This video of two Reuters news staff, two children and numerous unarmed bystanders (including a van that tried to assist the wounded) being being shot at and killed by a US military helicopter in the Iraqi suburb of New Baghdad will resonate for those of us old enough to remember the senseless cruelty of the Viet Nam War. As in Viet Nam, the lies begin with the soldiers on the ground and then trickle up.
It's long and tedious, as well as graphic, but worth watching. It was obtained by Reuters with great difficulty via the Freedom Of Information Act, and sent to me by one of my students. For additional information, see Wikileaks.
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One small note: the video was pursued by Reuters through FOIA, but neither administration complied. The version we see was leaked from within the military to Wikileaks.
I consider it important to point out that the blame for this kind of thing--which is surely not unique during war--should not be laid on the shoulders of the particular soldiers involved. When you train people to dehumanize the enemy and remorselessly kill, that is what they will do. This represents a gross moral failure of policy at the highest levels, not the decisions of military actors.
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