more on Rumsfeld's comments

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

------ Forwarded Message
From: Hiawatha Bray <watha () monitortan com>
Date: Thu, 17 Apr 2003 18:14:50 -0400
To: dave () farber net, ip <ip () v2 listbox com>
Subject: RE: [IP] more on Rumsfeld's comments

I remain unimpressed.  Again, I wish it hadn't happened.  And I wish more
had been done to prevent it.  But to say that "the American and British
forces are clearly to blame for the destruction and displacement of its
cultural treasures" strikes me as absurd.  The residents of Baghdad are the
ones who went on a rampage, not the US or British military.  And if the
Iraqi government had had a trace of decency, honor or good sense, the
museum's collection would already have been packed away in safer locations.
 
Indeed, today's Wall Street Journal contains a story claiming that this is
the case.  It says the looters did considerably less damage than was at
first believed, because lots of the good stuff had already been moved into
vaults that remained sealed even after the vandals struck.
 
I'm well aware that great efforts were made during WWII to save works of
art.  Nevertheless, vast amounts of the stuff were destroyed and stolen
anyway.  Those are the breaks.
 
In this case, the looting took place within a day or so of the arrival in
Baghdad.  Fighting still raged in some parts of the city.  US officers are
schooled in the principles of force protection, and so their highest
priority, after accomplishing their missions, is to keep their troops alive.
I bet they weren't willing to see a single American die in order to save a
few statues. And I heartily approve of such a calculation.

Of course, the choice may not have been that stark. But I prefer to give the
benefit of the doubt to those who were busy fighting the war.  Considering
the skill with which the matter has been handled, I think the unfortunate
looting of a great museum is a relatively small price to pay.
 
Hiawatha Bray

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