Why is the US Congress debating a resolution about whether or not the killing of Armenians in turkey during WWI was genocide?
Why does it matter? It's not like the U.S. is going to do anything about it now because the U.S. needs Turkey.
Or am I misunderstanding the situation? Maybe it's NATO or the UN? I don't think so ... I think it's just the U.S.
2007-10-11 16:42:25 · 19 answers · asked by Cinnibuns 5 in Politics & Government ➔ Politics
LOL I totally agree with you. What the hell difference does it make now. Isn't there something a little more important for our high priced representatives to do? So now we are going to piss off one of our allies in that region for something that happened 60 years ago. Now that's what I call a total waste of time and money. But that's your tax dollars at work.
2007-10-11 16:47:35 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 2⤋
It's about our understanding of "genocide", if we fail to acknowledge the Turkish genocide against the Armenians, we have no business talking about Darfur (or so some would believe). The political realities of NATO militate against the passage of the resolution. The US is trying to become righteous in retrospect since our international policy is unrighteous in reality. Since it's a matter of history there is nothing that can or needs to be done about it, the Ottoman empire died with WW I, the government of Turkey came into being later under Kemal Attaturk. Acknowledgement of the truth is never a bad thing, but it well may be considered a moot point. Of course there are some in Turkey that would like to bring back the empire, and practice the same policies for those bothersome Kurds who want their own country and are developing a major base in Iraq. The Bath Party is still strong in Turkey, the same party that brought Saddam Hussein and his policy of Kurdish genocide for which he was executed.
2007-10-11 23:55:24 · answer #2 · answered by Fr. Al 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Actually,the United States will be the latest in a long line.The EU has already done so,as have others.
Dis you know that not only has Turkey killed minorities in the past,itr continues to do so today?The present war with the Kurds came about because,after centuries of murder,rape,and robbery.the Kurds finally stood up to the Turks and have been using many of their tactics against them for the last twenty five or so years.
Also,Turkey has driven many thousand Christians and Jews out of the country because of the relentless persecution carried out against them.
Is this really a nation NATO and the USA should be allied with?
2007-10-11 23:52:52 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
well... I mean should we deny the German holocaust if we wanted to trade with Germany... if they were touchy about it?
do we just ignore history for our own needs? this was a pretty large genocide that for the most part has been ignored by many....
I mean Republicans are now down to basically using a genocide from 15 years ago as an excuse to invade Iraq... 5 years ago? it was 10 years too late then, but they still bring it up...
yet we should just ignore this other genocide, because we need too in order to fight against this other nation that committed genocide?
2007-10-12 00:21:46 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
It is still an important part of history. And of course the Armenians think that this is important and they shouldn't let this slide in history. In fact our teacher told us Armenians take time to celebrate that day as a rememberance to all who were killed that fateful day. It was a horrible genocide and it was sneaky and brutal if you ask me. I remember studying about this in history this summer. I hope this helps a little.
2007-10-11 23:57:56 · answer #5 · answered by Jade M 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Some special interest group got a burr up it's collective butt to have something officially labeled so that another group can claim oppression and victimize themselves for centuries.
In other words, it's a Democrat-controlled Congress, so it's a big "pity-party' until the next election.
After reading a news story, I had to come back to this....
It would seem that Turkey and the U.S. are not on the friendliest of terms right now. If Congress can get a declaration of genocide for what happened in World War One, then, as is most cases, we can villify Turkey for hundreds of years afterward. It's sort of like officially calling Turkey a "bunch of big poopieheads" for something that their ancestors did.
2007-10-11 23:46:34 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 4⤋
Its actually quite simple and straight forward. and scary at the same time. currently the US is trying to keep Turkey from invading the Kurds. The turks say the kurds have incroached on Turkey and the Kurds say turkey has incroached on them. Its a political tight rope. Also currently 70% of the US military supply lines are flown through turkey. Now the scary part.
its all political by the dems to piss off turkey. getting them upset with us will lesson our position with them with regards to the kurds and they will more than likely move into Iraq causing more caos. They will also cut our ability to fly intheir airspace causing more problems with our ability to supply our military operations. This is all done to upset the progress we have made in Iraqand also a continuation of the 'slow bleed' murtha strategy of keeping funds and materials from our men and women fighting in Iraq.
this all fits and I challenge any dem to deny any of this will happen as well as find one single positive that doing this now will be to the US.
2007-10-12 00:08:32 · answer #7 · answered by CaptainObvious 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The fundies are right, it's the end of the world: The bush admin was actually right about something.
This isn't the best time for this. It's not like we didn't wait almost 100 years anyways. I'm sure the US diplomat to Turkey begging them not to follow up on the Kurds is loving the next time he has to follow up on the next incident.
The (US) government has proven itself clueless again. Demo or Repub led.
2007-10-11 23:47:40 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
And where's the 'genocide resolution' to address the countless Native American the US slaughtered?
Guess the Armenians have a stronger lobby...
2007-10-11 23:50:23 · answer #9 · answered by Bye for now... 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Oh this does matter. Historically as well as politically. What if no one ever brought up the point that Christopher Columbus practiced Genoside? This atrocity would go unanswered. We would still put him in the textbooks as a hero. Oh hold on. Congress hasn't voted on that one yet? Sorry to the Native Americans of our land. I don't understand why we don't totally get rid of Columbus Day.
This example should help you understand.
2007-10-11 23:49:14 · answer #10 · answered by Phill Lee 4 · 1⤊ 2⤋