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9:02 pm
SC and All. Is the population of the USA aware of the horrific genocide that has been taking place in East Timor?
The magnitude of the suffering more than rivals that of Koscavo. Whilst America is involved in the UN action, it seems only to be a minor involvement. Why? What is different?
1:36 pm
September 27, 2010
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Tez, here's a response prepared by someone at All About Counseling:
Are americans aware of East Timor, yes. How does it rank in importance? Well... this is an election year, (BIG HEADLINES) so people are more interested in who will handle crisis's like East Timor for the next four or eight years. More importantly people want answers to issues like health care, education, campaign reform etc. They also want to know if Bush Jr. smoked marijuana. And Clinton probably doesn't want to screw things up for Gore, especially since he has strong competition form another democrat presidential what to be, named Bradley.
Add to that the national budget, (BIG HEADLINES) which is making every special interest group jump, because there's a surplus. Add the were close to the baseball playoffs (HUGE HEADLINES), football has begun (HUGE HEADLINES). The US team won the Ryder Cup (HUGE HEADLINE). Anew biography on President Reagan's was just released (BIG HEADLINE) everyone's response to its inaccuracies (HUGE HEADLINE) Earthquakes, Miss America Pageant blah, blah, blah.
America has become desensitized to these types of genocide and murder. We are more affected by the tragic deaths of JFK Jr.'s then we are by entire families begin raped, murdered and mutilated because of religious and political reasons. In the US we are a whole ocean away from those kinds of traumas and safely tucked between Canada and Mexico, we are isolated from those countries on this side of the world that have similar political or religious conflicts.
Does it fit into the heads of others, which are filled with all that stuff from above, I can't say.
I can't imagine the trauma, abuse, the complete sense of hopelessness created by such horrific acts. My thoughts are with those who have endured, to give them strength to continue, and to especially with those who have lost their lives.
Below is a link to headlines about the East Timor conflict. It's a general overview of what the headlines have looked like in the US on the news and in the papers.
5:45 pm
SC. Thanks for your comprehensive response. Australia has a pitifuly small army. We are sending 4500 fighting men to East Timor; by far the largest component of the UN force. This has gutted our army. Reservists are being called up now.
Indonesia has the forth largest army in the world. I they decide to take us on - and the rumblings are there - then we are history. Our army is so small because we have lulled ourselves into complacency in the false belief that Uncle Sam would always come to our aid. At a government level, we have a sycophantic attitude to the US. 'All the way with LBJ' was the Vietnam jingle that epitomised our attitudes.No wonder that we have trouble fitting into the local Asian community. We are 'brown nosers' to Big Brother.
The Noam Chompsky article on the site that you recommended was excellent. He is a great man, whom I admire tremendously.
I see that there is no lacking in coverage of East Timor. Thanks again.
5:54 pm
September 29, 2010
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Hi Tez,
I have heard and read a little regarding East Timor, Im afraid I don't understand all that is going on. But I do know it is war and I fear and feel for you and all your countrymen. I will continue to read all the news and see the coverage regarding Timor.
Always
Bel
1:31 am
Bel. Hi! Thanks for your sentiments. My partner has a son in the Australian Army. He is in Borneo at the moment. He volunteered for that hot spot. He thinks that he is bullet proof. I advised him via his mother to keep his head down and not to volunteer for service in East Timor. I fear that it will explode into Australia's Vietnam.
I fear for the naive young soldiers who are eager to go to war. I am sure that in all wars it is the civilians, gullible youth, and their close relatives who end up paying the price. My mates from Vietnam still suffer nightmares. No one wins in a war except the fat cat arms dealers.
Wouldn't you think that we would learn the lessons of history.
9:03 am
September 27, 2010
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US To Send More Support to E. Timor:
6:06 pm
All. In SC's URL reference, the statement about the mass exodus to West Timor (Indonesian territory) "where tens of thousands of East Timorese fled to escape the violence." This is simply not true. These 'refugees' were force marched by the militia into West Timor wherein the genocide can continue with immunity.
It seems that Indonesia wants to repopulate the whole of East Timor with 'real' Indonesians. The world is blissfully unaware that the same butchery is being metered out to the poor primitive New Guinea natives in the forests of West Papua. These natives fight machine guns with bows and arrows. The butchery of 'Wounded Knee'is being re-enacted a 1,000 fold.
Make no mistake, the Indonesian Army 'generals' would feel very comfortable with Pol Pot, Adolf Hitler, Genghis Khan and many other butchers in their club. They are not biased; they butcher their own citizens as well. Civil unrest, in Jakarta the capital, has brought Indonesia close to disintegration and anarchy.
Violence breeds violence. Severe trade embargos, and the withdrawl of all foreign aid, a world moritorium on the sale of arms to these butcherous regimes would seem to be a better way of 'encouraging' compassionate behaviour towards the civilian population under their control. This butchery in East Timor has been going on, with Australia and the world's complacency, for twenty odd years. Well over 200,000 of the population have been butchered. The East Timorese are beautiful peace loving people.Their only crime is that they are reluctant to give up their homeland to the Indonesian invaders and lie down and die. How inconsiderate of them.
Ho, hum FYJIAR, (F...ck You Jack I'm All Right - pronounced Fijar) all over again.
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