Children of War
Children of War
While the world is still at war, and soldiers continue to fall from all sides, I stop to think about the children. Some are fortunate enough to have a family that will support them through the most difficult time in their lives. Others are left as orphans. It’s a sad fact, but true.
An adult losing a spouse or friend is difficult, but in most cases, adults can learn to deal with the loss and continue with their life. A child that looses a parent, you may just say that the child lost the light in his eyes. In an effort to bring these children a little sunshine during this devastation, our country has organizations that provide this joy by collecting money from generous donors. It won’t heal the pain, but maybe put a band aid over it for at least a few hours.
Overseas, the children are not as fortunate. Many of these children are being left as orphans either by parents being killed or by parents leaving them on the doorstep so they can flee to saver land. Unfortunately, due to their religions, they are not able to be adopted from families that live on the outside. They are currently living in a box; unable to play outside for fear that they too will be killed. They huddle in back rooms when there is a soldier at the door unknowing of what he will do. This is no life for a child. The sad fact is that most of these children will live their childhood out in the orphanage, and of the girls, a large percentage will turn 18 and live their adult life on the street.
Everyone needs to remember what we are fighting for and then need to look at the whole picture. Once this war is over, we need to begin a war to protect the children.
This is just one woman’s opinion. Take care.
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Children of war
It is much worse than that in many parts of Africa where children are forced into being child soldiers - and dehumanised. In West Africa there are horrendous cases of children having their hands cut off or legs. What can one do in the face of such barbarity?
Children, and of war.
In Africa, and elsewhere, the idea that people need to choose leaders instead of the Alpha Persona seizing control needs to begin to be instilled. Part of it is a religious scourge, seeds of a bad meme. Part of it is the absolute and stark poverty caused by those exploiting others. Find the root of that, and excise them and their bad ideas, and a start will be made. Of course, it takes a vision. It takes also self-limiting population.
But it would take much more space and many years than a comment to a wise woman's post.
children of war
Yes, it needs a lot more than comments.It has been my pet theme that to tackle the roots of any problem we must go back in history. Though Africa is considered a dark continent, there are very few who know that the first smelting of ores took place in what is now Tanzania.In the mad rush for colonies and missionary work, African tribal system -which worked well for them was uprooted and artificial boundaries made cutting across tribal and ethnic divisions. This in the 20th & 21st century finally came home to roost.Colonial rulers except for the British never bothered to impart education and infrastructure. Congo ruled by Belgium had just one doctor when Belgium finally left that country in chaos. In 150 years of their presence they did nothing but transfer all the immense wealth of Congo through Union Minerale, a company run by Belgium. So when a questionable freedom came Africans were unprepared for it and the strong men with their militias took over and started plundering again with the help of European (mostly) backing and transferring their ill gotten gains into Swiss accounts. We and the Swiss Bankers stood by watching and tut-tutting till the horrors of genocide in Rwanda made us sit up. Apartheid was pracised in South Africa and it took a long time for the world to react. Margaret Thatcher did her best to thwart any meanigful attempt at forcing sanctions. France was merrily supplying arms to the Apartheid regime while mouthing platitudes. So we have to look at the mistakes we made and admit them. Nobody is asking how these militias who maim children and women get their modern weapons.Who sells it to them - you will find the trail leading to European capitals.
Children of war, Africa
Ivar, we see much the same together, and you well-decoded my brief response. Yes, the place Man apears to have originated lies in the desperate spreading continental riftland as the traces of origin can be traced.
In this nation, once greatest idea of Man, we (the people) need to re-take our choice of direction away from those elected to speak for us; for they have been unfaithful to anything but their own reward. They have dropped the burden we as social beings (social animals) all must have a hand in bearing.
Population will be limited, either by conscious choice or by derstructive result. I just hope we can do it before we destroy the species we share the planet with. We are not owners of this world; we just emerged here. As such, we need to be far more than we seem to be, nearer to our idealistic ideals than our selfish grubbing.
I share your perspective, but I am old, and as such, recognize limitations I once never had. Time has always been an enemy, but larger now. Time can heal some things; erode others. Enough!
Thank you for your comments. Keep the belief in good. Even though it is trying of the spirit to do so.
You write well. You speak.
Where to begin
...discussing the problems/causes in Africa... colonialism, tribal feuds, countries used as proxies in the Cold War, and dictators who grab foreign aid to build themselves gilded palaces and huge armies while their citizens starve and face drought after drought. Imagine if even half the aid money actually reached the average African citizen...
Imagine if even half the aid money reached the Iraqi people. . .
I can't help it. I'm watching Dick Chaney lie, and, well, twist his way through Tim Russert's questioning. Revisionist's view. But this is a kick! He's speaking about having the resources for the House and Senate to remain in Republican Control. . . Do you know where they got the vast amounts of money to shore up crooked politicos? That's right, from patriotic contributors like the people in Halliburton, subsidiary KBR, the Oil Majors, the Military Industrial complex. Where did they get their money? Why from our treasury of course. And your children, and your future taxes. Isn't it wonderful!(?)
Imagine if half the money spent on Iraq really was spent on Iraq. . .
Do any of you remember Sec of State, James Baker, explaining why Desert Storm? I think he was in the sand (at the Military Airport) in Saudi when he volunteered this tid bit, referring to the continuing build up of men and machines and materiel. Referring to the upcoming war said, "This is about jobs. This is about Jobs...American Jobs." CNN has the footage.
Well, imagine the aid going to Iraq instead of American Industrialists or Custer Battles,and the others. Imagine playing office football (heavy on touch football rules) with packages of 100 dollar bills! The cost to make an appropriate football-sized package of American hundred dollar bills is well under $300,000. Now, if you want to pass the package around like a basketball, you're looking at about a million dollars! (Custer Battles did the original work on this, and it has been broadcast, somewhere.)
I hope we can regain for Africa a place at the human table. We've lost at least a generation there. It reminds me of the adolescent bull elephants raping and killing rhinos after these rowdy kids (immature male elephants) were captured and removed to another park where there was not an 'over population' of elephants. This bunch of adolescent males became a teenaged gang at the new park, where, with no adults they did not have guidance on how elephants are to behave. (Google it or whatever)
Rhinos are endangered by us, humans. Why were the young bulls behaving that way? (Bunch of dangerous ruffians, like child soldiers, younger than our young soldiers. But in their new domicile, just a gang of baddies.)
Well. The solution to the Elephant/Rhino killing problem was simple. Adult Guidance. They simply captured, transported and placed mature ADULT Bull African elephants in the elephant gang's park to show that this was not done; this raping and killing of rhinos was NOT appropriate behavior. The adult male elephants showed the immature gang of young male elephants how "real" mature Bull elephants act. I'm not kidding. Good solid Leadership. The rhino killing by juvenile male elephants has ended where it once was a mystery. Of course, elephants are just dumb animals aren't they. . . ? It is said they have a memory. . .
I do not know how to bring Africa back to the human table -- mainly because of the scourge of a religion of death, not life, spreading as an infection and a cancer across the continent. I am sorry for this, and it hurts the entire human family, the entire species. I favor excision, remove the bad meme. Ideally it should be done from within. Else it will be done from without. That would be tragic, even though I think it would be, in the long run, advantageous to our species.
thks
Aid money
The problem with giving aid is that you need a bureaucracy to dispense it and a bureaucracy to receive it and distribute it. There is every possibility then that the money is going to be pilfered. We see UN Aid workers in Kabul staying in good hotels and only driving the latest SUVs and of course in such dangerous places the happy hour at the hotel cannot be missed. But this is not a modern phenomena. The Roman Empire had to battle with it and finally gave up with the Ceasers themselves being on the take. So if Haliburton gets the contracts to make unnecessary structures in Iraq, then it is only what is to be expected. I am not sure how the Roman Empire got its swords and armour but from the accounts of constant warfare they got into, I am sure there must have been very good lobby in the Roman Senate representing this trade. Jobs were as important then as now!
There is too much pain in
There is too much pain in this world and seeing a child cry breaks my hart, makes me give up everything just to stop him from crying. This is all i have to say.