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CAMPUS CHIRPS BACK
What are your predictions for this year's World Cup?
MONDAY, JUNE 16, 2014
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@anniebeth623
@KansanOpinion Spain all the way! Their style of play is basically flawless and they are proven champions. Viva Espana!
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
INTERNATIONAL
Effects of past conflicts too easily forgotten
I heard on the radio about the ISIS forces inhabiting Iraq, shooting civilians left and right and preparing for a totalitarian move to Sharia law. And then a commentator suggested America get involved and "stop those criminals." I nearly crashed my car.
The problem really comes down to the first joke at everyone's lips when the ISIS issue gets brought up. "Hey, is Archer out there?" they say with a wink. Drop the light-heartedness: this is a serious matter that affects every American.
The strangest part of this whole situation has to be the collective amnesia that seems to have struck most of our politicians and news commentators. It boggles my mind that there's even discussion of sending troops back to Iraq. I find it incredibly troubling that even though both tours—Iraq and Afghanistan alike—ended up as failures, America apparently hasn't learned a thing.
We moved to action too hastily during the Bush administration. We stayed far too long so the Obama administration could safely survive to a second term. We watched as the Iraqi government turned from corrupt to incompetent and back again as American troops and Iraqi civilians died.
The general safety of American society is a blessing and a curse. We're disconnected from the systemic violence that dominates the Middle Eastern landscape. The closest most of us will come to it is a field report on the news or Call of Duty. Atrocities get reported to us in body counts and dollar amounts—not in real, tangible violence.
But all of this sudden forgetfulness isn't even the biggest problem
As fun as it is to make fun of America for pretending to be "the world police," a few neoliberals are already advocating for a return to Iraq. With the past decade of failure and waste fresh in our minds, we need to resolve not to cave into that guilt. The money isn't there and the lives aren't worth it.
The favored refrain for the liberal camp during the Bush administration was "oil, oil, oil" it's no longer a suspicion that these conflicts in the region were motivated by a desire to secure and stabilize fossil fuels.
The oil companies don't care about borders or creeds or moral obligations. They care about profit margins. We need to recognize that, be open about that recognition and challenge that motivation when we discuss
these issues. The politicians and the lobbyists aren't going to do it.
The havoc that ISIS is causing in Iraq right now is partly our own fault. The United States armed ISIS and related groups when they battled against the Syrian government just next door. It's the mirror of when America armed the Taliban and then condemned them a few years later.
That's the biggest issue with these regional conflicts. There are no good guys and bad guys. There are only peoplewith guns and the civilians.As much as we like to think otherwise, America is no exception.
The only positive net gain from this entire fiasco has been the lessons learned and the mistakes corrected. Let's not sacrifice the only goal we met.
Wil Kenney is a junior from Leawood studying English. Find him on Twitter @wilkenney.
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