Saturday, May 31, 2008

And on a related note--

2 comments:

Unknown said...

That is a good informational chart, but it covers so many different aspects that it really doesn't say much about what you think. Which area matters to you?

Day said...

I guess I don't like to talk about what I think unless I know something of what I'm saying. I'm a very strong pacifist by inclination. I'd have preferred we not enter Iraq in violation of international law. . . but we did, and we're there now. I know next to nothing about military tools and tactics, and not much more about reconstruction. People tend to be so polarized on this subject, it has seemed like it's not much use discussing it till I've gone out and done a lot of my own research, gotten my own background.

More and more lately it seems like a responsible citizen has to know about violence, must be aware and engaged on the topic. As much as I see what's wrong with guns, it seems like the world would be a better place if everyone or no one had them. . . and some people have them. Darfur and Rawanda spring to mind.

I don't even know if this chart is accurate, it's just something I found somewhere on the internet. . . but it does seem like it would be. . . and it paints a nuanced and thought provoking picture of the situation. I suppose I was mostly hoping to evoke a response from someone reasonable who knows more than me.

As for what area matters to me. .. I think it all matters, everything there is telling of something. As a communist, I have to put a lot of weight into the question of what Iraqis want for their own home, but that's still only a reflected part of a larger interwoven picture.