The reason the English-language news media have not paid attention to The Lancet study of Iraqi deaths--much less made the scale of the slaughter a theme of their coverage--is that the killing happens to be part of the mission the major English-speaking countries have undertaken in Iraq. Far safer, therefore, to fret over the world?s inaction with respect to the government in Khartoum, than the world?s inaction with respect to the governments in Washington, London, and elsewhere.
David Peterson has written an excellent article about the utter lack of attention paid to the 100,000+ deaths that have resulted from the American invasion and occupation of Iraq. Unfortunately, I often find myself disagreeing with the way my allies on the Left choose to spin things. Yes, the invasion of Iraq was a violation of international law. Yes, there has been an abhorrent loss of innocent life. However, it is unfair to suggest that the mass-murder of civilians is "part of the mission" America has undertaken. America may be in Iraq for oil, or power, or revenge, but neither the government or the military desires the death of civilians--their deaths just don't bother them as much as they should.
politics, war, Iraq
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