Soldier rapes Iraqi child, kills her family. Hate crime?

Forums: Politics
Email this Topic • Print this Page

Quote:

One of four U.S. soldiers accused of raping a 14-year-old Iraqi girl last spring and killing her and her family pleaded guilty Wednesday and agreed to testify against the others.
.....
The defendants are accused of raping the girl and burning her body to conceal their crimes, then killing the girl's father, mother and 6-year-old sister.
.....
Barker said he and the others were drinking and playing cards while they manned a traffic checkpoint. Green brought up the idea of raping the girl and killing her family, he said.
.....
"I hated Iraqis, your honor," Barker answered. "They can smile at you, then shoot you in your face without even thinking about it."

....probably a similar sentiment exists toward American soldiers who come to liberate a country, rid them of a "madman", but rape and murder innocent families and children.

FoxNews Link

Topic Stats
Top Replies
Link to this Topic

Type: Discussion • Score: 1 • Views: 681 • Replies: 8

No top replies

Personality disorder?

0 Replies

Isn't rape defined as a hate crime?

0 Replies

Quote:

"I hated Iraqis, your honor," Barker answered. "They can smile at you, then shoot you in your face without even thinking about it."

Doesn't this statement define it as a hate crime? He pretty much handed the prosecutor the fact that he hates Iraquis, and that is who he targeted.

Is the punishment for hate crimes more severe that the punishment for war crimes?

I hope this guy doesn't get off because he turned evidence on his friends,
but it makes you wonder how many other times crimes like these are committed in war (not only by Americans, but by any people who are at war with another-because in order to look at someone as your enemy, I think you need to be able to view them as less than human).

We probably look at a lot of situations as collateral damage, when in reality war gives those with "personality disorders" (as Miller said) free reign to manifest their own twisted psychoses.

0 Replies

Soldiers come out of our society, there's good ones & bad ones, the fact that they are a soldier has nothing to do with it.
This guy that said he raped because he hates Iraqis probably has hate for others not like him too. People like him are animals.

0 Replies

I agree that there are good and bad soldiers, but I disagree with the fact that these guys were soldiers had nothing to do with their crime.

I think their roles as soldiers, being treated as an enemy of Iraqi people and considering themselve to be enemies to them, influenced their views of Iraqi's - obviously negatively.

I think being surrounded by constant death and violence probably desensitized them to it, and maybe enabled them to do something they may not have done otherwise, either because they thought it'd be easier to get away with it in the situation they were in, (after all what's another dead Iraqi family when you already have thousands of them) or out of sheer mob mentality and loss of normal and prevailing values.

I agree with Miller that these particular soldiers had underlying personality disorders and/or psychosis - and maybe they would have eventually raped or murdered someone as civilians, but I definitely think the setting and their role in it had something to do with their crime.

I don't think this in any way excuses them. If anything, I think it makes their crime more despicable because they've abused their power as supposed "liberators".

0 Replies

aidan wrote:

I agree that there are good and bad soldiers, but I disagree with the fact that these guys were soldiers had nothing to do with their crime.

I think their roles as soldiers, being treated as an enemy of Iraqi people and considering themselve to be enemies to them, influenced their views of Iraqi's - obviously negatively.

I think being surrounded by constant death and violence probably desensitized them to it, and maybe enabled them to do something they may not have done otherwise, either because they thought it'd be easier to get away with it in the situation they were in, (after all what's another dead Iraqi family when you already have thousands of them) or out of sheer mob mentality and loss of normal and prevailing values.

I agree with Miller that these particular soldiers had underlying personality disorders and/or psychosis - and maybe they would have eventually raped or murdered someone as civilians, but I definitely think the setting and their role in it had something to do with their crime.

I don't think this in any way excuses them. If anything, I think it makes their crime more despicable because they've abused their power as supposed "liberators".

People of differing races do some of these same things to other races simply because they don't like the color of the skin, or maybe the slant of the eye.
I agree, desensitized probably had a lot to do with it, byt how many people are killed/raped in this country regularly because of hate?

0 Replies

Quote:

I agree, desensitized probably had a lot to do with it, byt how many people are killed/raped in this country regularly because of hate?

Too many - I won't argue with that for a minute. I do think this was hate. I also think at least the spokesman for the group sounds like he's racist. They also obviously have issues with women and the need to feel powerful and to prove they can exert power and control over fourteen year old girls. They sound like some sick individuals.

But I can't deny that the war provided the opportunity and a convenient setting for their sickness and anti-social behavior.

I guess the question to ask is if any of them had participated in anything like this before they got to Iraq?

But again, I think taking advantage of the setting and opportunity just makes them bigger cowards, and so deserving of harsher punishment than they'd receive as civilians.

0 Replies

aidan wrote:

Quote:
I agree, desensitized probably had a lot to do with it, byt how many people are killed/raped in this country regularly because of hate?

Too many - I won't argue with that for a minute. I do think this was hate. I also think at least the spokesman for the group sounds like he's racist. They also obviously have issues with women and the need to feel powerful and to prove they can exert power and control over fourteen year old girls. They sound like some sick individuals.

But I can't deny that the war provided the opportunity and a convenient setting for their sickness and anti-social behavior.

I guess the question to ask is if any of them had participated in anything like this before they got to Iraq?

But again, I think taking advantage of the setting and opportunity just makes them bigger cowards, and so deserving of harsher punishment than they'd receive as civilians.

can't disagree with anythig you said.

0 Replies

Soldier rapes Iraqi child, kills her family. Hate crime?

Related Topics

Quick Links

My Account

able2know