the care of us? Darkstars may have been left feeling untrusted, but trust is a resource that's in short supply these days.

"There are many races in the Crossing. And none of them were forced to abandon their old ways. The circumstances the refugees arrived here in were strenuous enough, and now we're telling them which of their rituals are acceptable to us?

"Thanks fer listenin Baresh. That was a huge weight off my shoulders. Now that that's said, gimme a beer." She plunks several silver on the counter.

Baresh will listen to your well-presented viewpoint on this, too.