Tuesday, February 08, 2005
Semantics
You may not think that American news engages in propaganda, but it does. Constantly.
One example: Iraqi insurgents.
What does this phrase mean?
Sounds like sneaky enemies lurking in the night trying to blow up bridges and sabotage the good guys, doesn't it? It has a hint of the word rebels, but of course you can't really call them rebels, since they're not rebelling against Saddam.
But you can't call them insurgents, either.
There was a term for exactly what these people are, and they used it in World War II. Perhaps you've seen films about these people, who tended to be French or sometimes German. They were called the Resistance, and their job was to try to repel the foreign power that had invaded their nation.
Say that word with me. Resistance. Puts a whole different spin on the situation, doesn't it?
In World War II, Charles Degaulle worked for the resistance. Some other guy, named Vichy, let himself be appointed leader by the invaders. Now, which one of them is better remembered by history?
And before you start to say, "But they're foreign fighters. They're Iranian. They're terrorists!!!", let me say two things.
One: Bullshit. They're Iraqis. They're fighting for their homeland.
Two: If you insist that they're foreign fighters who've come in since the war started, then you have to ask yourself this: if we're doing so well, why are the borders of Iraq so unsecured, then?
And, anyway, think of all those heroic images from WW II movies, with the British or American soldier parachuting onto French soil in a noble effort to help... the Resistance.
History is written by the victors... but given the way our government is botching and mishandling a war started on a lie, I think future history books will identify these Iraqi opponents properly.
Oh... one other thing. Look back to the 80s, when there were Contras and Sandanistas. One group were rebels, the other were freedom fighters. I'll leave it to you to look them up and see which were called which by Reagan and his lackeys -- but while the actions of the two groups were equivalent, their identification by us and our media depended entirely on their politics. "Wanting freedom is okay, as long as you don't want freedom from our puppet."
Read about events in Central America in the 80s some time if you want to get a hint of the mess that is festering in Iraq. Then look at modern Vietnam or North Korea to see the fruits of failed imperialism.
Whether you oppose or support the war in Iraq, you have to admit one thing. Stripped of all semantics or emotional baggage, the people who are setting bombs against us right now are residents of the country who are embittered and angry that a foreign army is there. You may think their actions are right or wrong -- but at least describe them as what they are; pissed off locals trying to do something about a situation they feel is wrong.
If people in America were to do the same thing after, say, Canada decided to invade us, the Red State masses would call them Patriots and Heroes.
The Toronto Sun would call them Yankee insurgents...
Vive la resistance...
One example: Iraqi insurgents.
What does this phrase mean?
Sounds like sneaky enemies lurking in the night trying to blow up bridges and sabotage the good guys, doesn't it? It has a hint of the word rebels, but of course you can't really call them rebels, since they're not rebelling against Saddam.
But you can't call them insurgents, either.
There was a term for exactly what these people are, and they used it in World War II. Perhaps you've seen films about these people, who tended to be French or sometimes German. They were called the Resistance, and their job was to try to repel the foreign power that had invaded their nation.
Say that word with me. Resistance. Puts a whole different spin on the situation, doesn't it?
In World War II, Charles Degaulle worked for the resistance. Some other guy, named Vichy, let himself be appointed leader by the invaders. Now, which one of them is better remembered by history?
And before you start to say, "But they're foreign fighters. They're Iranian. They're terrorists!!!", let me say two things.
One: Bullshit. They're Iraqis. They're fighting for their homeland.
Two: If you insist that they're foreign fighters who've come in since the war started, then you have to ask yourself this: if we're doing so well, why are the borders of Iraq so unsecured, then?
And, anyway, think of all those heroic images from WW II movies, with the British or American soldier parachuting onto French soil in a noble effort to help... the Resistance.
History is written by the victors... but given the way our government is botching and mishandling a war started on a lie, I think future history books will identify these Iraqi opponents properly.
Oh... one other thing. Look back to the 80s, when there were Contras and Sandanistas. One group were rebels, the other were freedom fighters. I'll leave it to you to look them up and see which were called which by Reagan and his lackeys -- but while the actions of the two groups were equivalent, their identification by us and our media depended entirely on their politics. "Wanting freedom is okay, as long as you don't want freedom from our puppet."
Read about events in Central America in the 80s some time if you want to get a hint of the mess that is festering in Iraq. Then look at modern Vietnam or North Korea to see the fruits of failed imperialism.
Whether you oppose or support the war in Iraq, you have to admit one thing. Stripped of all semantics or emotional baggage, the people who are setting bombs against us right now are residents of the country who are embittered and angry that a foreign army is there. You may think their actions are right or wrong -- but at least describe them as what they are; pissed off locals trying to do something about a situation they feel is wrong.
If people in America were to do the same thing after, say, Canada decided to invade us, the Red State masses would call them Patriots and Heroes.
The Toronto Sun would call them Yankee insurgents...
Vive la resistance...
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