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Asne Seierstad (A Hundred and One Days: A Baghdad Journal) and Rod Barton (The Weapons Detective) talked about their experiences in Iraq.
People talk about remembering exactly what they were doing when Kennedy was shot, Princess Diana died or when the 7/11 attack took place.1 I remember thinking ”Those poor people” followed rapidly by ”There is no way the American government is going to handle this well.”
Rod talked about just how decisions were made, on what evidence and with what advice. It’s a depressing story and doesn’t speak well of humanity under pressure. He also said that while it is probably in Australia and the U.S.’s interests to withdraw from Iraq, it would not be in Iraq’s interests. He feels that removing the remaining source of stability would plunge Iraq into worse civil war. He then talked about Somalia.
Asne talked about the people of Iraq and about fear, oppression. She talked about being issued hazmat gear to protect from the chemical warfare that was sure to take place and how it never eventuated. Asne told us how a lot of her stories came not from what people said, but what they were unable to say. She also told us about sending stories home to be published and how speaking Norwegian meant she could avoid censorship.
Sometimes you hear a speaker and afterwards you’re bubbling up with ideas and enthusiasm and you want to explore what you’ve learned and share it with everyone you know. This is the other kind of experience where you walk out feeling all quiet and sad and wonder how we’re going to make the world a better place when people are doing these things.
1Every animal in the forest knows exactly what they were doing the day Bambi’s mother died.
People talk about remembering exactly what they were doing when Kennedy was shot, Princess Diana died or when the 7/11 attack took place.1 I remember thinking ”Those poor people” followed rapidly by ”There is no way the American government is going to handle this well.”
Rod talked about just how decisions were made, on what evidence and with what advice. It’s a depressing story and doesn’t speak well of humanity under pressure. He also said that while it is probably in Australia and the U.S.’s interests to withdraw from Iraq, it would not be in Iraq’s interests. He feels that removing the remaining source of stability would plunge Iraq into worse civil war. He then talked about Somalia.
Asne talked about the people of Iraq and about fear, oppression. She talked about being issued hazmat gear to protect from the chemical warfare that was sure to take place and how it never eventuated. Asne told us how a lot of her stories came not from what people said, but what they were unable to say. She also told us about sending stories home to be published and how speaking Norwegian meant she could avoid censorship.
Sometimes you hear a speaker and afterwards you’re bubbling up with ideas and enthusiasm and you want to explore what you’ve learned and share it with everyone you know. This is the other kind of experience where you walk out feeling all quiet and sad and wonder how we’re going to make the world a better place when people are doing these things.
1Every animal in the forest knows exactly what they were doing the day Bambi’s mother died.