Blogtrek

Torture in Iraq and other places caused by a word

The latest thing out of Iraq is the torture of Iraqi prisoners by US military servicepeople and by civilian contractors. This has really dented America's image. The Arabs are incensed by this. We harp all over the place about sexual harassment and sexual crime, and then the Army does it to prisoners in Iraq. This country still holds 500 prisoners or so without charges in Guantanamo, and there are other places where our country is possibly mistreating prisoners. What's the cause of this? I think I know. It's a word.

Oppression of others is in our history. First the Eastern Native Americans, who were forced to march out of their territory, causing many to die. Then came the Confederates. Their cause was flawed by their practice of slavery, but that still did not justify the brutality of Sherman's March, which in some cases wiped out entire towns. Then Sherman showed his brutality again to the Native Americans, this time to the Plains tribes of Lakota and Cheyenne during the late 19th century, culminating in the Battle of Wounded Knee. There were the My Lai massacre and numerous other incidents. What justifies most of these incidents? A word.

Most of us would be appalled at these acts. Killing is forbidden in our laws and carries a heavy penalty. Forcing sex on someone, robbing them, injuring or torturing them are all serious felonies carrying long prison sentences. No one would think of doing these things except where a certain word is used. What is that word? F--k? NO.

WAR.

Union forces justified their acts by saying that it is a war, the Civil War. If it is a war, you can go ahead and kill and torture the enemy or even commit sex crimes against them. We justify it as bravery, and keep score of how many enemy fighters we have shot down. Soldiers kill enemy, and then they are praised as heroes. Now sometimes war may be justified, but these may be precious few. Certainly the events of the past three years do not qualify.

The reason why these acts are rationalized by those who do them is that they say it is a war. We hear this all the time. This nation is at war. That isn't even the case. The hunt for Al Qaeda is a police manhunt, not a war. The US action in Iraq may have been a war at first, but since then it has been an occupation, not a war. Calling these a war is what I feel has caused these wanton acts which would not be tolerated in a peaceful American community. It is time to start acting more civilized. There are major problems out there that require cooperation. Most of all, it is time to stop saying "War on Terror" and War in Iraq". Stop saying "WAR".