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Where's the international condemnation and outrage
Topic Started: May 10 2009, 05:21 PM (802 Views)
United States [Sel]
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Or maybe that's only for dirty Jews...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090510/ap_on_...lanka_civil_war

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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – An unrelenting hail of artillery in Sri Lanka's war zone killed at least 378 civilians, according to a government doctor who survived the attack as shells flew near the makeshift hospital. More than 100 of the victims were children, the U.N. said Sunday.

A rebel-linked Web site blamed the attack on the government, while the military accused the beleaguered Tamil Tigers of shelling their own territory to gain international sympathy and force a cease-fire.

The attack marked the bloodiest assault on ethnic Tamil civilians since the civil war flared again more than three years ago. Health officials said a hospital in the war zone was overwhelmed by casualties, and the death toll was expected to rise.

Reports of the fighting are difficult to verify because the government bars journalists and aid workers from the war zone, but the U.N. confirmed a heavy toll from the attack.

"It seems beyond dispute that hundreds of civilians were killed overnight including more than 100 children," U.N. spokesman Gordon Weiss said.

The first shells slammed into the tiny strip of rebel-controlled area along the northeast coast Saturday evening, soon after a Red Cross ship that had been evacuating wounded civilians left the area, health officials said.

About 50,000 civilians are crowded into the 2.4 mile- (4 kilometer) long strip of coast along with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam fighters, who have been fighting for 25 years for a homeland for minority Tamils.

Artillery pounded the area throughout the night, forcing thousands to huddle in makeshift bunkers, said Dr. V. Shanmugarajah, a health official in the region.

Hours after the attack, the dead and wounded continued to pour into the hospital, he said. As of Sunday afternoon, the bodies of 378 civilians had been brought in and were being buried by volunteers, but the death toll was likely far higher since many families buried their slain relatives where they fell, he said.

The rebel-linked TamilNet Web site said rescue workers had counted 1,200 civilians killed in the attack. Among the dead, was the rebels' military spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan, according to TamilNet.

Bodies were laid out in rows on the mud outside the hospital, some of their faces covered with mats and sheets, according to photos from the area. One small boy was stripped to the waist, his head covered in a bloody bandage and his mouth agape.

The hospital was struggling to cope with the 1,122 wounded civilians.

The government had recently sent medical supplies, but a shortage of physicians, nurses and aides made treatment difficult, Shanmugarajah said.

"We are doing the first aid and some surgeries as quickly as we can. We are doing what is possible. The situation is overwhelming; nothing is within our control," he said.

More than half the hospital staff did not turn up for work because their homes were attacked and many of the wounded went untreated for more than 24 hours, said another health official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

The shelling had subsided early Sunday, but a new bombardment began about 6 p.m., the official said.

Suresh Premachandran, an ethnic Tamil lawmaker, said the assault was the deadliest attack on civilians since the 1983 anti-Tamil riots that killed as many as 2,000 people and helped trigger the civil war.

"In the name of eliminating terrorism, the Sri Lankan government massacres its own citizens. It is absolutely unacceptable," he said, calling for the international community to intervene.

TamilNet also blamed the attack on the Sri Lankan forces, which rights groups have accused of bombing and shelling the war zone despite its pledge to stop using heavy weapons.

The Sri Lankan military denied firing the artillery and said the rebels appeared to be launching mortar shells from one corner of the coastal strip into another section heavily populated with civilians.

"I think the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) is now trying to use these people as their last weapon to show the world that the army is firing indiscriminately and stop this offensive," military spokesman Brig. Udaya Nanayakkara said.

Human rights groups have accused the rebels of holding the civilians as human shields and shooting some who tried to flee.

U.N. figures compiled last month showed that nearly 6,500 civilians had been killed in three months of fighting this year as the government drove the rebels out of their strongholds in the north and vowed to end the war.

The government has brushed off international calls for a humanitarian cease-fire, saying the beleaguered rebels would use any pause in fighting to regroup.

Human Rights Watch on Saturday accused the military of repeatedly hitting hospitals in the war zone with artillery and aerial attacks that killed scores of people and said commanders involved in the attacks "may be prosecuted for war crimes."

Meanwhile, pressure on reporters critical of the government's war effort has intensified.

On Sunday, Sri Lanka deported three journalists for London-based Channel 4 television news who had been arrested on charges of tarnishing the image of the security forces after running a report about alleged sexual abuse in displacement camps.

Lakshman Hulugalle, a government spokesman, said the journalists admitted they had "done something wrong" and would not be allowed to come back to Sri Lanka.

However, Nick Paton-Walsh, the channel's Asia correspondent, denied giving a statement to police or admitting wrongdoing.

"This is complete rubbish," he told The Associated Press from Singapore after his deportation.
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zzdoncampos
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zzvastgulf
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Yeah. If someone had blown up 378 Jews, you better believe we'd all be getting an earful. But if "brown people" from somewhere else get blown apart, it won't even make the front page.
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Sel's pro-Israel. He means that he figures Israel wouldn't have gotten away with this. Ironically, shelling a civilian-filled area is very similar to what Israel did in Operation Cast Lead.

It's wrong, yes. In Canada, there was outraged. The Tamil community was protesting and shit a few weeks ago.
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,10 May 2009 18.26.16] Yeah. If someone had blown up 378 Jews, you better believe we'd all be getting an earful. But if "brown people" from somewhere else get blown apart, it won't even make the front page.

It was on BBC World News front page :-P
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The Tamil people are one of the few groups that I feel any legitimate connection with. Seriously, they deserve better.
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zzvastgulf
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,10 May 2009 17.35.02]
It was on BBC World News front page :-P

I don't get EVERY newspaper! :lol:

Seriously though, something should be done.
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It isn't really clear whether the civilians were killed by the rebels or the government, although I certainly wouldn't paint either side as angelic

A lot of it has to do with media coverage. Israel, although technically not a European nation, is still considered "Western". I used to wonder why the Troubles in Northern Ireland and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the Balkan wars received more attention than other ethnic/territorial/sectarian conflicts and it really just boils down to how much media attention is paid and how close the place in question is to the West. Conflicts in Africa, Asia and the Middle East are just a little too obscure to care about, but when it's happening in or near your backyard uh-oh look out!
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda_model

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  1. Ownership of the medium
  2. Medium's funding sources
  3. Sourcing
  4. Flak
  5. Anti-communist (or other) ideology


1. Ownership would avoid conflict with a government.

2. N/A

3. The violence is constant, it is not very attractive sourcing

4. This news might change public opinion of the LTTE ("Tamil Tigers")

5. This news might change public on the opinion of the LTTE ("Tamil Tigers"), who are considered a terrorist organization in the West.

This news fails 4/5 filters. Naturally, coverage will be lower.
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Max
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Tamil Tigers got what they deserved.
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I watched them strap him into the seat and shut the door. He might of looked a bit nervous about it but that was about all. I really believe that he knew he was going to be in hell in fifteen minutes. I believe that. And I've thought about that a lot. He was not hard to talk to. Called me Sheriff. But I didn't know what to say to him. What do you say to a man that by his own admission he has no soul? Why would you say anything? I've thought about it a good deal.
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Maybe so, but the civvies didn't.
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Max
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Please, there isn't one innocent civy there - the Tamil Tigers are, above all else, a grass roots movement, and a blood thirsty one at that. Whomever hasn't helped them, is either dead or has migrated from the area to India (or other parts of Sri Lanka) a long time ago. Whatever is left is their supporters, from their home territories - those people, you can be assured, have done as much to pull the trigger on thousands of lives then the Tigers and National Army.
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I watched them strap him into the seat and shut the door. He might of looked a bit nervous about it but that was about all. I really believe that he knew he was going to be in hell in fifteen minutes. I believe that. And I've thought about that a lot. He was not hard to talk to. Called me Sheriff. But I didn't know what to say to him. What do you say to a man that by his own admission he has no soul? Why would you say anything? I've thought about it a good deal.
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Oh come on, Moorginton. No one under 18 is legally a soldier (foo'). Not everyone living in a war zone is necessarily LTTE. Applying such a risky generalization, is, well, dangerous.

That kind of reasoning is goes very well with what Al-Qaeda considers acceptable (All Westerners are corrupt, they are therefore all criminals, they are therefore all legitimate targets).
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zzdoncampos
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Does the LTTE have an age limit? (Serious question)

Also, While they my not be soldiers they can still support the LTTE in many ways. Personally, If they do they are fair game.
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No they are not. Not to be killed at random anyways. To be detained reasonably and prosecuted under Sri Lankan criminal law, yes.

No, the LTTE uses child soldiers. Which makes it's recruiters war criminals (legally). I don't support them, however, not every Tamil child is a child soldier. Even then, looking at child soldiers like Ismael (spelling?) Beah or whatever his name is, the thing that we've learned is that they're rehabilitation, and they are at their hearts kids like any other kid. There is a very big distinction between a child soldier and an adult soldier, in particular in the manner that an adult can feel, kill, and hate for a cause, whereas with a child this is more easily reversible.
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zzvastgulf
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Does that include if they grow the food the Tamil Tigers eat, or tend their wounds, or clean their clothing, or fix their shoes?

This "Anyone who helps them in any way IS ONE OF THEM!!1!" ideology is quickly paralleling Nazi-ish thinking.
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zzdoncampos
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Hmmm, Depending on the circumstances yes, yes, yes, yes.
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zzvastgulf
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Could you define those circumstances?
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zzdoncampos
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Knowingly, Those are my circumstances. If I grow to feed the LTTE or tend to them, or fix there kit then that would be a "fair game" child and/or person to me.

Of Course, If they sell, treat, or work for the LTTE and they don't make it known that they are LTTE then there is no problem.
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Quote:
 
Knowingly, Those are my circumstances. If I grow to feed the LTTE or tend to them, or fix there kit then that would be a "fair game" child and/or person to me.

Of Course, If they sell, treat, or work for the LTTE and they don't make it known that they are LTTE then there is no problem.

You are a farmer, Rommel (pretend, for this analogy). You grow food which you know is used in US Army rations. Does that make you a military target, Rommel?

Could someone kill you and say: ":o he's Army, it's a war ..." Would that be legitimate?

Maybe this uncovers an unintentional prejudice in this conversation? *think about it* :
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zzdoncampos
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Does the military come directly to you and buy it?
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Do they? I'm pretty sure you'd have a gov't contract for that.

If the livelihood of your family depends on selling your food, and you're in a war zone (Northern Sri Lanka), you'd be selling to anyone who buys, anyways. That's simply the reality of the situation.
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United States [Sel]
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,10 May 2009 18.09.35] It isn't really clear whether the civilians were killed by the rebels or the government, although I certainly wouldn't paint either side as angelic

A lot of it has to do with media coverage. Israel, although technically not a European nation, is still considered "Western". I used to wonder why the Troubles in Northern Ireland and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the Balkan wars received more attention than other ethnic/territorial/sectarian conflicts and it really just boils down to how much media attention is paid and how close the place in question is to the West. Conflicts in Africa, Asia and the Middle East are just a little too obscure to care about, but when it's happening in or near your backyard uh-oh look out!

Turkey kills Kurdish civilians on a regular basis and is a few hundred kilometers northeast of Israel. Your argument is invalid.
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Culturally, Israel is more "Western" then Turkey, Sel. Geographically invalid, but basically correct.
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,10 May 2009 19.36.59] Does that include if they grow the food the Tamil Tigers eat, or tend their wounds, or clean their clothing, or fix their shoes?

This "Anyone who helps them in any way IS ONE OF THEM!!1!" ideology is quickly paralleling Nazi-ish thinking.

Which makes it much, much better than the "you're with us or against mentality" of Bush, since it actually acknowledges the existence of a gray area.
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,10 May 2009 20.37.00]
Vietnam [Vast Gulf
 
,10 May 2009 19.36.59] Does that include if they grow the food the Tamil Tigers eat, or tend their wounds, or clean their clothing, or fix their shoes?

This "Anyone who helps them in any way IS ONE OF THEM!!1!" ideology is quickly paralleling Nazi-ish thinking.

Which makes it much, much better than the "you're with us or against mentality" of Bush, since it actually acknowledges the existence of a gray area.

Its a sad world when something like that is true. :P
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zznosoria
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Myanmar doesn't care about Sri Lanka, they kill more people than that every day.
Leader: Senior General Than Shwe
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Dax
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,10 May 2009 21.45.29] Myanmar doesn't care about Sri Lanka, they kill more people than that every day.

AMETEURS.
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,10 May 2009 22.08.46]
Myanmar [Nosoria
 
,10 May 2009 21.45.29] Myanmar doesn't care about Sri Lanka, they kill more people than that every day.

AMETEURS.

lol! :lol:
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United States [Sel]
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,10 May 2009 20.25.56] Culturally, Israel is more "Western" then Turkey, Sel. Geographically invalid, but basically correct.

Highly debatable.
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No Sel you are wrong your argument is invalid.
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Well the US Media is tightly connected to large corporations.

Just watch this clip that was aired just once on SNL:
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseacti...videoid=6139411
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,11 May 2009 00.55.52] No Sel you are wrong your argument is invalid.

SHHHH! "Sel is never wrong and his arguments are always valid." write it 200 times and think about what you have done.
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SNL is owned by NBC, who are owned by General Electric, who makes weapons used in Gulf War.

Rage Against The Machine rights a song (Bulls on Parade) about the arms industry, hangs some flags upside down (like EVERY national flag belongs) and look what happens, no airtime.
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,11 May 2009 11.41.38]
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,11 May 2009 00.55.52] No Sel you are wrong your argument is invalid.

SHHHH! "Sel is never wrong and his arguments are always valid." write it 200 times and think about what you have done.

You must not have gotten the memo across the pond. Let me summarize, to ensure we're on the same page here: Sel is the President of Asia. Anyone who disagrees with him is incorrect. I believe that's the gist of it.
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