tsurara

(directed mainly toward Americans, but also applicable, in part, to anyone else living in a developed nation)

While we live comfortable lives in America, wringing our hands over the horrors of 9-11 and the distant, foreign evils of Saddam Hussein and Adolf Hitler; no less than 3 major genocides have taken place in each and every one of our lifetimes.

So why is it that we are so aware of the Holocaust and are taught so much about it in our textbooks? Why don't most Americans know all that much (if anything) about Darfur, Laos, Tibet, Turkey, Bosnia, Rwanda and Myanmar?

Why did we feel it so terribly necesary to intercede in Iraq and Afganistan while we literally watched the slaughter of over a million people in Rwanda ? Why do virtually no Americans know about the current situation in Darfur? Why is China hosting the Olympics only 50 years after a government sponsored bloodbath in Tibet?

Does the United States really care about human rights? Or do we use abuse of them as fuel for the fire of public opinion in only select cases that stand to benefit the United States economically?

Why are UN forces given guns but virtually never authorized to shoot them?

Why do we worry so much about the Holocaust and 9-11? Because it affected mostly wealthy, caucasian, Judeo-Christians from the developed world? Could it be we're being unintentionally (or intentionally) racist by ignoring the numerous human rights abuses still being perpetrated in Asia and Africa?

If America is indeed the "protector" of the world, or the "police" of the world, why do we only intervene when oil, money or political power is involved?

Discuss...

(Please avoid racism, unrelated government/Bush-bashing rants, and revisionism of history. The first person to argue "The Holocaust never happened" is getting a boot to the bum!)

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ketaro

The UN forces are giving guns to protect themselves only. If they shoot somebody the UN gets blamed and that's bad for business .

America is too busy with the Iraq and Iran issue to really pay attention to was going on in other parts of the world that doesn't affect the American global interest.

Joe Mage

I don' think that the UN is gonna b a force much longer, it has virtually no power. It has been eroded by so many countries over time. I feel that in the oncomin' decades, the UN isn' gonna b relevant anymore and that it's power is gonna b jus' for show. It would probably b for the best if they jus' went on ahead and disolved it now and start a new world-based interactive organization that doesn' have the problems that the UN's plagued wit now.

'Bout the situations in Darfur, Laos, etc., I blame the media. I don' know why they pick up certain stories that they deem "news worthy" and not somethin' like this is beyond me, or if they, do they don' report on it enough. Even I didn' know 'bout this 'til jus' now and I watch the news. The media is too busy tryin' ta "entertain" us ta let us know what actually goin' on in the world. Unless some americans, and this isn' always the case, r caught in the cross-fire or killed; I guess the media jus' doesn' c it as "news worthy."

As far as our forces r concerned, I believe that they r stretched too thin. I believe that even if the american public were better informed 'bout these incidents, there would b little that we could do 'bout it. The U.S. might b tryin' ta police the world, but I don' c that happenin'. Jus' one lone country isn' gonna b able ta police the entire globe and I believe that our leaders understand this (ta some extent). That's probably one of the reasons why they don' intervene inta these situations unless, of course, there's some kind of benefit for our country besides jus' moral.

Here's the deal, I believe that the U.S. is tryin' ta take on too much. We're not gonna b able ta cure the ailes of the world and we need ta work more wit others in order ta b able ta adequately deal wit these situations, however they need ta b handled. Sometimes that means that when a country comes inta conflict, we need ta back-off and not interfere (unless, of course, things like genocide r involved). We may b a "super-power", but that doesn' mean that we're "super-powered."

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"Believe in yourself, if in nothing else."
My myspace page: www.myspace.com/joemage

Inuruto

In America we like to deal with yesterday problems instead of todays' & you said it yourself, if it doesn't benefit our way of life in any form we really don't want no part of it... Sorry to say, but true...

As for focusing on 9/11 & the Holocaust so much is basically 9/11 "hit home" & to forget about it would be somewhat a "mockery" as you as an American, if you let the government put it...

The way we focused on the Holocaust was about World War II & how we used that as an advantage to gain allies in the war... In other words we saw Germany as a threat cause they was gaining power that could excede America & basically persuading others like "this can happen to you/us", if we don't do anything about the situation...
The Holocaust is one of the terrible tradgedies that happen during WWII & we pay tribute to that as again a remembrance & to down-grade Hitler even though he was a cunning leader...(I'm not a Nazi)

We invaded Iraq & Afganistan cause they had something we wanted... In Rwanda & Daruf besides grief & more grief... If America is going to suffer with pain, lost, & sorrow we would like to benefit from it... I forgot to put time in there, because as we put it "time is money"...

Genocides mostly happen cause of insufficient needs & necessities... Yea' religion & territory partake in them too, but that is fuel to the fire after over population, hunger, disease, lack of education, etc...

Americans today is so transparent, submissive, & over protective... What I mean by that is we like to be seen, we like to subject our influence on others, & we shadow our kids & ourselves from the outer world... But our govrnment don't want to be seen, still subject their influence on others, & want to meddle in foreign affairs to gain commodities...

Our children/people won't know what is going on in the outside world cause we don't want to know & also the government sway us from the real problem in this world unless they see dollar signs coming their way...

We might have all these situation in the history books, but from years to come & only what we see as fit for our later generation to know or call history... I just hope are todays' problem won't be tomorrows', but knowing us we tend to try & have the next person fix our bad sitautions & put it on the back burner instead of dealing what's at hand...

As for the UN it is just another organization that the people fund in my opinion...

aceman67

My father served in Bosnia. He doesn't talk about the things he saw there. I still occasionally catch him staring off into space with a disturbed look on his face.

The UN has done a lot of good over the years, it just don't get reported in the news, only time the UN is ever really in the news is when something wrong happens.

Little tidbit of information: The United States is the only UN member nation who has not paid their UN dues. And they're the host country.

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Joe Mage

I find that curious, I wonder if that could b because we r the host country and that our govt. here feels that we shouldn' 'cause of that very reason? If so, then it's not fair. We're supposed ta b apart of the UN and we're suppose ta do our part. And that doesn' jus' mean manpower and diplomatic support, it also means finacial.

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"Believe in yourself, if in nothing else."
My myspace page: www.myspace.com/joemage

syd

The reality is that the US only gets involve unless it’s getting something in return. What is the US going to get out of helping those countries?

For example

In Colombia the US started a Civil War just so they could build a canal that would connect the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean And that is how the country of Panama came to be. The US made Millions out of Panama

Also after the US forces defeated the Japan most people believed that the war was over for the United States however during the beginning of the war England borrowed Millions of dollars from many American banks such as JP Morgan. When these banks realized that England was about to lose the war the banks pressured the government to government to continue with war. After the war ended these banks made million with the interest they charged.

As longest there is a buck to be made the US is going to be there.

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Hassun

Wait, what!? Quite the revisionist yourself aren't you?

And I know of all the genocides you list and then some. As mentioned before, economy and international (trade) relationships are the reason many of massacres aren't paid attention to.

Except most of the African genocides and massacres. Those are not paid attention to because nobody cares.

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aceman67

Last I checked Tsu, over 6 million European Jews were killed in the holocaust, and that number doesn't include the number of people killed for not fitting Germany's idea of perfection (Soviet POW's, The Roma (Gypsies), Roman Catholic Poles, Gay men, the mentally and physically handicapped, the list goes on). Include those numbers, and its anywhere from 9 to 11 million.

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Hassun

Hey you're stealing my punchline!

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_gwenibe_

It's simple. Why get into something that's not beneficial to them? I should state I'm not American, but I still feel the same way about my own country sometimes, even about all developed countries some times. Also, I don't know all the facts about international politics and things are probably way more complicated then I'm stating..

We only like to interfere if there is something invovled.

I'm ashamed to say that I don't know anything about those genocides you talked off, except what I've seen in movies and the little that is on it in the media some times. But I've learnt heaps on the Holocaust and thanks to the media know some what about 9/11.

First, no offence is intended with this statement, but I'm sure many people have thought of this somewhere along the line. Thousands of people were killed in 9/11 and the media made a field day out of it (meaning it was on the news 24/7). However, thousands of people are being killed all around the world due to other un-just reasons, yet the media says nothing? no one seems to give a hoot?

So many horrifiying things happen yet, most of it, never gets attention by the western world. I think it partly has to do with that. This so called division between those countries that are first world and those that are third worlds. Prehaps there is a view within governments/peoples that ' It's the third world, it happens'

Until of course they find something worth, getting in there for. I mean, they seems to be boasting about getting the evil dictator Saddam out of power and how good they are that the people are now 'free' from his rule. Yet there are heaps of other countries that would want a free way of life - no one cares.

And what about the thousands of people that are dieing and suffering from AIDS everyday? Those that are starving because there own governments don't give a damn for whatever reason? What about some government actively committing genocide to get rid of the Native people of the country (Australian Government with the Stolen Generation).

The olympics! ha! what a joke, when you look at it, it's basically saying 'come to the olympics and support our dictator ship'. But I also think that it's an oppurtunities to get their voices out, so it will be interesting to see what happens when the 'free' media of the world goes to china.

and you know what, I wouldn't be surprised if this was the reason. But, I think it also has to do with the fact 'It's not harming us why should we care or waste money on it?' - though America seems perfectly happy wasting money in Iraq rather than trying to use that money in fixing their own problems in their own country.

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