One has only to lose a loved one in a war once, to fully appreciate war, to have some empathy with the mother throwing herself on the blood-soaked ground as she strives to gather into her arms and hold close one last time, what is left of the body of her son. She will weep until she realizes her tears won’t bring him back. Her house may be smashed but it won’t be important. The food may be gone, but she doesn’t notice. A photograph flown away won’t matter é she won’t need one. A face is etched in her soul. Her life doesn’t matter and besides if she were to lose it, she would only join her son.
Every soldier who dies has a mother, at least, and often, also a brother.
As American journalists search into the background of the ‘terrorists’, I wonder how often they will find this story or a variation of it. How can we condemn without seeing the cry for justice?
How will America defend us from people whose pain goes beyond their life? When the loss of it is not deterrent? What more can be taken from them?
America has killed many. We were treated to a video-like presentation of a CIA missile striking three men, one of whom resembled Osama Bin Laden, but it doesn’t matter é three men were obliterated and a hillside in Afghanistan will be sacred to three woman who will not care anymore for their own lives.
How will American Intelligence defend us from such pain? (Unless they start to keep the names of everyone they kill.) It wasn’t enough on September 11th when I suggest the lack of concern the ‘terrorists’ showed for their own lives indicates a history of events which lessened its value to them.
The CIA video-photo resembles a game, which cynics have suggested was exactly the object of those computer games, to teach children to destroy a target with no sense of the reality of the consequence.
“Where shall we target terror next?” asks CNN. Where shall we make war next? Where shall we play video games next?
The response of the television-viewing audience is Pavlovian. The response has been conditioned by the press and is no more associated with reality than the salivating of Pavlov’s dogs was logically associated with bells! American people have been prepared psychologically to make war with no regard for truth, justice or the value of human life.
According to CNN on October 4th retired army General Barry McCaffery circulated emails because he was “eager to articulate the likely multi-faceted course of action against ‘terror’.” He said “We are going to disrupt these people through preemptive attackéwe will deceive them, we will run psyops (psychological operations?) on them, at selected points and times they will be killed suddenly, in significant numbers, and without warning.” “Tomahawk missiles, 2000 pound laser guided weapons dropped from B2’s or F22’s at very high altitude, remote control, booby traps, blackmail and at places, small groups of soldiers or SEALS will appear in total darkness, blow down the doors and kill them at close range with automatic weapons and hand grenades.” “We will find their money and freeze it. We will arrest their front agents. We will operate against their recruiting and transportation functions. We will locate their training areas and surveil or mine them. We will isolate them from their families.”
The “insights of a very smart guy.” Was the reaction of another military official.
“at selected points and times, they will be killed suddenly and in very significant numbers.” For example someone could fly into the World Trade Center Towers, killing Americans suddenly and at significant numbers.
So let’s get rid of the nonsense. What are Terrorists? How are they different from ‘Freedom Fighters’ and how are they different from General McCaffery? And the other military official? It seems obvious the difference is solely with respect to their disposition with regard to ‘American’ interests.
