I am reminded of this every time I hear the latest media-public
official manufacture and mantra of their kill of their terrorist. The whole
scene is their manufacture, their definition, their contrived scene. Neither of
the announcers was on the scene or a direct observer of the declared “terror”
or “terrorist.”
In a society of civilized people, the accused is arrested and subjected to an established prosecutorial institution, is brought before an impartial tribunal where evidence for and against the accused is presented to be then judged by a jury.
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hose who order the hunting down of people, those who do the hunting, those who kill or cause to be killed in this way—are themselves criminals who should be brought before impartial courts of justice.
Barbarism should be seen not merely as an anachronism; or, as Merriam Webster defines it, merely an anachronistic offense “against contemporary standards of correctness,” a corruption, impropriety, or vulgarism. It is even more: it is the embodiment and causation of all-round societal (local to global community, governmental, regional, multinational) descent into utter lawlessness.
Concepts pertinent to the reversal of barbarism and its
consequences would exclude terms such “humanitarian” (or “humanitarianism”) and
“civilized” as these have been used to disparage and destroy. The former has promulgated
grounds for slaughter. The latter has been so misused as to declare some people
by virtue of their accident or place of birth “uncivilized” (primitive, untouchables,
deplorables), and others by virtue of their accident or place of birth “civilized”
(rulers, entitled, better than all the rest)—the ingrained “us” versus “other”
sickness. Like the “terrorist” label, the powerful and depraved can define the
terms, decide the fate, and orchestrate the fatality of those whom they so define.
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prefer fellowship (perhaps old-fashioned brotherhood), lawfulness
and mindfulness, regard and respectfulness as these concepts connote
a sense of being with, a commonality,
harmony, togetherness (open to dialogue, debate, dissent, disagreement), an equal
standing and awareness of same; a
sense of being a part of (not apart from)
each and all.
“No one is an island entire of itself.”
All are a piece of the whole, “part of the main.”
The death of anyone “diminishes me because I am involved in (all human beings);” and “therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for (each and everyone).”
With apologies for liberty taken with a piece by the famous seventeenth century English poet of the Metaphysical school, dean of St. Paul’s Cathedral (London) John Donne (/dʌn/ DUN), who lived from 1572 until 1631.
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ntil the depraved (and their partners) with command of language (and its misuse),
staging, technology and arsenals of lethal weaponry are removed from positions of
power and influence (by legitimate, secret ballot, by established rules mandating
and enforcing resignation or retirement); until the depraved are made to stand
trial for documented crimes—their kind and their crimes will continue to grow.
The depravity and descent will destroy the whole world.
Prompting these thoughts was breaking “news” from Washington (parroted in traditional and contemporary print and broadcast media) illustrating barbarism.
President of the United States August 1, 2022: “In Kabul, Afghanistan, …on Saturday (July 30, 2022), at my direction, the United States successfully concluded an airstrike ♦ [“I made the decision that after 20 years of war the United States no longer needed thousands of boots on the ground in Afghanistan to protect America from terrorists who seek to do us harm”] ♦ … that killed the emir of al Qaeda, Ayman al-Zawahiri … (who) was bin Laden’s leader.
“He was with him all the — the whole time. He was his number-two man, his deputy at the time of the terrorist attack of 9/11 (September 11, 2001). He was deeply involved in the planning of 9/11, one of the most responsible for the attacks that murdered 2,977 people on American soil. Now justice has been delivered, and this terrorist leader is no more.”
Source: White House Blue Room Balcony Speeches and Remarks August 1, 2022, “Remarks by President Biden on a Successful Counterterrorism Operation in Afghanistan,” https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2022/08/01/remarks-by-president-biden-on-a-successful-counterterrorism-operation-in-afghanistan/
Composition and Commentary excluding quoted material and individual images
Copyright © Carolyn LaDelle Bennett
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