If you follow the link with the photo, it's war photojournalist Yuri Kozyrev taking a photo of American troops' serial numbers on Iraqi citizens for each town or village for identification. While I can I see the simplicity of this for replacing any papers the US military requires citizens to carry for all the check points they must go through in the course of their day, it strikes me of something a little more sinister of times past when a government did the same to some of its citizens to label them.
While you think this is harsh criticism and this practice is necessary in a time of war, it's fair to ask who are we fighting, the Iraqi citizens? Who? Is every citizen a suspect now we mark them with numbers because we don't trust them or trust any papers they may have, which we may suspect is counterfeit, stolen or borrowed? Who's the enemy, them or us? And did we forget who's country it is?
And if you think we're the liberators helping them build a democracy, why aren't we working with them than controlling the situation, circumstances and the facets of their life there? And do we prove who we are, or being the occupying military, we can just do and say what we want? Who do we fear? The very citizens we're their to help?
My question is, if our government, in the name of security, tried this in this country, enforced by our military with checkpoints throughout the US, how far do you think they would get before we, the people, revolted? What's that, freedom? What a concept, but apparently when we said we were bringing it to the the Iraqi people, we weren't quite telling the truth? We only believe in our freedom to control you, and we can't give you your complete freedom, just yet.
Check out his images of Iraq, and check out other photojournalists, and tell me you still believe this, or any war, is a good war? When will we learn war doesn't beget peace, but simply more war?
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