I really can't come up with anything better to say than Aw, crap. What do you do about this stuff?
The UN problem has been around for a while, especially in the DRC. My impression is that the root of it is how hard it is to find people to serve on these peacekeeping missions, especially in the countries that usually contribute the most troops (i.e., poor and middle-income countries in the region).
As for the Iraqi problem, I can't say it's a surprise. Sistani may tolerate our presence there, but he's definitely not on our side in any culturally meaningful way.
It's not a surprise, but persecuting gays would have to be near the bottom of my priority list in Iraq. I guess it's political--a show of force by fundamentalist types looking to consolidate support in the new Iraqi order--but, man, that's awful.
That's it. We need to make the calabat a legitimate policy. WTFUCKITYFUCKITYFUCK? KEEP YOUR DICK IN YOUR PANTS, JACKASS.
I guess it's political--a show of force by fundamentalist types looking to consolidate support in the new Iraqi order--but, man, that's awful.
When things are awful, there's no readily apparent way to change them and the real problem is standing around heavily armed, you turn to scapegoats and meaningless displays of force to create a false sense of power over one's own circumstances. Killing gay Iraqis is a cheap means of claiming fundamentalist turf, can be painted locally as being of no real harm to anyone else (despite the obvious falseness of that statement), is an easy wedge issue and, frankly, gives thugs and murderers something to do while they wait for us to get tired of trying to occupy their country. It is, I think, a cocktail of pressures similar to those that led to things such as the KKK or lynchmobs here in the US: political and economic and social impotence lead to political, economic and social backlash. Heck, in a lot of ways it's the same mix of forces that leads to shit like the Minutemen trying to build fences along the border. These examples are all on different scales and different sorts of crimes, but I think the forces leading to them are the same.
Our government will do nothing about it, nor will anyone else's, because as terrible as it is it is way far down the list of terrible things going on in that country and solving problems takes so much more effort than simply creating new ones by turning to new scapegoats of our own (Iran, for example).
Any other depressing news for me this morning? A report from a pediatric oncology ward?
Well let's see:underage-age prostitutes and murder? Sunday night I watched Samaria on the Sundance Channel "Asian Extreme" series. "Godforsaken and full of hope" "A movie you realize instead of understand"
This year I have watched and rewatched four movies by Korean writer/director Ki-duk Kim:"Spring,Summer,Fall,Winter";"3-Iron";"Bad Guy" and "Samaria" Not recommended for the squeamish, easily-offended, politically correct, or those who demand simple entertainment, but he is easily the most interesting film-maker I have encountered in years.