Constant Vigilance
11/07/2005 07:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
izmeinaIzzie never did get around to mention Question Time at our usual Friday morning public speaking group two weeks ago. The subject concerned the new nasty and rather draconian ASIO security laws. (you can be disapparated for up to seven days without access to a lawyer and informing even your immediate family or employer of your detention is a jailable offence)
One person is chosen to present the question and to give both sides of the argument and then folks are called upon randomly to answer it.
While Izzie might be a rather glowing emerald shade of green, this particular speaker is so dark green as to be almost black and regards the human race with even more contempt and disdain than a certain serpent. So we were not quite sure if she was indulging in some tongue in cheek flippancy or was dead serious. When called upon to reply – she says – we don't need anti-terrorism laws. In fact – what we need is more terrorism – lots and lots of it. The more people that get killed – especially gas guzzling – high energy and resources consuming westerners, the better it is for the whole planet!
So needless to say, the poor thing was most embarassed and distressed indeed when within a week there was the bombings on the London Underground and busses and one of her closest relatives just happened to be on the scene. So when called upon to do the joke spot, instead of some silly story with a punch line – she explained about what happened to her relatives and apologized for her most tasteless comments from the previous week.
Izzie was chairing the meeting and dressed up as pink and fluffy as it is possible to be but along with these comments from Val and the events of the previous evening, had to be very careful with our Ministerial pronouncements so as to not end up putting our tail in our mouth as happened with Val in the previous week. Brought along a pretty pale pink candle on a pink stand with ribbons and stuff and was hoping to give it away as a Ministry of Light award to the most illuminating speaker but there was such a doomy gloomy mood that we will end up resurrecting it for another day.
So so much stuff to say and so so little time. So many early shifts lately at work so no staying up burning the midnight oil squiggling or catching up on all the gossip.
Had so wanted to go on an uber-rant the other week concerning GWB's “Mission not yet accomplished” speech and needless to say his latest sad performance last week had the Izzie blood truly boiling. Izzie is sure that every time this guttersnipe opens his gob, fifty new recruits sign up for Al Qaida.
There's been so much dismissive talk lately of 'moral equivalence' to anyone who mentions any civilian deaths in Iraq in the same sentence as those people killed in the London bombings. Using the Lancet based figures – 100, 000 deaths in Iraq does not justify yet another 50 or so senseless deaths in London. Fair enough thinks Izzie – but by the same token – 3,000 deaths in New York and Washington do not justify 100,000 in Iraq and God knows how many in Afghanistan. And those deaths in New York were actually used as a justification for what happened in Iraq. No one seemed to be bothered by 'moral equivalence' then and these people who were bombed in Baghdad or Fallujah were also just going about their daily business trying to earn a living like those folks in London.
But aside from this inconsistency and double-think – Izzie thinks the issue is not so much a matter of moral equivalence but observation of the excessively different treatment given to civilian deaths depending on location and ethnicity.
Of course most folks relate more to events concerning people near and dear to them or local or people sharing the same culture or language or whatever (my sore toe is of more importance to me than your tumour) which explains to some degree the extensive cover given to the London bombings over here. (Izzie has relatives over there and has visited London and used the Tube on many occasions – not to mention her unending fascination with Kings Cross station's Platform 9 ¾)
But this just does not explain the ongoing coverage one week later and ghoulish Rita Skeeter sorts (all belonging to papers belonging to the Murdoch evil empire) boasting TWENTY page wrap around coverage compared to one single line last night – not at the top but in the middle of the Yahoo portal page about 40 people being killed in suicide bombs in Iraq. Not heard even a whisper of this story anywhere since and suspect that it is most likely only Al Jazeera and local Arab or Iraqi news services that will cover it.
We in the west would do well to remember that this rule probably works both ways and that in the Middle East there would be detailed personal stories about those killed in the Baghdad bombings by US forces as well as those killed by the suicide bombings by the rebels while the victims in London may hardly rate a much of a mention (but probably still more than the Iraqi victims get in the western press)
Each side is so so good at seeing itself as the eternal victim and all its actions as purely defensive while the others are the incarnation of evil. But as in all wars – when the elephants fight, it is the grass that gets trampled. The Osama bin Ladens and Bushes of this world very rarely have to worry about being the target of some bombing campaign. It is always some easy targets like civilians going about their every day business who seem to cop it all the time.
Ken Livingstone's speech seemed to have the right tone in recognizing the fact that many people have reason to be pissed off by actions of the leaders of the UK but that expressing this rage by attacking uninvolved civilians is not only cruel and but also counterproductive because such actions will only make the Londoners more determined not to give in to those who use such tactics and will in the end result in them wasting their own lives as well as those of the people they kill.
It is most refreshing indeed to hear a speech from a public figure combining decency and dignity while also remaining defiant and not indulging in pious patronising platitudes which only add insult to the injuries already suffered by the victims of terrorism.
It is also the tenth anniversary of the Srebenica massacres. Due to the toothlessness of the UN tiger and the Dutch UN troops in particular – just like Rwanda – all this happened in the eyes of armed onlookers -all who felt powerless to intervene. So niceness and begging folks to be reasonable is just not enough. Speaking softly and waving a big stick seems to be the best policy of all.
The more Izzie sees of international affairs and politics, the more we come to the conclusion that behind all the waffling and wishy washy wishful thinking concerning the rule of law and international justice that only one rule really applies. A Smith and Wesson beats four aces.
Truly “There is no good and evil. There is only power and those too weak to seek it”
One person is chosen to present the question and to give both sides of the argument and then folks are called upon randomly to answer it.
While Izzie might be a rather glowing emerald shade of green, this particular speaker is so dark green as to be almost black and regards the human race with even more contempt and disdain than a certain serpent. So we were not quite sure if she was indulging in some tongue in cheek flippancy or was dead serious. When called upon to reply – she says – we don't need anti-terrorism laws. In fact – what we need is more terrorism – lots and lots of it. The more people that get killed – especially gas guzzling – high energy and resources consuming westerners, the better it is for the whole planet!
So needless to say, the poor thing was most embarassed and distressed indeed when within a week there was the bombings on the London Underground and busses and one of her closest relatives just happened to be on the scene. So when called upon to do the joke spot, instead of some silly story with a punch line – she explained about what happened to her relatives and apologized for her most tasteless comments from the previous week.
Izzie was chairing the meeting and dressed up as pink and fluffy as it is possible to be but along with these comments from Val and the events of the previous evening, had to be very careful with our Ministerial pronouncements so as to not end up putting our tail in our mouth as happened with Val in the previous week. Brought along a pretty pale pink candle on a pink stand with ribbons and stuff and was hoping to give it away as a Ministry of Light award to the most illuminating speaker but there was such a doomy gloomy mood that we will end up resurrecting it for another day.
So so much stuff to say and so so little time. So many early shifts lately at work so no staying up burning the midnight oil squiggling or catching up on all the gossip.
Had so wanted to go on an uber-rant the other week concerning GWB's “Mission not yet accomplished” speech and needless to say his latest sad performance last week had the Izzie blood truly boiling. Izzie is sure that every time this guttersnipe opens his gob, fifty new recruits sign up for Al Qaida.
There's been so much dismissive talk lately of 'moral equivalence' to anyone who mentions any civilian deaths in Iraq in the same sentence as those people killed in the London bombings. Using the Lancet based figures – 100, 000 deaths in Iraq does not justify yet another 50 or so senseless deaths in London. Fair enough thinks Izzie – but by the same token – 3,000 deaths in New York and Washington do not justify 100,000 in Iraq and God knows how many in Afghanistan. And those deaths in New York were actually used as a justification for what happened in Iraq. No one seemed to be bothered by 'moral equivalence' then and these people who were bombed in Baghdad or Fallujah were also just going about their daily business trying to earn a living like those folks in London.
But aside from this inconsistency and double-think – Izzie thinks the issue is not so much a matter of moral equivalence but observation of the excessively different treatment given to civilian deaths depending on location and ethnicity.
Of course most folks relate more to events concerning people near and dear to them or local or people sharing the same culture or language or whatever (my sore toe is of more importance to me than your tumour) which explains to some degree the extensive cover given to the London bombings over here. (Izzie has relatives over there and has visited London and used the Tube on many occasions – not to mention her unending fascination with Kings Cross station's Platform 9 ¾)
But this just does not explain the ongoing coverage one week later and ghoulish Rita Skeeter sorts (all belonging to papers belonging to the Murdoch evil empire) boasting TWENTY page wrap around coverage compared to one single line last night – not at the top but in the middle of the Yahoo portal page about 40 people being killed in suicide bombs in Iraq. Not heard even a whisper of this story anywhere since and suspect that it is most likely only Al Jazeera and local Arab or Iraqi news services that will cover it.
We in the west would do well to remember that this rule probably works both ways and that in the Middle East there would be detailed personal stories about those killed in the Baghdad bombings by US forces as well as those killed by the suicide bombings by the rebels while the victims in London may hardly rate a much of a mention (but probably still more than the Iraqi victims get in the western press)
Each side is so so good at seeing itself as the eternal victim and all its actions as purely defensive while the others are the incarnation of evil. But as in all wars – when the elephants fight, it is the grass that gets trampled. The Osama bin Ladens and Bushes of this world very rarely have to worry about being the target of some bombing campaign. It is always some easy targets like civilians going about their every day business who seem to cop it all the time.
Ken Livingstone's speech seemed to have the right tone in recognizing the fact that many people have reason to be pissed off by actions of the leaders of the UK but that expressing this rage by attacking uninvolved civilians is not only cruel and but also counterproductive because such actions will only make the Londoners more determined not to give in to those who use such tactics and will in the end result in them wasting their own lives as well as those of the people they kill.
It is most refreshing indeed to hear a speech from a public figure combining decency and dignity while also remaining defiant and not indulging in pious patronising platitudes which only add insult to the injuries already suffered by the victims of terrorism.
It is also the tenth anniversary of the Srebenica massacres. Due to the toothlessness of the UN tiger and the Dutch UN troops in particular – just like Rwanda – all this happened in the eyes of armed onlookers -all who felt powerless to intervene. So niceness and begging folks to be reasonable is just not enough. Speaking softly and waving a big stick seems to be the best policy of all.
The more Izzie sees of international affairs and politics, the more we come to the conclusion that behind all the waffling and wishy washy wishful thinking concerning the rule of law and international justice that only one rule really applies. A Smith and Wesson beats four aces.
Truly “There is no good and evil. There is only power and those too weak to seek it”
