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By Paul Balles* 24 April 2007 Juan Cole tells the grieving American public, rightly, that "the Iraqis have two Virginia Tech-style attacks every single day". Americans don't give a damn! UNICEF estimated that the sanctions against Iraq resulted in the deaths of 500,000 Iraqi children under the age of five. Madeleine Albright said “we think the price is worth it". Americans don't give a damn! John Damien says: "Killing insurgents is easy and makes it feel like you are doing something, but it’s a trap." Americans don't give a damn! World Vision Canada reports that "more than two million Iraqi refugees are trapped in a cycle of poverty and fear". Americans don't give a damn! Evelyn Pringle wants "Americans to face the cold hard truth that nothing will be accomplished by allowing the daily carnage in Iraq to continue". Americans don't give a damn! An Iraqi Sunni politician says that insurgency groups should unite to "reap political rewards for inflicting heavy losses on US troops". Americans couldn’t care less! Reuters reports that "Jordan and Syria begged the international community on Tuesday to help them shoulder the burden of some 2 million Iraqi refugees". Americans couldn’t care less! B'Tselem, the Israeli Centre for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, reports that 927 Palestinian children have been killed since 2000. Americans couldn’t care less! "The pro-Israel lobby has been remarkably successful in suppressing criticism," writes George Soros. Americans couldn’t care less! The movie industry continues to vilify Arabs, according to Jack Shaheen. Americans couldn’t care less! "These days, nobody can defend Israel's actions in the occupied territories of Palestine, writes Diane Johnstone.”Distraction rather than defence is the pro-Israel strategy." Americans (other than AIPAC) don't give a damn! What DO Americans care about?
Will Americans ever give a damn about anything but meaningless trivia and American bloodbaths? *Paul Balles is a retired American university professor and freelance writer who has lived in the Middle East for 38 years. For more information, see http://www.pballes.com. Copyright © Redress Information & Analysis. All rights reserved. |
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