Here is a still from one of the videos I watched.
This Iraqi man, probably younger than me, was weeping.
Why is weeping? Because his goal was probably to blast some American invaders out of his holy city (Najaf), like a good and faithful local boy should.
I may not agree with the teachings of extremists and insurgents. I may not agree with religious people's beliefs at all, but this moment made me realize that there are those who do what they have been taught is right and are not evil people just because they are fighting us. Maybe this kid isn't that guy...maybe he is one of the bastards who beheads people or pays teenagers to commit suicide or maybe he is just a local Muslim kid who feels like fighting the invaders and their ruthless mercenary companions (like contractors) is his moral and patriotic duty, from his perspective. To me this gives me a lot of heartache and misgivings about war.
I wish there were no war. I wish there were no reason to fight. I want our billions to be spent on national healthcare and energy research. Why can't we use our dollars and smarts here at home to solve our problems?
I may not know all the reasons for war, though I may not like them all if I knew them.
In any case, a private unregulated army not commanded by elected leaders, is not a good idea.
No comments:
Post a Comment