Where's the Outrage?
Men and women are being systematically abused in Iraq. In our name, by our countrymen and women, with our tax dollars. Where is the outrage?
We have scored political points. Bush's disapproval ratings are in the toilet. His administration is under scrutiny like never before. But where is the outrage over the tortured Iraqis. Rumsfeld remains in power. Bush remains in power. And contemplates nuking Iran.
We have failed to imagine that our country can commit human rights abuses. And we have failed to do anything about it now that it has.
There is nothing radically left-wing about opposition to this war, the way it has been conducted, the way that it has systematically degraded our armed forces, and our national identity. There is nothing left-wing about standing up in outrage against the crimes that have been committed in our names, with our money.
So where are we?
This is too important to leave it up to the left.
-misha
__________________
The outrage is buried beneath the absolute media fatigue. Who can possibly keep track of which abomination of justice to follow these days. Didn't Verizon give our phone records to the government, wait isn't Bush nominating the chief engineer of the domestic spying campaign to head the CIA, hold on now, did USA Today get the story wrong, who said that, torture in the mideast, huh, again, wait why are Egyptian police kicking protesters to the pavement, didn't a mob of refugee's in Chad hack a UN official to pieces last week, I thought refugees were peaceful helpless people incapable of committing atrocities, 14 were blown up in Baghdad toady, hold on now someone shot down a British helicopter in Basra, a fence along the Arizona border sounds pretty good, but will that keep Hamas out, oops, wrong fence!
I admit it, I can't read about Iraq anymore. I try, everyday I try to. I see the articles in the Times, usually about a dozen people at a time are blown up. I look at the headline, I read the first paragraph of the article and then an absolute lack of interest takes over. Some days I can't tell if the headline I see at 7:00pm announcing the death of a dozen more is a different from the one I had seen earlier that day. Absolute media fatigue. Its not an excuse, just an explanation.
You are right, Misha, the situation is far too grave to leave up to the left. Simply pulling out is not going to do it. I don't mean to get apocalyptic here, but to paraphrase Colon Powell "we broke it, we own it." Speaking of Colon, did you see that Bush had every living Secretary of State over for a chat last week. He had done this once before, I only hope he actually listens to what people have to say this time. This is well beyond political maneuvering, I pray that the gravity of the situation has finally sunk in for W. and that he begins to accept the moral responsibility he has to actually come up with a plan for Iraq. And yet I know that I am hoping and praying for more than is possible. But this can't wait until 2008. I am outraged, but I am exhausted.
-aly
We have scored political points. Bush's disapproval ratings are in the toilet. His administration is under scrutiny like never before. But where is the outrage over the tortured Iraqis. Rumsfeld remains in power. Bush remains in power. And contemplates nuking Iran.
We have failed to imagine that our country can commit human rights abuses. And we have failed to do anything about it now that it has.
There is nothing radically left-wing about opposition to this war, the way it has been conducted, the way that it has systematically degraded our armed forces, and our national identity. There is nothing left-wing about standing up in outrage against the crimes that have been committed in our names, with our money.
So where are we?
This is too important to leave it up to the left.
-misha
__________________
The outrage is buried beneath the absolute media fatigue. Who can possibly keep track of which abomination of justice to follow these days. Didn't Verizon give our phone records to the government, wait isn't Bush nominating the chief engineer of the domestic spying campaign to head the CIA, hold on now, did USA Today get the story wrong, who said that, torture in the mideast, huh, again, wait why are Egyptian police kicking protesters to the pavement, didn't a mob of refugee's in Chad hack a UN official to pieces last week, I thought refugees were peaceful helpless people incapable of committing atrocities, 14 were blown up in Baghdad toady, hold on now someone shot down a British helicopter in Basra, a fence along the Arizona border sounds pretty good, but will that keep Hamas out, oops, wrong fence!
I admit it, I can't read about Iraq anymore. I try, everyday I try to. I see the articles in the Times, usually about a dozen people at a time are blown up. I look at the headline, I read the first paragraph of the article and then an absolute lack of interest takes over. Some days I can't tell if the headline I see at 7:00pm announcing the death of a dozen more is a different from the one I had seen earlier that day. Absolute media fatigue. Its not an excuse, just an explanation.
You are right, Misha, the situation is far too grave to leave up to the left. Simply pulling out is not going to do it. I don't mean to get apocalyptic here, but to paraphrase Colon Powell "we broke it, we own it." Speaking of Colon, did you see that Bush had every living Secretary of State over for a chat last week. He had done this once before, I only hope he actually listens to what people have to say this time. This is well beyond political maneuvering, I pray that the gravity of the situation has finally sunk in for W. and that he begins to accept the moral responsibility he has to actually come up with a plan for Iraq. And yet I know that I am hoping and praying for more than is possible. But this can't wait until 2008. I am outraged, but I am exhausted.
-aly
posted by citizen P at 12:03 AM
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