Ireland is right!

My post of Friday has drawn criticism from a reader in Ireland.

Identified only as JD, here is what the comment said:

“I guess your next post will be about how America was literally directly responsible for downing the Iran 665 flight in the 80s and how your then vice president told the world he basically didn't give a crap, because he would "never apologize" for America and he "didn't care" what the facts were.

I suppose America's mistakes aren't as bad though, right?

If you're going to start talking about direct or indirect responsibility for horrific tragedies, maybe you might give some airtime or blog space to all the American weapons in the hands of terrorists across the world?

The hypocrisy of American media on this tragedy is just astounding.”

The individual from Ireland has a valid point. On August 2, 1988, then Vice President George Bush said:

“I will never apologize for the United States – I don’t care what the facts are…I’m not an apologize-for-America kind of guy.”

At that time the USS Vincennes shot down an Iranian civilian aircraft carrying 290 passengers, 66 of which were children. There was a cover-up attempt that still exists to this day and still no apology.

I would hope that Mr. Bush regrets his words. As an American I do.  This karma is ours.

As for hypocrisy, it does not belong to the American media, it sits squarely in the actions of our government and its leaders. The American media is however guilty of not doing its job, not doing due diligence to uncover the facts and being responsible to speak truth to power.

It is also arrogance for America to point an accusing finger at Russia for supplying arms and training to the separatists when the United States for the five-year period ending in 2013 was the leading supplier of major weapons around the world at 29 percent. Russia 27 percent, Germany 7 percent, China 6 percent and France 5 percent.

If we, the collective citizen we of the world, want a path to global peace, then we must support leaders who will end the hypocrisy and the sale of arms to anyone who can pay for them. Only then will the tragic mistakes of war begin to end.

Thank you JD in Ireland.