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| Thread: 10 years since the bombs | |
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baklava
Honorable
Legendary Hero
Mostly harmless
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posted March 25, 2009 01:25 AM |
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10 years since the bombs
A commemoration was held yesterday (or still today, depending on your time zone) about the NATO bombing of (what's left of) my country in '99.
Most of the world didn't even notice it. Maybe it just got used to people shooting at each other over here during the breakup of Yugoslavia. But it had... quite some influence on myself.
A mixture of a dictatorial madman at home, separatist madmen in a province and democratic madmen over the sea brought about a period of ruin and terror for my surroundings which, though my parents sheltered me as much as they could, did leave some rather unpleasant memories. Hell, even if I manage to forget about it for a while, I see remnants of a few blown up buildings on my way to school every day.
But this is not about me.
I'm not going to engage in a political discussion of any kind. This isn't meant to be about politics, but memories.
You can probably find something about this on any news channel. Some approximate numbers. Damage estimated in money. Maybe an odd video or two. But you will not find the victims. You will not find the faces of the hundreds of women and children that got killed, or thousands that were wounded. You will not see how violence and instability culminated a few years after the bombings. You will not hear about homes and churches burnt by separatist organizations NATO supported. You will not find much about all the "collateral damage" in blown up bridges and trains and buildings, and the illegality and one-sidedness of these attacks. You will not discover that the bombs were evidently filled with depleted uranium and other experimental toxic substances, or that factories with dangerous chemicals were tactically bombed to damage the populace and surroundings. You will not find that this operation was called "Angel of Mercy".
In fact, you will probably only find videos of some angry, mean-looking Serbs waving flags, glorifying war criminals and yelling obscene slogans at "McDonald's" restaurants. The Balkans need a bad guy, someone to blame for all the mess without much complication. And hey, here we are. There are always fanatics to take pictures of.
But I'd just like you to know that hundreds of civilians who died under those bombs were not bad guys. Hell, I'm not a bad guy. Or the thousands of students which tried to march against Milosevic before the West decided that bombs would be quicker and more impressive. Serbia is a screwed up country on many levels, but neither it nor its people really deserved the treatment they got, and are getting.
It's enough that thousands of people remained dead, wounded or homeless for nothing. I'm just appalled that on top of that, they're still largely branded as if they somehow deserved it.
Anyhow, I didn't intend to make this post this long, so I'll just end it as simply as I can.
In memory of all who died during the operation "Angel of Mercy" in 1999.
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DagothGares
Responsible
Undefeatable Hero
No gods or kings
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posted March 25, 2009 01:40 AM |
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It's ridiculous to say this, but they're in my thoughts.
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If you have any more questions, go to Dagoth Cares.
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TheDeath
Responsible
Undefeatable Hero
with serious business
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posted March 25, 2009 09:19 PM |
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At the end of the day, for them, they are just numbers. Senseless numbers, like your CD collection. The only thing that can make us different are the emotions. I also had sometimes myself thought about this, and why it is so easy for some to just give the order (to bomb, in this case). Hell I myself take people sometimes as numbers (and blame myself later for that), but there's a catch, because indeed they are numbers from a "bigger picture". (oh don't get me wrong, this isn't my viewpoint, but I have a few "dark" thoughts myself tbh, I think we all  )
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The above post is subject to SIRIOUSness.
No jokes were harmed during the making of this signature.
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baklava
Honorable
Legendary Hero
Mostly harmless
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posted March 25, 2009 10:55 PM |
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Of course it's not ridiculous, Dagoth, that's actually very nice of you. 
Thank you both for reading.
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Seraphim
Supreme Hero
Knowledge Reaper
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posted March 26, 2009 02:57 PM |
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I truly understand your feelings but calling those seperatists madman is not kind.
I tried many times to be friendly and I never created a thread about memorials or political blah-blahs here so as to avoid being itchy.
I have to say that maybe it was not necessary to bomb Belgrade but it was not necessary either to kill 15000 people after the war ended jsut for a sign of revenge.
10 years have passed away and 100 will come and I can assure you that Balkans will not change becasue its people do not think of advancing but humiliating and disgracing.
I have nothing more to say.
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DeadMan
Known Hero
The True Humanitarian
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posted March 27, 2009 02:56 PM |
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Here's an interesting thing to think about. During the Balkan wars, who was in charge of the US? Clinton of the Democratic Party. And who was in charge of Serbia? Milosevic of the Socialist Party. Both were "left-wingers" - but not really. Clinton was a neoliberal exploiter, and Milosevic was a nationalist. See what happens when the left turns away from protecting the working class?
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I don't matter. You don't matter. But we matter.
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kipshasz
Undefeatable Hero
Elvin's Darkside
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posted March 27, 2009 07:16 PM |
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Milosevic... I remember this name was mentioned every day in the news during those events in Balkans.
What was his punishment for all those war crimes again?
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"Kip is the Gavin McInnes of HC" - Salamandre
"Ashan to the Trashcan", "I got PTSD from H7. " - LizardWarrior
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Vlaad
Admirable
Legendary Hero
ghost of the past
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posted March 27, 2009 07:35 PM |
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Edited by Vlaad at 19:35, 27 Mar 2009.
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He died in custody before the trial was over.
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