Dehumanisation of the “others”

[0rion]

By Ghali Hassan

08/16/04 "ICH" -- Whether in the US, Britain or in Australia, the common “enemy” is the same kind of human who must be despised and excluded. Today it is the “Arabs”; at other times it is the Vietnamese. Negative images of the “others” are fuel for Western colonial war machine.

The US Invasion and Occupation of Iraq is not dissimilar from other invasions and occupations of defenceless nations by colonial powers. They all have one thing in common; invasions and occupations are based on lies and dehumanisation of the native population. Dehumanisation is central to Western colonialism, for the purpose is to portray the “others” as unworthy of human qualities.

Paul Wolfowitz, the Deputy Defence Secretary who is said to be the driving force behind the invasion of Iraq, has spoken of “snakes” and “draining the swamps” in the “uncivilised parts of the world”. Paul Bremer, America’s Proconsul in Iraq, described the Iraqi resistant to US Occupation as “dead-enders”, “die-hards” and “terrorists”. The killing of innocent civilian in Fallujah and Najaf was boasted by US soldiers as, “killing rats in their nest”. It is the same kind of fascist crimes committed on Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto.

Western liberals who opposed the war and now adopted the argument of “moral responsibility” remain silence in the face of continuing US atrocities in Iraq. Where are those defenders of morality and human rights? If they are concerned about morality and human rights, why don’t they condemn America’s terrorism in Iraq, and particularly in Najaf?

The Dehumanisation of 'others'

[undergroundpanther]

1. because

people are for the most part cowards.Afraid to lose,afraid to challenge power,afraid to say no to someone they believe is thier superior,because it'sa easier tro go with the mindless mob than think, Because people are so manipulable,controllable and scared they lost thier sense of right and wrong,
Because people would rather bystand in the face of abuse and deny it or wring thier hands rather than face the wrath of a bully not getting his way.Because as a species we are to too beholden to our own comfort seeking,our own status, to maintain the perks of empire we embrace it's ugliness too..anbd we deny it,turn away..say the hate words..we are too beholden to the sickest most abusive,greedy,deceptive people among us and even worse trust them when there should be no trust given and give them power 'honors' and wealth when they deserve neither..
Our morality is inverted we call goodness an evil and evil a goodness.
Christianity at it's core excuses torture and Christians spend alot of time with that catch 22 calling etrenal torment in hell the act of a "good" loving God..The Christian God itself Excuses torture and relishes in it. So Christianity when taken literally especially is Moral Relativism.
That is how Bush can call on Jesus and let his lackeys abuse ten year old kids in Abu Gharib.He is a Moral Relativist posing as a moral absolutist.

[0rion]

2. That is a very good post.

Thank you.

[Larkspur]

3. Those liberals who do speak up are ignored by ...

the Press, the President, and the Democratic Party Prez candidates because the Iraq War serves primarily Israel's interests, not the United States'.

[0rion]

5. TRUTH ALERT TRUTH ALERT!

You hit the nail on the proverbial head.

[gottaB]

4. Sceptical

The Brazilian educationalist Paulo Freire has noted that the measure of any civilisation must be the way in which it treats its most powerless and vulnerable members. This is because, in our own vocation to become more fully human, we must ensure conditions that enable others to do the same. To accept injustice and the distortion of the humanity of others is to fail to observe our own humanity.

I don't believe Mr. Hassan has genuinely taken those words to heart.