The headlines last week reported that US Marines had apparently gone on a murderous rampage months earlier in Iraq, killing as many as 24 civilians, including women and children.
Also in the news last week, but generally lower profile, was the relief effort by US Marines and US personnel, along with other international donors, on Indonesia's big island of Java, which was hit by a devastating earthquake.
Marine cargo planes flew a mobile field hospital into the city of Yogyakarta, closest to the quake area. Other marines started distributing emergency supplies to the needy. The amphibious assault ship USS Essex, which has extensive medical facilities, was routed to the area.
The two contrasting stories, one of senseless murder in Iraq, and the other of humanitarian aid to save life in Indonesia, underline for Americans both the agonies and the triumphs of being the most powerful nation in the world with sweeping international responsibilities.
[Excerpts of Opinion column by John Hughes, Christian Science Monitor]
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1 comment:
Damned if you do and damned if you don't.
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