zipdoa
03-12-2012, 11:41 AM
I'm interested to see this unfold:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-17343437
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/13/world/asia/us-army-sergeant-suspected-in-afghanistan-shooting.html
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/03/12/world/asia/Afghanistan/Afghanistan-articleLarge.jpg
A US soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan civilians in a night-time rampage acted alone, US officials say.
The Pentagon said in a media briefing that the killings, in the early hours of Sunday, were "tragic" but insisted it was an isolated incident.
The soldier has not been named, but he is reported to be in his 30s with three children.
Afghan MPs earlier passed a motion saying civilians have lost patience with foreign troops.
The incident has put more strain on relations between Afghans and foreign forces.
Anti-US sentiment is already high after soldiers burned some copies of the Koran at a Nato base in Kabul last month.
US officials have repeatedly apologised for the Koran incident, which sparked a series of protests and attacks that killed at least 30 people and six US troops.
And some EXCELLENT commentary from our own Matthew Good:
https://www.facebook.com/#!/matthewgoodmusic
It left the base in the middle of the night. It didn’t walk far – just 500 yards – to two nearby villages, Alkozai and Najeeban. There, it entered three houses and began.
In all, 16 were killed and five wounded, the majority of them women and children. At least three young children were shot at point blank range in the head. In one home alone, 11 were killed, their bodies set alight.
I refer to... the American soldier, presumed at present to be a staff sergeant, as “it” because referring to him in any other way would be to suggest the presence of humanity. In truth, the investigation that is presently underway has not concluded that it was a single soldier, as there have been accounts by locals that multiple individuals may have been involved, including Afghan police forces.
My brother and I were talking about it this afternoon. He’d been monitoring the story and was shocked to read comments left by readers on various sites defending the presumed lone soldier – that his actions were the result of stress, depression, frustration, or a combination of all three. Sociopathy, my brother noted, was not among the possibilities discussed.
He then paused and touched on something that many people don’t like to discuss, nor admit to – that many, despite outward impressions of equanimity, view those in such parts of the world as lesser beings.
I would like to say that I offered a counter argument, but my brother was right. Over the last decade, the worth of human life in such places has been overwhelmingly marginalized. Prior to that, the inhabitants of numerous nations subjected to gross injustices and brutality were simply ignored.
I have said it a thousand times, so one thousand and one can’t hurt. Prior to 9/11, what did the world, and the vast majority of its inhabitants, care about the plight of the Afghan people? They simply didn’t. The cause of Afghan women was on not on our radar, and no one cared that its people lived on less that $2 dollars US a day – a situation that has not improved after 10 years of occupation, and one that is prevalent in many nations besides.
When the United States was in bed with the Hussein regime, what did the people of the US or Canada care about the fate of the average Iraqi? Truth be told, during the entire Iraq war what did we really care about their well being? More than 2 million of them were displaced, the country fractured, and an untold number killed. Occupational forces would walk out of Iraq to pipe and drum music, victory claimed, leaving behind precisely what the majority of regional experts warned would happen years earlier – the creation of a sectarian maelstrom that would rip the nation apart.
Did those same voices support the tyranny of the Hussein regime? Of course not. But while the majority were willingly blind to the fact that the US was looking to remove one of their old assets, just as they had in Panama, those marginalized voices pointed out that the West provided Hussein the political capital that he needed to remain in power and the heighten resolve to comfortably abuse it. The sanctions that followed, meant to punish his regime, ended up punishing the Iraqi people instead – causing the estimated deaths of some 1 million of them – or a sixth of all those eliminated in Nazi camps during World War 2.
The war that raged in Central Africa for 20 years – and which, in parts, continues to this day - has cost the lives of more people than any other conflict besides the great wars. As is always the case, when innocents were being slaughtered in Zaire, what was the perception of the average North American? There wasn’t one – because it didn’t matter to us. Upwards of six million civilians alone would be lost and the closest that we have come to even scratching the surface of its true horror has come by way of a viral video years too late and devoid of context.
While some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were slaughtered in 100 days in Rwanda, the world’s focus was on the Balkans. White people being killed after all. The UN would abandon Rwanda, though thanks to the stubbornness of a Canadian general that refused to follow orders, more than 30,000 Rwandans were saved from the machetes and rape camps of the Interahamwe. Even so, that man would be tormented for years by what he felt was his failure to do more, and subjected to a smear campaign by the UN itself.
We do not act for the betterment of others. More so, we never act for the betterment of those we privately, and quietly, view as expendable – not unless there is something in it for us. That precedent, unfortunately, has a back story that is entirely steeped in usury.
Most of you are obviously familiar with the term “Third World”. Its origin comes from Cold War nomenclature to define those nations that held non-aligned positions regarding the capitalist doctrine of the West and Soviet Communist doctrine. Given that many of those nations were poor, the term eventually became used to stereotype such nations despite the fact that a litany of them were ensnared by Cold War divisionism.
In the case of many regions that are currently considered Third World, or part of the Developing world, all have histories replete with colonial interference and exploitation. As colonialist doctrine collapsed, it was replaced in most places by neocolonialist doctrine – simply another way to capitalize on such nations while allowing them to labour under the misconception that they truly governed themselves. Economically, they were unable to succeed, so what began centuries prior as outright political control was transformed into something far worse – dependence on those that had once controlled them, or others that could offer native governments what was required, to achieve stability. In many cases, that meant guns rather than infrastructure, bullets instead if schools.
So we sat back and further exploited others through economic entrapment while caring nothing about political landscapes – that is, unless they threatened our interests (under the specter of fear depending on the era). In such cases, tales were spun and those that we needed gone were removed and someone willing to play ball coincidentally popped up. In some cases, we didn’t have to do any work – as various post colonial regimes were smart enough to know how to play the system and use it to their advantage – which we willingly allowed them to do as long as there was something in it for us. East Timor is a prime example.
Conflicts may have raged around the world because of the rise of such governments and the strongmen at their helms, but never lose sight of who has been responsible for arming them, who has supplied the tools, and then sat back and waited for outcomes. And in doing so, think rightly about what such nations outwardly claim to stand for.
The entire modern history of European peoples, and their descendants, is replete with the pervasive, yet unspoken, understanding that everyone besides is of less worth. Our collective history is built on that premise and it has been one of the most significant factors in our prolonged impact on global affairs. And it is by no means a new phenomenon. It dates back centuries.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-17343437
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/13/world/asia/us-army-sergeant-suspected-in-afghanistan-shooting.html
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/03/12/world/asia/Afghanistan/Afghanistan-articleLarge.jpg
A US soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan civilians in a night-time rampage acted alone, US officials say.
The Pentagon said in a media briefing that the killings, in the early hours of Sunday, were "tragic" but insisted it was an isolated incident.
The soldier has not been named, but he is reported to be in his 30s with three children.
Afghan MPs earlier passed a motion saying civilians have lost patience with foreign troops.
The incident has put more strain on relations between Afghans and foreign forces.
Anti-US sentiment is already high after soldiers burned some copies of the Koran at a Nato base in Kabul last month.
US officials have repeatedly apologised for the Koran incident, which sparked a series of protests and attacks that killed at least 30 people and six US troops.
And some EXCELLENT commentary from our own Matthew Good:
https://www.facebook.com/#!/matthewgoodmusic
It left the base in the middle of the night. It didn’t walk far – just 500 yards – to two nearby villages, Alkozai and Najeeban. There, it entered three houses and began.
In all, 16 were killed and five wounded, the majority of them women and children. At least three young children were shot at point blank range in the head. In one home alone, 11 were killed, their bodies set alight.
I refer to... the American soldier, presumed at present to be a staff sergeant, as “it” because referring to him in any other way would be to suggest the presence of humanity. In truth, the investigation that is presently underway has not concluded that it was a single soldier, as there have been accounts by locals that multiple individuals may have been involved, including Afghan police forces.
My brother and I were talking about it this afternoon. He’d been monitoring the story and was shocked to read comments left by readers on various sites defending the presumed lone soldier – that his actions were the result of stress, depression, frustration, or a combination of all three. Sociopathy, my brother noted, was not among the possibilities discussed.
He then paused and touched on something that many people don’t like to discuss, nor admit to – that many, despite outward impressions of equanimity, view those in such parts of the world as lesser beings.
I would like to say that I offered a counter argument, but my brother was right. Over the last decade, the worth of human life in such places has been overwhelmingly marginalized. Prior to that, the inhabitants of numerous nations subjected to gross injustices and brutality were simply ignored.
I have said it a thousand times, so one thousand and one can’t hurt. Prior to 9/11, what did the world, and the vast majority of its inhabitants, care about the plight of the Afghan people? They simply didn’t. The cause of Afghan women was on not on our radar, and no one cared that its people lived on less that $2 dollars US a day – a situation that has not improved after 10 years of occupation, and one that is prevalent in many nations besides.
When the United States was in bed with the Hussein regime, what did the people of the US or Canada care about the fate of the average Iraqi? Truth be told, during the entire Iraq war what did we really care about their well being? More than 2 million of them were displaced, the country fractured, and an untold number killed. Occupational forces would walk out of Iraq to pipe and drum music, victory claimed, leaving behind precisely what the majority of regional experts warned would happen years earlier – the creation of a sectarian maelstrom that would rip the nation apart.
Did those same voices support the tyranny of the Hussein regime? Of course not. But while the majority were willingly blind to the fact that the US was looking to remove one of their old assets, just as they had in Panama, those marginalized voices pointed out that the West provided Hussein the political capital that he needed to remain in power and the heighten resolve to comfortably abuse it. The sanctions that followed, meant to punish his regime, ended up punishing the Iraqi people instead – causing the estimated deaths of some 1 million of them – or a sixth of all those eliminated in Nazi camps during World War 2.
The war that raged in Central Africa for 20 years – and which, in parts, continues to this day - has cost the lives of more people than any other conflict besides the great wars. As is always the case, when innocents were being slaughtered in Zaire, what was the perception of the average North American? There wasn’t one – because it didn’t matter to us. Upwards of six million civilians alone would be lost and the closest that we have come to even scratching the surface of its true horror has come by way of a viral video years too late and devoid of context.
While some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were slaughtered in 100 days in Rwanda, the world’s focus was on the Balkans. White people being killed after all. The UN would abandon Rwanda, though thanks to the stubbornness of a Canadian general that refused to follow orders, more than 30,000 Rwandans were saved from the machetes and rape camps of the Interahamwe. Even so, that man would be tormented for years by what he felt was his failure to do more, and subjected to a smear campaign by the UN itself.
We do not act for the betterment of others. More so, we never act for the betterment of those we privately, and quietly, view as expendable – not unless there is something in it for us. That precedent, unfortunately, has a back story that is entirely steeped in usury.
Most of you are obviously familiar with the term “Third World”. Its origin comes from Cold War nomenclature to define those nations that held non-aligned positions regarding the capitalist doctrine of the West and Soviet Communist doctrine. Given that many of those nations were poor, the term eventually became used to stereotype such nations despite the fact that a litany of them were ensnared by Cold War divisionism.
In the case of many regions that are currently considered Third World, or part of the Developing world, all have histories replete with colonial interference and exploitation. As colonialist doctrine collapsed, it was replaced in most places by neocolonialist doctrine – simply another way to capitalize on such nations while allowing them to labour under the misconception that they truly governed themselves. Economically, they were unable to succeed, so what began centuries prior as outright political control was transformed into something far worse – dependence on those that had once controlled them, or others that could offer native governments what was required, to achieve stability. In many cases, that meant guns rather than infrastructure, bullets instead if schools.
So we sat back and further exploited others through economic entrapment while caring nothing about political landscapes – that is, unless they threatened our interests (under the specter of fear depending on the era). In such cases, tales were spun and those that we needed gone were removed and someone willing to play ball coincidentally popped up. In some cases, we didn’t have to do any work – as various post colonial regimes were smart enough to know how to play the system and use it to their advantage – which we willingly allowed them to do as long as there was something in it for us. East Timor is a prime example.
Conflicts may have raged around the world because of the rise of such governments and the strongmen at their helms, but never lose sight of who has been responsible for arming them, who has supplied the tools, and then sat back and waited for outcomes. And in doing so, think rightly about what such nations outwardly claim to stand for.
The entire modern history of European peoples, and their descendants, is replete with the pervasive, yet unspoken, understanding that everyone besides is of less worth. Our collective history is built on that premise and it has been one of the most significant factors in our prolonged impact on global affairs. And it is by no means a new phenomenon. It dates back centuries.