Autogenocide – when a nation attacks and devours itself.
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Massive slaughter of a civilian populace is not unknown, witness Tamerlane as his Golden Horde swept thru Central Asia, 70,000 killed in the sack of Baghdad. Imperial Japan may have killed as many as 200,000 as detailed by Iris Chang in The Rape of Nan-King. Each conquering army’s intent to slaughter civilians could be termed genocidal.
What I cannot get my mind around is the possibility that a civilization can turn on itself, attack itself, perpetrate genocide upon its own populace. Yet that is what evidently has occurred in Iraq. A study by The Lancet indicates over one million Iraqis died between 2003 and 2010, over and above the natural death rate. What is chilling is a good many of these deaths exhibit signs of death caused by weapons far superior to those possessed by the Iraqi army. Yet who could have killed them ? None of the hundreds of thousands of US troops ( in Iraq to distribute bottled water and candy to children and to build schools) have seen signs of an invading army, yet the graveyards overflow.
Chillingly, this phenomena has happened at least twice before – in Vietnam between 1965-1973 and in the continental United States during the 18th and 19th centuries. Vietnam lost as many as three million people, exhibiting the same signs of death by superior weaponry as the Iraqis. Coincidentally, hundreds of thousands of US troops were also present during this time period – yet as in Iraq, none reported the presence of an invading army.
Indian tribes from the Lenni-Lenape in Delaware to the Sioux in South Dakota to the Apache in the US Southwest somehow were blown apart by artillery, gatling guns and buffalo rifles – yet the only ones having that type of ordnance was, again, the US military – hundreds of thousands of whom were also present during the time in question, the 18th and 19th centuries. Although US troops did report the presence of British troops in the Northeastern United States historians doubt the British were responsible for the genocide.
Sadly, foreign demagogues such as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hugo Chavez have seized on this sensational discovery to spread their hatred towards the United States. Rather than urge scientific investigation they accuse American troops of causing a substantial number of deaths. Like Holocaust denial, this is nonsense.
Several of my friends on this blog have pointed out to me that US troops only defend our country from its enemies, and that would never include killing of civilians. And the troops should never be blamed for anything they do.
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MH makes a huge social observation. Add to that the lack of jobs and it’s ripe for the crime waves circulating through urban areas.
It’s the leadership. The CIC. The military hierarchy. Nam got crazy for the non coms and the foot soldiers. But have they this time?
Friggin iPhone. Great post Oso.
MH makes a huge social observation. Add to that the lack of jobs and it’s ripe for the crime waves circulating through urban areas.
It’s the leadership. The CIC. The military hierarchy. Nam got crazy for the non coma and the
If you wanted to keep up on the “official” death numbers, iraqbodycount.org is where I have done research. the millions has already been debunked by WHO and some others as of May this year, for having some major inconsistencies. Here is a link to the site if you wanted to look a little further into it. So that we have all some facts, I think if I am remembering correctly part of the report actually made reference to bloggers and the like exaggerating the numbes and it goes viral. We all know how that can happen, given the 24/7 blogs and news we are bombarded with. Some of them less than reputable. We all know who they are.
http://www.iraqbodycount.org/
Well…if you’re hungry…
soz Oso…is there anything I won’t joke about?
No.
Otherwise I’d go really insane as opposed to more or less.
We are human old bean.
That’s why the world is afraid. Humanity is here.
Take care old bean. You know whereof you speak I suspect.
4D x
So if I am reading this correctly, there is no sign of an invading army, the US troops have superior weapons, the 100s of thousands of dead Iraqis must have been killed by US troops, in between handing out water and candy.
I’ve been thinking- when there has been a war on for as long as the one in Iraq, you have people who have been serving for so long they’ve basically spent their whole adult life doing soldiering.
How the hell are they supposed to come home and just assimilate? Do we actually think they can just come back from there and slip inconspicuously back into a “normal” life- and with what job?
It’s not as difficult as an ex-prisoner (who comes out facing the stigma of his crimes) but the outcome is the same. Look at the suicide rate. Obviously many aren’t adapting well to their old life.
Falloojeh