Daily Archives: January 20, 2005

Iraqi Chiaroscuro

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chiaroscuro.jpg

On the eve of the Inauguration of the man that went to war and took as all with him, an Iraqi family was shattered by a tragic misjudgement by US troops, who shot at an approaching car that failed to stop. It turns out it was full of children. The parents were killed in a hail of bullets that started out as warning shots. The children emerged from the car, covered in their parents’ blood and with wounds of their own.

A photographer from Getty Images, Chris Hondros, was there to witness and document what happened with a series of horrifying and compelling images in a story at Newsday.

This image looks deceptively peaceful, doesn’t it? The bright splashes of color are the flowers on her dress, and the blood on her face. She is old enough to know that her parents are suddenly, horribly dead.

The gallery of all the images is here.

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BoingBoing notes of this image “Iraqi Girl Appears Unhappy After Parents Slain In Iraq”

Does she not want the freedom we bring to her and her parents?

I’m sorry, but we should not be there, and never should have been. And now the peope who are paying for it are not enjoying the gala Inaugural balls.

Frankensense and Mirth

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AAR is broadcasting live from Washington DC today. Their website notes:

Bush Approval Rating Lowest Since Nixon
Amid the most biggest (Ed.: hee!) security lockdown ever for an inauguration, a new CBS/New York Times poll shows that President Bush has the lowest approval rating at the start of a second term since Richard Nixon. Bush’s 49 percent approval is below Nixon’s rating of 51 percent in January 1973 and Bush trails Bill Clinton’s 60 percent and Ronald Reagan’s 62 percent at similar points.

Every time an administration official repeats the words “mandate” and “majority” let’s just remember that approval rating, shall we?

And when they say “freedom and democracy” backed with “the protesters (in DC and along the parade route) are aligned with the terrorists” let’s just remember the words “free speech” and “totalitarian state” don’t play well, shall we?