Understanding Why They Raped

[Jim]

Understanding Why They Raped—AmericanChronicle.com

I'm really not sure what to say about this, except "wow!"

There are some situations in life where it is appropriate to do bad things. Anyone might some day find himself in spot where he must kill another person in order to survive. Soldiers in Iraq run into this type of situation regularly.

Some soldiers fight when they must to defend themselves and/or others. They kill people, but it is justified because it is necessary. A small number of soldiers have been accused of killing unarmed Iraqi civilians in noncombat situations. This kind of killing is not justified and is no different from any common murder, although in some instances it may be found that the soldiers involved were under excessive stress, absolving them of legal responsibility and explaining logically what went wrong and how.

But in the case of a soldier who raped a 14-year old Iraqi girl, afterward killing the girl and her family, there is no excuse at all. Strangely enough, Suki Falconberg, the writer of the article linked above, feels otherwise. She claims that the soldiers' stress level should earn them a "Get Out of Jail Free" card, even when it comes to sexually assaulting and murdering children. (I don't imagine Ms. Falconberg has any daughters.)

The problem with viewing the soldiers' actions through the prism of "War is hell" is that the real brutes, thugs, and sex criminals look just as fuzzy as the panicked soldier who lost control for a few moments and did things he would not ordinarily do. If the soldier who raped that young girl were to be unleashed on the non-war zone streets of America, free from the terror of being in mortal peril every day, he would rape again anyway, and he might even murder again. Sexually assaulting and murdering people is not a recognized human reaction to stress, except in the homicidally psychotic. If he would do it in Iraq, he would do it in Chicago or L.A. or New York.

 

[vicki2]

I tend to agree. There are certain social behaviors which aren't acceptable in any circumstance. The problem with the war in Iraq is that so many of them have gotten muddied.

 

[sushimonster]

In no way does morality leave the table when put into stressful situations (war is definalty at the top of that list). Rape is still rape regardless if you are file clerk, a broker or a soldier.

 

[OneofaKind]

I tend to agree. There are certain social behaviors which aren't acceptable in any circumstance. The problem with the war in Iraq is that so many of them have gotten muddied.

I couldn't have put it better. It's amazing that anyone things that they could even begin to justify this.

 

[vicki2]

I have to admit that when the first Abu Graib case came to light with the alleged torture and taunting of prisioners, I was a little ambivalent. Afterall, it seemed like we were dealing with terrorists and insurgents who will kill anyone. It was later on when the situations kept occuring that it began to bother me.

I know it's a frustrating situation for troops, but there's got to be a moral code of some kind and I worry that our code of conduct is slipping. Why? That's the real question.

 

[daria564]

I know it's a frustrating situation for troops, but there's got to be a moral code of some kind and I worry that our code of conduct is slipping. Why? That's the real question.

these incidents are really upsetting for exactly the reason you state. these don't seem to be actions born of frustration or stress - to me, they seem to be the choices of men and women who are treating Iraqis with contempt. i don't want to be associated with a military who would treat people in this way - whether their victims are terrorists or innocent civilians.

 

[Word2Action]

You shouldn't really be surprised. Its a messed up world we live in. Things like this are going to happen as the conflict keeps going and stress levels rise. Its inevitable.

 

[vicki2]

While I understand the stress and frustration in Iraq, it also makes me wonder about our military and today's training. Has the military changed so much in training or have we, as people, changed into people who commit these acts?

 

[OneofaKind]

To stress and frustration you may wish to add confusion.

I'm not sure that things have really changed that much. I understand there was a point in time in history where brothels were set up for soliders.

 

[kokotai]

Are these soldiers under a lot of stress, sure they are. It takes a special kind of twisted to snap enough to rape a person because you are stressed and it takes another type of nut to say they understand. Rape is not a crime of stress it is a crime of power.

 

[palefrost]

I completely agree its necessary to figure out why this happens. As well as why the the prison abuse in Iraq went on. From what i have heard there is a heighten sense of paranoia in the soldiers. Lack of sleep and whats most disturbing drugs (uppers) are giving out to keep the guys alert on long shifts. Heck all this will create behavioral changes in a person. I often wonder if we really can hold these men accountable for the actions they do. Why isnt the government responsible for turning nice boy johnny into a psycho killer? I mean whos war was this anyway? I dont know how reasonable it is to hold the soldiers accountable during WARtime situations.

 

[OneofaKind]

Are these soldiers under a lot of stress, sure they are. It takes a special kind of twisted to snap enough to rape a person because you are stressed and it takes another type of nut to say they understand. Rape is not a crime of stress it is a crime of power.

Interestingly, in a different envrionment from war environments, it's normally the weak that actually commit rape.

 

[kokotai]

Exactly and according to most studies it is for this reason that rape occurs, a person feels powerles in all other aspects of their lives. Most people realize that rape is not about sex but few understand that it is about power. The arguement could be made I suppose that the soliders have done this as a ways to feel powerful in a powerless situation however I think that if this is the case it opens up a disturbing doorway into the effects of modern day wars and how they are fought.

 

[OneofaKind]

Exactly and according to most studies it is for this reason that rape occurs, a person feels powerles in all other aspects of their lives. Most people realize that rape is not about sex but few understand that it is about power. The arguement could be made I suppose that the soliders have done this as a ways to feel powerful in a powerless situation however I think that if this is the case it opens up a disturbing doorway into the effects of modern day wars and how they are fought.

Actually there are times in war situations when men rape women to display their power or should I say conquest.

 

[Paula62]

Because rape is an act of power - that is, performed for the very purpose of demonstrating the "power" of the rapist, it is actually quite common in war throughout history. There is an excellent academic book on this subject, don't recall the details of it right now, but I can look it up if anyone is interested. However, training is critical in an army that specifically wants to avoid that type of power show.

I do think it's important to understand why outrageous things happen in war, so that we can get a handle on what we - society - want to do about them. Understanding is not the same as condoning. Someone earlier on this thread mentioned peacetime thugs and brutes. We understand, psychologically and sociologically, how most of them got that way. We have to understand before we can correct. But we still lock them up when they commit crimes.