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When Ideologies Collide
Author: BobR
Date: 10/19/2011 10:28:06
Between Occupy Wall Street and the Republican race (with their mind-numbingly repetitive debates), there seem to be few news cycles for anything else. Foreign affairs normally get short shrift as it is, and the last couple weeks have been no exception. As the war in Afghanistan continues in seeming perpetuity, the war in Iraq (or at least U.S involvement) is finally coming to an end.
So it's no surprise that other than our own TriSec reporting yesterday, we have seen very little coverage of our newest military entanglement: Kenya. Naturally, there will be the conspiracy theorists going on about it because of President Obama's father, but look at the details and it's clear that it has more to do with Uganda than Kenya.
The LRA (Lord's Resistance Army) is a guerilla army in Kenya committing atrocities against the people of Uganda. The details are not for the faint of heart. Their leader - Joseph Kony - is wanted by the International Criminal Court. I know Ron Paul would disapprove, but then he's not against letting people die from lack of health insurance either. Most people, however, should feel that something needs to be done.
Naturally, there are idealists that feel that ANY military involvement is wrong, regardless of the reason, and this case is no exception. Either they look for conspiracies (like oil in Uganda), or simply chalk it up to imperialism. Never mind that progressive darling Russ Feingold created the legislation authorizing intervention (although he has stated that it didn't include armed combat):
So we have human rights activists at odds with anti-war activists. Most liberals/progressives embrace both ideals, but with a dose of common sense and a grip on the reality of the world in which we live. How is Joseph Kony any different than Osama bin Laden? He is a religious extremist using extreme violence against civilians to fulfill what he believes is his Supremely Ordained destiny.
The difference, of course, is that Joseph Kony is a Christian extremist, and that makes all the difference to some people... and by "some people" I mean Rush Limbaugh (and I quote):
Most Republicans have shown to be reflexively against anything President Obama says, does, or supports, even if it's something they would normally be in favor of. Limbaugh, however, seems to have gone one step farther, and tacitly endorse a maniacal killer simply because the president he hates is taking military action against him. How many of Limbaugh's listeners are going to hear this and reinforce in their minds that our president is a Muslim trying to kill good Christians. How long before one of Limbaugh's listeners decides it's time to be a Christian Soldier and "do something about it"? This kind of purposeful disinformation is irresponsible at best, and dangerous at worst.
Although the motivations are different, one has to wonder when anti-war activists disagree with human rights advocates, and come down on the same side as Rush Limbaugh in their criticism of this limited military involvement. Strange bedfellows indeed...
So it's no surprise that other than our own TriSec reporting yesterday, we have seen very little coverage of our newest military entanglement: Kenya. Naturally, there will be the conspiracy theorists going on about it because of President Obama's father, but look at the details and it's clear that it has more to do with Uganda than Kenya.
The LRA (Lord's Resistance Army) is a guerilla army in Kenya committing atrocities against the people of Uganda. The details are not for the faint of heart. Their leader - Joseph Kony - is wanted by the International Criminal Court. I know Ron Paul would disapprove, but then he's not against letting people die from lack of health insurance either. Most people, however, should feel that something needs to be done.
Naturally, there are idealists that feel that ANY military involvement is wrong, regardless of the reason, and this case is no exception. Either they look for conspiracies (like oil in Uganda), or simply chalk it up to imperialism. Never mind that progressive darling Russ Feingold created the legislation authorizing intervention (although he has stated that it didn't include armed combat):
The author of that legislation, former Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wisc., told ABC News in a statement that “our legislation did not authorize the use of force by American troops anywhere,” but he noted that the bill “did call for a comprehensive approach in dealing with the Lord’s Resistance Army, which includes military, intelligence, diplomatic, and development components.”
Feingold said, “If the military advisors being deployed by the President are being used to facilitate information and intelligence sharing, including among regional militaries, that is consistent with part of what our bill was seeking. But that mission should be just one piece of a larger strategy that focuses on civilian protection in the broadest sense.”
A coalition of human rights groups applauded the president’s move.
“By deploying these advisers, President Obama is showing decisive leadership to help regional governments finally bring an end to the LRA’s mass atrocities,” said Paul Ronan, Director of Advocacy at Resolve.
So we have human rights activists at odds with anti-war activists. Most liberals/progressives embrace both ideals, but with a dose of common sense and a grip on the reality of the world in which we live. How is Joseph Kony any different than Osama bin Laden? He is a religious extremist using extreme violence against civilians to fulfill what he believes is his Supremely Ordained destiny.
The difference, of course, is that Joseph Kony is a Christian extremist, and that makes all the difference to some people... and by "some people" I mean Rush Limbaugh (and I quote):
Now, up until today, most Americans have never heard of the combat Lord’s Resistance Army. And here we are at war with them. Have you ever heard of Lord’s Resistance Army, Dawn? How about you, Brian? Snerdley, have you? You never heard of Lord’s Resistance Army? Well, proves my contention, most Americans have never heard of it, and here we are at war with them. Lord’s Resistance Army are Christians. It means God. I was only kidding. Lord’s Resistance Army are Christians. They are fighting the Muslims in Sudan. And Obama has sent troops, United States troops to remove them from the battlefield, which means kill them. That’s what the lingo means, “to help regional forces remove from the battlefield,” meaning capture or kill. [...]
Most Republicans have shown to be reflexively against anything President Obama says, does, or supports, even if it's something they would normally be in favor of. Limbaugh, however, seems to have gone one step farther, and tacitly endorse a maniacal killer simply because the president he hates is taking military action against him. How many of Limbaugh's listeners are going to hear this and reinforce in their minds that our president is a Muslim trying to kill good Christians. How long before one of Limbaugh's listeners decides it's time to be a Christian Soldier and "do something about it"? This kind of purposeful disinformation is irresponsible at best, and dangerous at worst.
Although the motivations are different, one has to wonder when anti-war activists disagree with human rights advocates, and come down on the same side as Rush Limbaugh in their criticism of this limited military involvement. Strange bedfellows indeed...
