Thursday, June 29, 2006

Nir Rosen -- Documenting Special Forces Experiences and other Iraq Stories

This is investigative journalism at its finest and most important.

Pieces are too long to copy, but weazl would impore readers to read:


Ugly Americans in Iraq

and

The Occupation of Iraqi Hearts and Minds
Posted by at

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

What reading material, website or hard copy, recommendations would you provide that would be suitable to give to a young man in the U.S. army, who just was called to active duty, is about to go overseas, and doesn't want to hear that what the army is doing is wrong, is highly questionable at this point in time?
He doesn't want to hear that all he's committed himself to is in vain, and that his friends who've died in the war died in vain. An understandable sentiment, but yet a detrimental mend-set to his own freedom, if you ask me.

I think he is open to listening, but yet stops short of doing so, and turns the other way. He is a young, African American man who is already on board with the idea of democracy, in particular racial freedom and equality. He even believes his little town in Texas is backwards, is redneck and he therefore wants to move to a more liberal environment. He is not a closed-minded individual.
I think he joined the army as a means out of a troubled life. Yet, now that he recently recieved his B.A, and wants to get his Masters in English so he can teach, he knows, deep inside, he doesn't need the army anymore, but yet acts and believes as though he is now bound, and stuck to this path he's chosen.
I feel compelled to try to help him with his education on the subject of current politics, something he avoids, and maybe the army encourages them to avoid, i don't know. I sent him the link to this blog but he refused to read it, said he'd pass.

I think if we can have any great affect on people with regard to enlightening them to world politics, it's with these folks, these young men and women who are the ones carrying out the barbaric acts, and most of the time out of sheer ignorance. We need to reach them, not you and I. But how?

What would you do or say if you knew this young man?

6:03 AM
Da Weaz said...

Well, it's hard to convince anybody of anything when they don't want to listen. But perhaps the first book I'd recommend, if he hasn't already read it is "The Autobiography of Malcolm X." While it may not seem directly on point, I think it reveals quite another way of looking at America, Americans and perhaps one's role as an African American.

There are many books that are more directly appropriate, ranging from Noam Chomsky's "The Washington Connection and the Rise of Third World Fascism," to Michael Ruppert's "Crossing the Rubicon."

Yet, most of all, if I were in his situation, I think I'd most want to know about something that most troops know nothing about: namely the use of depleted uranium. Here's a bit more information:

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn3627

http://academic.evergreen.edu/g/grossmaz/anderkel.html

Hope this helps.

8:29 AM

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