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| paying respect |
| 01.25.05 (11:00 am) [edit] |
did you know:
on 13 january 2005, Lance Corporal Matthew W. Holloway of the 1st Batallion, 23rd Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, Marine Corps Reserve was killed by enemy action in Anbar Province.
He was 21 years old from Fulton, Texas.
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| surprise, surprise... |
| 01.25.05 (10:44 am) [edit] |
special report: (dun. dun. dun...) today on CNN, the "pressure group" Human Rights Watch has released a 94 page report on Iraqis abusing their detainees.
the report says nobody (including Iraq, the US, the UK, or "other involved governments") will denounce this behavior or try to correct it.
anyone surprised?
here's the story: Iraqi abuse
also...another big surprise as roported by CNN.
Bush is going to be requesting another 80 billion dollars from congress for the war.
all the while, our people are still starving because they're still being paid minimum wage and they still have children to feed and clothe AND they still have to pay taxes to fund this war that they don't believe in. fabulous. the hole he is digging is getting deeper by the day...everytime he has a new thought. I hope our poor country can hold on for four more years...the worst of it will be over then.
anyone surprised? Bush's stupidity
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| forgiveness? |
| 12.03.04 (12:52 pm) [edit] |
remember i said i was doing this for an ethics class grade? well my professor reviewed it.
this is what she said (i hope she doesn't mind...):
"I love your site.
Recommendations/Suggestio ns -
do a comparison of US deaths due to poverty annually versus number of deaths in 9/11 and or Iraq.
There is another source of injuries - its really closer to 30,000, but I can't remember where it is. You can probably find it through firstgov.gov or defenselink.gov
As a part of this project when you write - you appear to take a virtue stance or sometimes a rights oriented stance. Be consistent - would "the other side" use the same position to attack yours? And do you write in a way that will allow for forgiveness (if you are a virtue oriented person)."
and the rest goes on to give me more tips, but the part i had to read several times was the italicized part. not because i didn't understand it but because i really wanted to consider these questions as best i could. so here i go:
i'm glad i was taken for a virtue/rights person...i very much consider myself a mixture of the two.
...would the "other side" use the same position?...so i thought to myself "would american soldiers who torture innocent iraqi citizens(and vice versa, including the beheadings of innocent americans), try to defend their actions with "i had the right to do it" or "it was the right thing to do"? i should hope not. anyone who does have morals would laugh in their face. i believe that there is absolutely no excuse for rendering another human defensless (ie: tie them up), then taking advantage of that by purposely inflicting pain upon them.
SO...do i "write in a way that will allow for forgiveness"?...call me "inconsistent" because i believe that people who torture other people should be punished - not forgiven. there is no moral reasoning or excuse that could defend that kind of behavior. people that can commit such an act, without regard to anyone (even himself), should not be allowed the same basic freedoms as humans - except to breathe. he/she doesn't even deserve to die. that would be too much privilage. they should die alone in a cell big enough to survive the length of their lives.
what do i call myself if i believe that people should only be considered for equal rights if they are capable and willing to treat others with the same respect? that sounds virtue-oriented to me. virtue oriented means to be concerned with making the right choices constantly. consistent character. true virtue requires consistent choice, understanding, and knowledge. none of which are traits that people capable of that will ever have.
...stepping off my soapbox...
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| personal story |
| 11.30.04 (5:28 pm) [edit] |
this is a new news story on BBCNews.com...it doesn't pertain to the war in iraq, but it gives you an idea of what really happens in prisons that allow torture.
=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/eu..."i died twice"
it's sad that it really does take something like this happening to us directly for us to take an interest in the well being of mankind...
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| set an example?! |
| 11.24.04 (8:45 am) [edit] |
personally, i believe this prisoner abuse is happening far more often than just these SEALS and those seven army soldiers...these are just the ones the government is using to "prove" to everyone that they are doing something about the treatment of "detainees".
BTW: "detainees" is what the administration is calling all the prisoners because refering to them as POW's means they are supposed to be treated according to the Geneva Conventions. by not refering to them that way, they can do whatever they want. ie: ghost detainees.
Why does anyone think that beheadings of hostages is any different than killing a prisoner by "blunt force to the torso"? what's good for the goose is good for the gander?
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| paying respect |
| 11.23.04 (9:13 am) [edit] |
Did You Know:
On 11/19/04, Lance Corporal Phillip G. West of the 3rd Batallion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Exped. Unit was killed in action by hostile fire in Fallujah, Iraq.
He was 19 years old from American Canyon, California.
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| Disappearing acts |
| 11.23.04 (8:46 am) [edit] |
"Ghost Detainees" is the name given to prisoners that our government makes disappear. there are no records of where they went or where they are now. There's no proof of life, or death. Just proof that the last people to see them alive is our CIA. If there is no proof of where they're at, then there's no proof of what happens to them, either. That's the main reason that it's not supposed to be done. Each prisoner is supposed to be accounted for.
We all know that other countries look to us for the example. We're the "model country" because we're the most powerful and most feared in the world. So knowing that, it shouldn't surprise us that other countries see what we do to our POW's, and follow our lead. It shouldn't surprise us that Iraq's insurgents are capturing our citizens and holding them hostage. At least they're admitting to having them!
Some would argue that we shouldn't concern ourselves with the disappearing acts that our government performs because it's "bad" people that they're taking. People that are related to the 9/11 attacks, and people who were closely involved with Osama Bin Laden are among the many prisoners being held at "undisclosed locations". But i say - who are we to play god? who are we to say that certain people don't get treated according to the Geneva Conventions that our country used to pride itself on following?!!
I've heard it argued this way: "why should we follow the Conventions if they don't have to?"
They didn't sign that treaty. they're not bound by any law to follow that. But we are. And we are also supposed to be setting the biggest example of all. We're invading their country under the pretense that in they end, they will have a "free democracy" just like us. because apparently, that's the best, and only way to live a good life.
so basically, we're forcing our ideas of government on them - and trying to convince them that it's the best government in the world. all the while, by example we're showing them that we get to pick and choose the laws that we follow...
is anyone surprised that this war is still going on?!!
here is the "human rights watch" article:
Prisoners Who Disappear
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| Human Rights? |
| 11.22.04 (9:57 pm) [edit] |
So why this topic? *deep breath*
At the beginning of this semester at UNF, my "Philosophy: Current Ethics and Issues" class (or "ethics" as i refer to it)was assigned a group project. Each group was assigned an area in our individual lives that we might find and define ethical issues and/or problems. My group's "area" was "World Citizen" and we decided to focus on "war crimes in the current Iraq war". There were five of us, so we divided that into even more focused topics: an explaination of the Geneva Conventions, hostages, bombings, and (my topic) prisoners of war (the fifth person did the intro/conclusion). So I had to focus my research on war crimes dealing with prisoners, and our ethical issues as world citizens. Thus, my passion for the treatment of prisoners (on both sides).
Anyway, so as a "cheers" to my inspiration, my first bit of research I want to share is the first thing that got me really pissed off about this topic. I came across a letter that was written to the U.S. National Security Advisor, Ms. Condoleeza Rice, from the Human Rights Watch organization. Basically, they monitor the treatment of people all over the world, and they fight the governments of those respective countries to demand better treatment of their people. They're a fairly popular and known organization, and they frequently lobby governments all over the world.
This particular letter is self-explainatory.
Angry yet?
It gets worse...
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| Geneva Conventions |
| 11.22.04 (2:03 pm) [edit] |
We'll start from the beginning...
The Geneva Conventions are a set of laws put in place to distinguish between combatants and civilians, and to outline the lawful treatment of both during wartime.
It's actually considered a "treaty" that was signed by 47 diplomatic countries whose representatives all met in Geneva from April to August of 1949 (while WWII was going on).
According to genevaconventions.org,the original Geneva Convention was signed in 1864 to protect the sick and wounded in wartime.
Since then, there have been several conventions added, but for the purpose of this blog, I'm only concerned with Convention III - the legal treatment of POW's.
The basic ideas are:
* Prisoners of war must be treated humanely. Specifically, prisoners must not be subject to torture or to medical or scientific experiments of any kind. They must also be potected against violence, intimidation, insults and public curiosity. The public display of POWs is also prohibited.
* When questioned — in the prisoner's native language — prisoners of war must only give their names, ranks, birth dates and serial numbers. Prisoners who refuse to answer may not be threatened or mistreated.
* Prisoners of war must be immediately evacuated away from a combat zone and must not be unnecessarily exposed to danger. They may not be used as human shields.
* Finally, and most importantly, prisoners of war may not be punished for the acts they committed during the fighting unless the opposing side would have punished its own soldiers for those acts as well.
Did You Know:
The original idea for the Geneva Conventions was inspired by the founder of Red Cross, Henri Dunant, and since then the Red Cross has played the most significant part in the creation and enforcement of the Conventions.
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| welcome |
| 11.22.04 (12:45 pm) [edit] |
So it's quite obvious that i'm a "blue state" kind of girl...*heh* but don't let that fool you...my initial purpose for this blog will be to inform and educate the masses on prisoners of the Iraq War and their treatment. I've been wanting to start a political blog for some time now, but it's a grade in my ethics class that motivates me to finally do it. after i get the grade the topics will start to vary, but for now i'm going to focus on POW's...
Please feel free to comment - it will allow my professor to see that people are reading it!
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Cost of the War in Iraq
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