thinkprogress.org — On PBS Newshour, Juan Cole says what many are thinking: "Remember that we're all concerned, as we should be, about these events at Virginia Tech today. In Iraq this is a daily event. Imagine how horrible it would be if this kind of massacre were occurring every single day."
Apr 17, 2007 View in Crawl 4
d00ley_Apr 17, 2007
Anyways, this should at least hone our skills to empathize with what the kids in Iraq are going through.
adamwebsApr 18, 2007
The man makes a good point. This is why a lot of people are brining up the Iraq war right now, not to dishonor the memories of the VT students but to point out that we need to take action to stop senseless killing, not only in this country but in countries we affect directly.
penumbraApr 18, 2007
@cerialthriller:"When you are in countries with violent regime running the place, what do you expect?"The deaths we're referring to here happened after the violent regime disappeared. Unless you're calling the current US-backed regime violent.@endzeiteule:He didn't actually grow up in western culture, he was a Chinese international student. Not that I think that changes the situation much.
cannedmangoApr 18, 2007
@infidelAlI don't know why Glen is being Dugg down, but this is the first I've heard any of those specific numbers for the deaths under Saddam's Regime. Considering how many numbers are casually tossed around out here, Glen should be citing sources along with those numbers to prove that what he's saying isn't just propaganda to support his argument.
dftpnkezlnApr 18, 2007
Bernard Lewis is about as credible as Dick Cheney.
dftpnkezlnApr 18, 2007
Yeah, only Iraq has now suffered (at the very least) the equivalent of 20 9/11's since that time. Try connecting to that.
dftpnkezlnApr 18, 2007
Yes, the killings are your fault. Every single unnecessary death in Iraq since the invasion is your fault. Fools who supported this war have the blood of every innocent killed in Iraq on the conscience, and should never forget it. Sorry if that sounds harsh, but its the truth.
roosterjm2k2Apr 18, 2007
@azurensisIts not about hypocrisy.Its human nature. I remember reading something from an article that was written shortly after WW2. Some of the younger, lower ranking nazi soldiers were interviewed and asked questions like "how can you look at hundreds upon hundreds of dead bodies and not feel complete terror." (or similar)An answer that came out alot was that it was actually easier to cope with Hundreds of dead bodies than it was to cope with one. Its something our brains do. When we hear about 1 death, or 10 ... it hits close to home...its just a handful of people, our brains can handle that emotion. 100s, or 1000s ... our brains simply cant figure out how to cope with that, so it basically cuts off the emotions.
dftpnkezlnApr 18, 2007
Gabriels, it seems from the general theme of your comments on this story that the 3000 dead civilians on 9/11 are somehow substantively different or more tragic than 3000 dead civilians in Iraq (70,000 + actually, but lets compare apples with apples). Are people made more deceased by how spectacular their deaths are? Does it matter if its a plane or a truck, a hijacker or a suicide bomber? Dead is dead, 3000 is 3000. No analogies necessary, they're identical.You dont get to retain 9/11 as the sole act of human depravity for all time.
atomicnewtApr 18, 2007
I find it rather strange that I mentioned this yesterday and a person who said he "spoke for all of Digg" ( hilarious ) told me to "STFU" and accused me of pushing an agenda b/c I said two VT's happen every day in Iraq. That is not pushing an agenda, it's a FACT.
diggtomanjeriApr 18, 2007
Exactly. And what the hell is google good for?
swrostmoreApr 19, 2007
I do not care about the half-million dead in Iraq. Those people are Arabs, not Americans. I don't know any of them. Iraq is across the world, I will never have to go there and see all the carnage and destruction. Iraq isn't the only place in the world where people are dying, so I don't see why I should be expected to care about it any more than I care about any other genocidal military offensive.I do not care about the 33 dead in Virginia. I dont know any of them. Those people were college students and I'm not. Virginia is across the country, I will never have to go there and see the carnage. Virginia isn't the only place in the world where people are dying, so I dont see why I should be expected to care, anymore than I care about Iraq.Which of these comments will get me dugg down harder? Based on what I've seen, some diggers would digg me up for expressing indifference to iraqi civilian casualties. ...this post physically hurt me to type..