Piss on War

From Vermont Commons:

I know it's a horrible image. No, it is an UNBEARABLE image. But as the essay that follows makes so clear, this is what war is. This is what we are when we support war and the people and institutions that wage them. So look.

By Hamilton Nolan, reposted with permission from Gawker

A video emerges showing US Marines pissing on three Taliban corpses in Afghanistan. Theoutrage machine grinds into motion. The media bestirs itself from its slumber. Americans momentarily pay attention to the war in Afghanistan again. Politicians rush to add their names to the chorus of identical statements. All inflamed over the least bad thing that soldiers do in war.

Do you know what is worse than having your dead body urinated upon? Being killed. Being shot. Being bombed. Having your limbs blown off. Having your house incinerated by a drone-fired missile that you don't see until it explodes. Having your children blown up in their beds. Having your spouse killed. Having your hometown destroyed. Being displaced. Becoming a refugee. Having your entire life destroyed as a consequence of political forces far, far beyond your control.