Murder and Apology

In the hysteria and media vulturism that has surrounded the murder of Lee Rigby, I still feel that this post comes too soon. The family of the dead soldier needs time to grieve, the space to support each other and to make sense of the situation. The media is not as forgiving however and sensationalism grabs the headlines. Much as I try to resist being drawn in, eventually I feel that I should also voice a comment.

I'm at odds with the media adopting extreme views, but I'm also at odds with jumping on the bandwagon of apology or justification. These are not appropriate responses. Lee Rigby was murdered in cold blood, in a most gratuitous and savage manner by assailants who had somehow been dehumanised. That act of absolute unashamed brutality, the immediate events leading up to it and the delayed response of the authorities should be under the media and investigative microscope. For the same reasons, I made a decision not to comment on the Boston attacks the Woolwich murder has led to Muslims being rolled out onto the social media platform to apologise or distance themselves from acts of terror (murder). This is a type of approval seeking and constant apology is something that I do wish to entertain. Frankly, I sense inferiority when this has to happen and I'm bored with it. Murder of someone innocent is murder. It is heinous and it deserves a just punishment. That is true if some white Norwegian is behind this or some deranged  men on the streets of London are behind this. Individual acts like this simply do not represent all the members of a society. It creates an unnecessary pressure to be apologetic. Would we also call it murder if the innocent are killed by soldiers in combat? That perhaps is a rhetorical question, though it is one I could come back to in a future post. Right now, this apology by the BBC's Nick Robinson - where the killers in the Woolwich murders were described as having a 'Muslim appearance' - has the sad potential to be almost comic.

Read Areeb Ullah's take on this.

Image Source: Real Street

Equal All?

There have always been acts of atrocity that have shaken us to the bone and in this day and age, the media moves in as some kind of catalyst so that the shock, condemnation and outpouring is magnified whenever a news-breaking actions occur. In and amongst we ask the searching questions about WHY these events happen. But do we learn, and can we then use this to prevent what may happen in the future? I am not sure that we can in every circumstance. The individual human condition is such that the chain of triggers that lead to a 'rampage' such as the shootings in Kandahar a few weeks ago cannot truly be predicted and everyone has a different breaking point. Of course, that is not an excuse - it is, however, an attempt to understand.

A thought ...

The 'rogue' American soldier, Sgt Robert Bales, who went on a killing spree in Kandahar was removed by the US from Afghanistan almost as soon as he was identified. Early reports claimed that the stress of events in the war led to a build up before he finally 'snapped'. Kandaharis reporting back to Hamid Karzai, claim that this was not a lone act and there are voices asking for the soldier to be handed over to the Afghans. Increasingly - though clearly very much in place from the beginning of this conflict - the balance of power in this conflict is not about who is morally right, but who is economically more powerful. If Afghanistan - a sovereign country - was invaded by the US because the Taliban refused to hand over Osama Bin Laden, is Afghanistan equally in the moral position to send Afghan soldiers to the US to invade so that a wanted man who is being protected by the state, is also handed over?

 Graphic taken from mcclatchydc.com

Hope and Remembrance - Bacha Khan

Yesterday, I spoke of despair. Today I shall speak of remembrance, and with it, hope. In fact, I started 2010 with a message of hope. As much as I believe in peace, I believe in hope. If you take away hope from people, then what is the reason for them to go on?

On this day, in 1988, Bacha Khan, Leader, Philosopher, Activist and Soldier of Peace died. Bacha Khan's words, whilst sometimes reflected the difficulties of the moment, offer a vision of peace and hope. His message, is one that I have repeatedly come back to on these pages. There is another way, and that is the way to peace, freedom and hope.

نن پښتون تە ټـوپک نە ،
د قلم ضرورت دى
باچا خان
Nan, Pukhtoon ta topak na, da qalam zaroorat de.
"Today Pashtoons do not need guns. They need pens."
Bacha Khan

Tor_Khan تور خان

Pashtunistan Square

I despair sometimes.

Yesterday's bloodshed in Kabul's Chahr Rahe Pashtunistan [Pashtunistan Square] is an absolute example of our sorry state. A tragic waste of young life (and another blight on the name of the Pashtoons).

From the Wall Street Journal:

"We locked our shops and rushed outside. As we were running down, the armed men ran up the stairs to take positions on the top floor," said Mohammad Farooq, a 29-year-old shopkeeper. "Some vendors claimed to have seen these attackers, Pashto-speaking men in their 20s, visiting the center's top floor the previous day."

A thought from Bacha Khan: "O Pathans! Your house has fallen into ruin. Arise and rebuild it and remember to what race you belong."

PostScript: Video Games and School Boy Killers

22.20 Abu Dhabi time.

Today's killing rampage in Germany is reminiscent of the events in Columbine. Of course at this time, our thoughts are with the families of the victims. May they rest peacefully and may Allah give the families strength and togetherness at this time.

Seems that the rolling media coverage of the news conference in Stuttgart, has attempted to pick up the issue of motives and causes. Once again music, video, internet, console and video games have been referred to as possible triggers. It seems that even today that law enforcement is keen to make a connection between social violence and violence in the media and entertainment.

The debate is not about to go away.

The Doom Controversy

Explore 3D mazes; shoot the monsters using a series of interchangeable weapons; unlock doors and levels; uncover secret areas; renew your arsenal of weaponry and so on. Destroy the big boss, and his army of cronies, blah, blah.

It's the formula for many shoot-em up type games, but Doom does represent an important milestone. It was the first to portray a kind of realism in maze exploration with experimental shadows and dark corners and allowed for customisability through fan created WAD files which meant that new levels and challenges could be created.

Doom: Screams from the Underworld

Video games have long been criticized for their violence, but it would appear that Doom crossed a line by depicting the bloody face of the protagonist (controlled by you) stranded amidst demons as the last human in hell. Although what you mostly saw of him was his strafing hand/s (intended to be you), his face gave you an indication of your game health. The more hits, the more damaged and bloodier his face became; staring back at you.

Columbine High: "A Select Case"?

Doom also has the notoriety of being linked to the perpetrators of the Columbine High School Massacre in 1999 when it was reported that Ed Harris (one of the perpetrators) wrote a web journal that said that his actions would be like "the LA riots, the Oklahoma Bombing, WWII, Vietnam, Duke and Doom all mixed together".

Is there a link between the simulated violence in movies and video games and society? This is a question that has been asked over and over. In his 2003 paper, Video Games in Education, Kurt Squire writes that some research findings suggests that video games could cause some increase in violent thoughts, but that research into the question between video game violence and social maladjustment was two decades out-of-date and the link not conclusive.

Video Violence: "Don't blame toy stores"

In the journals and web postings recovered after the tragic events at Columbine, Ed Harris co-responsible for the killings, wrote that society should not blame "toy stores for selling us ammo ... because we went on a killing spree ... we are a select case".

It is now well documented that Ed Harris and Dylan Klebold (the other killer) were contributors to internet Doom forums and that they created levels to fit the game. It is with a disturbed sense of things to come, given the states of mind of both, that Harris should signed off one of his levels with the haunting words, "KILL 'EM AAAAALLLL!!!!!" (Washington Post, 1999)