In the Central African Repulic, Muslims are being slaughtered.

[cali]

In North Korea, everyone who could possibly be seen as disloyal get thrown into nightmare prison camps. In Iran, a poet and peace activist was hung for crimes against god. In 35 countries in Africa being gay is a crime. In Nigeria over a 100 villagers were slaughtered yesterday by a militant Muslim group. In Burma, Buddhists are persecuting Muslims and killing them by the dozen. You know what's happening in Iraq and Afghanistan, and yes, Assad has been murdering Syrians by the thousands.

So what do we do? What does the U.S. do? I'm personally against the U.S. sending troops anywhere, but I'm sympathetic to the argument that "we must do something". But what? Humans repeat the dreadful inhumanity of ethnic cleansing and persecution and exploitation in horrible ways every day on this planet.



http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/18/opinion/as-genocide-looms.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=0
http://thinkprogress.org/world/2014/02/13/3270671/central-african-republic-rwanda-yugoslavia/#

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/nigeria/10642979/Boko-Haram-kill-over-100-in-village-massacre.html


Never again? It's never really stopped. Somewhere there is always a group of people working on exterminating or enslaving another group of people.

[MissB]

1. It is hard to convince

a culture/religion/dictatorship that we are all human.

Human history repeats itself in awful cycles. The hope is that in countries such as ours, we won't go there again.

[postulater]

2. It never ends. We just hear about it more now. nt

[RKP5637]

3. Yep, that's what I think too. Now, it's flashed around the world instantly. It's far

better now that these horrendous acts are blasted out all over the world.

[cali]

4. and yet, I think we hear it less. We're so inundated that

much of it just flows right past the vast majority.

[postulater]

6. It is numbing. And too gruesome to be real sometimes.

Yet it is as real as real gets.

[RKP5637]

7. Yep, I think many in the vast majority have become desensitized. They just don't

give a damn unless it effects them, not all, but many I suspect. Many just try to keep their nose about the water in the US trying to survive.

And then as one of my friends says what to we do. If the elected PTB don't take action it's hard for peons to take action. ... maybe donate, sign some petitions, call congress critters, etc., but the elected politicians need to take action as appropriate. And, IMO, for many of them it just flows right past them.

[JI7]

12. actually in the United States i don't think the country as a whole hears about it much

those who pay attention to politics will hear about it because we seek it out online and other places.

but those who rely on CNN and most US TV probably wont know much about it.

[RKP5637]

5. Many humans are real creatures, just disgusting POS. All through history the same continues. We are

lucky to live in a part of the world that has it under control, but IMO there is a fair amount of the population in the US that could very easily commit these same acts if enabled. I think there are some horrific hostilities festering under the surface in the US.

[Nuclear Unicorn]

8. What is the answer?

We obviously can't run around the world being the police everywhere.

But then again is it possible to intervene in some places?

What's the dividing line?

But even if we did to what end, how long?

Should everyone be equally armed to keep it a fair fight?

Should one group have exclusive say on which other groups are disarmed?

Is it all too much for a human mind and we should just tune-out until it hits us directly?

Isn't that kind of selfish?

[cali]

10. I don't know- except for the tuning it out part- that I think I can't do

it does seem too selfish.

[Nuclear Unicorn]

14. I don't think there is an answer.

I don't think there is an "If A then B but if X then Y" solution. This world is mad. It's crying out in anguish every minute of the day. Your OP doesn't come close to describing the agony, suffering, despair and outright cruelty to be found. You can't comprehend it. I can't. We would go insane if we did. We can try to alleviate suffering where we find it but at the end of the day we're all doomed. Every homeless person fed will one day pass. We might escape war but all the people will still die and the buildings still crumble.

I'm increasingly of the opinion that Life is not about living. Life is a test but not the kind where you can bubble-in your answers and wait for it to be graded against a template. It will be the kind of test that will reach inside of you and shake you until all the falsity and pretense drops away and if you're lucky there will be enough left over to still stand-up. I fear that test because I know how shallow and worthless my efforts truly are. I know how futile and silly I am.

But that test also gives me hope. I can't explain it but I think I feel it. And it rejuvenates me to keep trying. We have to keep trying no matter how insignificant it all may be. I want to keep trying. I will keep trying.

[cali]

15. well, it's the Dylan Thomas thing, or at any rate how I read

"rage against the dying of the light".

but it's frustrating that humans keep doing this.

[Pretzel_Warrior]

9. thanks for that ray of sunshine

I picked a bad week to stop sniffing glue

[Fumesucker]

18. Is there a good week to stop sniffing glue? n/t

[JI7]

11. aren't the French in CAR ? and we are trying to have some influence in Iran

i think the pope needs to speak out on the treatment of gays .

[cali]

13. I agree it would be good if the Pope spoke out on the persecution of gays

Yes, the French are in the CAR. It's still on the brink of genocide. Ethnic cleansing has been horrifyingly successful.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/18/central-african-republic-french-troops

[msongs]

16. Our government does the same thing using drones. nt

[cali]

20. no. it doesn't. lord only knows how much

I object to the U.S. drone policies. I've posted as much or more about it as anyone here, all in opposition, but it's not the same thing as what's happening in the CAR.

It's awful. It's a different awful.

[MoonRiver]

17. Something needs to be done, but the U.S. cannot do it alone.

These cases of mass killing and even genocide need an international force to stop them.

[Fumesucker]

19. One word..

Fallujah

[theHandpuppet]

21. BBC News provides quite a bit of coverage on African affairs

At least that's where I've been reading about what's going on in CAR. I find very little in the American press.