Mid-June, America marked 6mths since the massacre of 20 children and six adults in the town of Sandy Hook in Connecticut.
At the same time, another milestone was reached. More Americans died by the gun in those same 6mths...than the total
number of US troops killed in Iraq!
At least 5109 had been shot dead in USA in the past six months, in comparison with 4409 soldiers lost in Iraq. [Ironically that figure is not exact because, at the badgering of the National Rifle Association, the good ol' US Congress stopped funding the Centres for Disease Control in 1993, after its research said that having a gun in the house increased, rather than decreased, the likelihood of a member of that household being shot. The NRA yanked the pubes of the many congressmen within its tight grip...and hey presto! A public body that dared to criticise the NRA was suddenly penniless!]
That same week, the proof about Syria using chemical weapons finally spurred US Prez Obama into supplying the Syrian rebels with small arms and ammunition. That step, though a modest escalation of US involvement, opens the door to an even larger role.
But how will it keep weapons away from rebels who're affiliated with jihadi groups? Does the US believe this move will persuade Russia to stop arming Syria? Will it provoke The Bear to supply even more? How can the US arm rebels yet avoid being drawn into another war?
America does not learn lessons from its wars. It still feels a virtuous God-given right to militarily meddle in other countries' affairs. Nay, it seems to have a nationalistic NEED for such armed interference.
Yet back home, thousands of its citizens are gunned down annually... a national tragedy, a national shame!!!
God bless America...Happy 4th of July!
At the same time, another milestone was reached. More Americans died by the gun in those same 6mths...than the total
number of US troops killed in Iraq! At least 5109 had been shot dead in USA in the past six months, in comparison with 4409 soldiers lost in Iraq. [Ironically that figure is not exact because, at the badgering of the National Rifle Association, the good ol' US Congress stopped funding the Centres for Disease Control in 1993, after its research said that having a gun in the house increased, rather than decreased, the likelihood of a member of that household being shot. The NRA yanked the pubes of the many congressmen within its tight grip...and hey presto! A public body that dared to criticise the NRA was suddenly penniless!]
That same week, the proof about Syria using chemical weapons finally spurred US Prez Obama into supplying the Syrian rebels with small arms and ammunition. That step, though a modest escalation of US involvement, opens the door to an even larger role.
But how will it keep weapons away from rebels who're affiliated with jihadi groups? Does the US believe this move will persuade Russia to stop arming Syria? Will it provoke The Bear to supply even more? How can the US arm rebels yet avoid being drawn into another war?
America does not learn lessons from its wars. It still feels a virtuous God-given right to militarily meddle in other countries' affairs. Nay, it seems to have a nationalistic NEED for such armed interference.
Yet back home, thousands of its citizens are gunned down annually... a national tragedy, a national shame!!!
God bless America...Happy 4th of July!
1 comment:
Spot on.
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