Fozzologs

RSS Feeds

About...

These posts are the creation of Doran L. Barton (AKA Fozziliny Moo). To learn more about Doran, check out his website at fozzilinymoo.org.

Right Side

This space reserved for future use.

It's just sick

Posted: 12 May 2004 at 00:54:45

This is just great. I mean that in a sarcastic, fed-up way.

We discovered the last day or so that Nick Berg, a U.S. citizen who was spending some time in Iraq to rebuild technical infrastructure there, was beheaded by terrorist insurgents. The ordeal was videotaped and a digitized video was posted on a website the media says is linked to al Qaida.

Drudge had a link to a site that had snapshots from the video showing one man taking a knife to Berg’s neck and holding Berg’s severed head up for the camera.

This made me sick to my stomach... and it was just still images of the event.

The media is reporting that the video included a statement (in Arabic, of course) that is translated as follows:

“[The] dignity of the Muslim men and women in [Iraqi prison] Abu Ghraib and others is not redeemed except by blood and souls. You will not receive anything from us but coffins after coffins ... slaughtered in this way.”

What happened to Mr. Berg is obviously terrible. He was an innocent man who was in Iraq only to make a buck and help rebuild the country. I’m sure he understood the risks going there, but nonetheless, he played no part in the imprisonment of those in Abu Ghraib.

So, what now? The statement made by the terrorists in the video seems to imply they hope U.S. officials will react by losing resolve. If that’s the case, they are fools. This will only strengthen our resolve to rid Iraq of those who have no respect for human life and dignity.

Hell, what better way to take the spotlight off Rumsfeld and Bush for not going public about the abuse of prisoners than to give us a taste of what kind of men are in these prisons?

Not that it justifies the abuse, but it certainly softens the harsh criticism the administration is getting for the actions of a few military prison guards.

There is also the chance the terrorists know all this and did this strategically to purposely intensify fighting in the days leading up to the June 30 handover of sovereignty.