Collateral Damage- The Civilian Cost Of American Wars

by Luke Miller Truth Theory

Terrorism is a word that we hear on a daily basis. It has been said so much now that it feels like it’s really lost its meaning & has almost become more like a pantomime villain than a real thing.

Unfortunately, terrorism is a real thing & while daily mainstream media are telling us who the bad guys are, we still must ask ourselves- who are the main global perpetrators of terrorism.

We have all heard of ISIS, Boko Haram & Al Qaeda, but you haven’t heard about Anti-balaka & The National Liberation Front of Tripura which are Cristian extremist groups which are committing similar acts of terrorism & getting no media attention.

Terrorism defined is- the use of violence and intimidation in the pursuit of political aims & history is scattered with acts of terrorism large & small including the holocaust, the Tutsi tribes being killed in Rwanda & the Aboriginal population being nearly wiped out in Australia.

Another large-scale act of terrorism is that of the Native Americans & while the estimates of the death toll vary widely ranging from 800,000 to 16 million it is thought that 80-90% of the Native American population died after the arrival of the Europeans.

The figures I quote below show a conservative estimate of the damage that western intervention has caused at the cost of civilian life & does not take into consideration what they define as a terrorist.

Picture this- a foreign person in your country running at you with a machine gun, trying to zip tie your wife & children. Wanting to raid your home for something you have not played a part in. Knowing that your friends, family & neighbors have been terrorized, killed & imprisoned by these people & feeling at risk because your country is being invaded by people who have no right to be there, would you pick up a weapon to defend yourself & your family? Because people who do this are labelled as terrorists.

 

Below are the estimated civilian lives lost in 7 American Wars in the last 50 years. Which asks us the question- are these acts of terrorism? –

 

Vietnam War- 465,000–2,500,000 civilians were killed

Gulf War- 5,500 civilians were killed

Kosovo War- 12,000 civilians were killed

Afghanistan War- 30,000 civilians were killed

Iraq War- 140,659 – 159,248 civilians were killed

War in North-West Pakistan- 20,465 civilians were killed

War in Libya- 6,000 – 15,000 Civilians were killed

 

The reason I authored this article is not to incite hatred for any group as I think the only way humanity can move forward is to move away from war. I wrote it to raise awareness & give you a unique perspective of war & the terror that is inflicted at the hands of those who claim to be the good guys.

We are now living in an appropriate time, because for the first time in a very long-time people are becoming aware that wars are not fought for the good of anyone. But mostly as a business that trades in power & profits.

Opinion polls are now showing that most people oppose war, while before most people would follow their leaders into battle.

People are now waking up & questioning the true agenda of what is going on & with eight of the top ten arms companies all being from the USA & Britain & with a global military spend of $1.6 trillion in 2015. You do have to ask what the real reason is we are at war.

No war or terrorism is justified, no collateral damage is acceptable & to justify the loss of millions of innocent lives as part of our pursuit of freedom is bullshit, claiming to give people democracy by killing them is a lie & giving the life of one human being more significance over another is inhumane.

I think that any amount of civilian life lost it is a tragedy no matter which country, race or religion & if you think about the way things are portrayed in our media when there is even a small death toll at the hands of a terrorist attack it may put into perspective these numbers & the impact our counties have inflicted on the world in trying to enforce a way of life on people that they don’t want.

Thanks for reading! Please like, comment, share & let me know what you think.