May 13, 2004
I have to say this...
{political commentary}
I thought I would say this because it's been on my mind ever since Tuesday
Re: Nick Berg
In many ways the contemptious acts of the Al-Qaida terrorists when they executed Nick Berg in front of the world had great similarity to the murders performed by CIA agents and US soldiers in Iraq.
Let's look at this clinically:
From the murdering side, both abused the deceased mentally and physically before they died. On the terrorist side they purposefully ended life quickly albeit brutally, on the US side the patient died after excruciating pain most likely caused by blunt trauma.
From the location side, the terrorists killed Nick Berg in front of a video camera, intending to broadcast it to the world as a statement of rage and defiance to the US. The US CIA agents / soldiers killed their prisoners in the privacy of a cell or sequestered in an interrogation room, never intending it to be public knowledge.
Humans have a huge capacity for evil, whether you belong to a country that at one time had a reputation for saving lives and treating all people with respect, or you belong to a small group of radical fundamentalists who believe there is no god but theirs, and will kill to enforce it. The ability to torture, maim, kill and humiliate when under extreme situations and when fueled by hatred, fear and prejudice are inherit in all of us.
Seeing the images of Abu Ghraib reminded me of "Lord of the Flies" in many ways, mob mentality took over. I could almost hear "Kill the beast! Spill it's blood!" being chanted in the background. The events that have come to a head recently in the news have renewed my disappointment in humankind, and reinforced the feelings I had as a late-teen.. here's a portion of a poem I wrote:
"I wonder what the next beings will be like?
The ones who will inhabit our planet once we're gone.
They'll dig up our bones, and uncover our remains,
and wonder how we died."
{/political commentary}
Posted by Oorgo at May 13, 2004 11:51 AM|
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