The Victors Make History

The House was discouraged recently from putting forth a bill that would declare the early 20th Century Armenian deaths genocide. The White House and its constituents were fighting the bill, stating that it would damage relations with U.S. ally Turkey. Turkey is a very important point of access to the Middle East and is considered a vital military asset.

One of the goals of the genocide bill is to set a path for defining genocide in order to prevent future violations of human rights. In the case of Rwanda, for example, the U.S. and the U.N. refused to acknowledge the mass killings as a genocide until after the majority of the violence against Tutsis had terminated. The passing of the resolution regarding the Armenian genocide is important in setting a historical standard against massacres based on race or ethnicity. In the case of the Armenian slaughter, there was at least a level of justice offered to the victims in the form of a series of court martial trials against the major perpetrators, whereas justice in modern genocides such as Rwanda is still lacking.

Congress ratified the bill, with the following results: Turkish governmental officials have expressed disappointment with the passage of the bill, citing it as irresponsible of a super-power. Now the Turkish government has responded by ignoring American pleas to stave attacks on the Kurdish separatist rebels. The Congressional has tried to maintain a focus on the fact that the issue is a 90-year-old genocide that happened when some of the current governments were not even in place.


The story of the Armenian Genocide:
http://www.theforgotten.org/intro.html
http://www.armenian-genocide.org/

Pet Peeve: Rush Hour Protesting at the Capitol on a Weekday Morning

Everyone has a right to protest. Not everyone is so smart about it. I'd really like a better explanation linking the Iraq war to global warming, but it didn't really come despite the cute polar bear suits and the ever present Code Pink. (See the video.)



But, you out-of-towners just don't get the security challenges at the Capitol. Not even thinking of terrorism, there was a crazy man who shot two people and killed them, including a Capitol policeman. These folks work very hard, are nonpolitical, and are just trying to keep people safe. Sure, the Capitol has real symbolic significance. But Monday morning? Staffers (not congressmen and women) are rushing to get to work, and you're blocking traffic with a nonsensical chant?

Please . . .

The Ever Evasive Dalai Lama

Last week, on October 10th, I went to see the Dalai Lama on the West Lawn of the Capitol Building in order to celebrate him receiving the United States Congressional Medal. However, the information pertaining to the event was incorrectly listed on the internet (at least the website that I personally visited), and therefore I paid $40 of cab fare in order to see the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. This did not turn out to be all that bad because the Garden does have some particularly intriguing, pleasant, and peaceful works. Still, hearing the Dalai Lama seemed a bit more exciting and eventful.
In order to get my fill of the Dalai Lama, I yet again extended myself and made an effort to see his Holiness on October 17th. For what its worth, the effort included an hour and a half bike ride to and fro to the Capitol and countless drops of sweat. While the Dalai Lama was supposed to deliver his speech "at about" 2:30pm, he did not get to the podium until a quarter after 3:00pm. Somewhere after this time, he delivered a speech. It may have been exhilarating, enlightening, or even heartwarming, but James DiPietro will never know, for he had to ride his bike back to Georgetown University to attend class like the good student he is.
Now of course the speech is most likely viewable online, as everything is, but to be honest, I am quite disappointed and do not care too much about the speech anymore. I am tired of concerts, meetings, speeches, etc. always commencing late. If Grammy Award winner Kitaro, Tibetan dancers, and Richard Gere are to perform/speak at 2:30pm, then just say that on the flyer. Additionally, one would think that Richard Gere would be able to put some sentences together that have some meaning instead of "I see the Tibetan supporters up front, are there any in the back?" While the day was meant for peace, unity, awareness, wisdom, understanding, and communication, I only encountered these principles amongst the mass of people in attendance. Still, it was a great thing and tear jerking to an extent to see so many people gathered for the cause of non-violence. However, I wish the Dalai Lama, or the scheduler of the ceremony, could have been more prompt or honest, respectfully. On the bright side, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden has some nice pieces and I advise anyone to go and check them out.