spoils of war

This whole business with the behaviour of soldiers in Iraq is so very sad, and so terribly unsurprising in a lot of ways. Clayton, as a former soldier, is dismayed and aghast but he’s a good person and I expect he served with other good people. Perhaps it is simply the actions and attitude of a few that sets the tone for an entire squad. As I said on a far-too-long-winded comment on his site, I believe it’s indicative of the fact that there is a culture of power-play in many western societies and it’s no suprise that spills over into the highly charged environment of a war zone.

Of course it’s no excuse, but this seems all too similar to the school bully in British public schools and the fraternity hazing of American Ivy-league universities. It’s insidious and psychologically damaging, I have no doubt, and certainly enough to turn a mild-mannered student/soldier into a sadistic maniac. And so it spreads and spreads… It’s a sickness and it definitely needs to stop somehow but our society seems to be getting more aggressive and more power-hungry, not less, so I have to wonder how.

On a similar note, Clayton mentions that “I find anyone that takes the actions of the few (or the one), the perceptions conveyed by Hollywood, or the media and paints the 290 million of the rest of us with the same brush to be a little bent” and of course it is bent, but all too common.

Funnily, it was brought home by a TV programme this evening. The show’s called “How to get a New Life” and it’s about British families who wish to emigrate to various places around the world. I was amused by the family who was convinced that life in the US would be some sort of paradise; that American life was “more laid-back” and that there were more opportunities than in Britain. Considering that the reality is that although the cost of living is lower, Americans work the longest hours of any western country and unemployment there is 5.7% compared to the UK’s 4.8%, one can only assume they’d been watching too much OC.

But I’ve found this the case wherever I’ve gone. Many people truly believe that America is just like it is in the movies - but only the good bits of the film! Los Angeles, for example, is commonly believed to be some sort of paradise and I can honestly say it is nothing of the sort!

So, sadly, people really will tar everyone with the same perceptual brush. That said, if it’s any consolation, memories are short and perceptions will change in time. But only if we all change our ways pretty sharpish, I think.

[edit - Indeed, it appears to be inevitable without careful supervision. A BBC article that references the Stanford Experiment from 1971.]

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