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November 19, 2005
Kurt Vonnegut: "Suicide Bombers Very Brave"
I disagree. Zombies are not brave. To be brave, you must love life in the first place: US author lauds suicide bombers
But in discussing his views with The Weekend Australian, Vonnegut said it was "sweet and honourable" to die for what you believe in, and rejected the idea that terrorists were motivated by twisted religious beliefs."They are dying for their own self-respect," he said. "It's a terrible thing to deprive someone of their self-respect. It's like your culture is nothing, your race is nothing, you're nothing."
Do you realize, dear reader, the amount of denial that is required to believe Muslim suicide bombers are not motivated by religious belief? Vonnegut is well past the point of no return; he won't be back in the real world.
Vonnegut suggested suicide bombers must feel an "amazing high". He said: "You would know death is going to be painless, so the anticipation - it must be an amazing high."
He shares with the suicide bombers the desire for self-destruction for his cause. Vonnegut's cause, however, is the destruction of the Capitalist system he so hates. The sight of people building their lives without guidance from "intellectuals" like him eats his innards.
Vonnegut's comments are sharply at odds with his reputation as a peace activist and his distinguished war service. He served in the US 106th Division and was captured by German forces at the Battle of the Bulge.Taken to Dresden and held with other POWs in a disused abattoir, Vonnegut witnessed the appalling events of February 13-14, 1945, when 800 RAF Lancaster bombers firebombed the city, killing an estimated 100,000 civilians.
The experience inspired his book Slaughterhouse Five - the title of the novel coming from the barracks he was assigned in the POW camp. The book became an international bestseller and made Vonnegut a luminary of the US literary left.
So, this guy has been anti-West since at least 1945. Why is anybody surprised by his unhinged comments? His comments are perfectly consistent with his hatred of Capitalism in general and the United States in particular. There is nothing new here really. Just the same-old treasonous sentiments Mr. Vonnegut has felt for so long.
(Hat Tip: Dhimmi Watch.)
Posted by Ruy Diaz at November 19, 2005 9:28 AM
Comments
"So, this guy has been anti-West since at least 1945."
Why 1945? because of Dresden? Is that what you associate with the West?
Posted by: actus at November 19, 2005 7:52 PM
Huh? That's what he associates with the West. It is he who wrote that novel, remember? I can barely write a weblog entry. But if you must know my view on Dresden as well as Hiroshima and Nagasaki here it is: congratulations on a job well done Airmen.
Posted by: Ruy_Diaz at November 19, 2005 9:39 PM
I have to agree with Actus here - his recent comments about suicide bombers are crass and idiotic, but until these statements I have never seen him as "anti-west".
Vonnegut is a person who always "turns things on their head", which is what makes his best books, like Slaughterhouse Five, so good. Try reading Breakfast of Champions or its sequel, Galapagos.
Because he has a unique and inventive mind does not make him "anti-west", though he may currently be suffering from an age-related mental impairment to say "suicide-bombers are brave."
The actions of Bomber harris on Dresden's citizens were despicable, and should be counted as war crimes. There is no need to gloat over the deaths of people who were sucked into burning buildings by the ferocity of the firestorms.
One rescue worker described how a large group of people had packed into a cellar to avoid the firestorm above. What he found was a two foot deep layer of melted human fat.
War necessitates some horrific actions, but to gloat over them is unfair, and reminds me of the Palestinians who gloated after 9/11.
Posted by: giraldus Cambrensis at November 19, 2005 11:03 PM
If you think this way now Giraldus, what will you think when I publish my little piece against the so-called "Just War Doctrine"? (The first draft is saved on my computer.) We have serious differences on this issue, I'm afraid.
Posted by: Ruy_Diaz at November 19, 2005 11:40 PM
"But if you must know my view on Dresden as well as Hiroshima and Nagasaki here it is: congratulations on a job well done Airmen."
Not liking -- or thinking its crazy -- what we did in Dresden doesn't make you anti-west.
"War necessitates some horrific actions, but to gloat over them is unfair, and reminds me of the Palestinians who gloated after 9/11."
And the amazing high that suicide bombers must have. oops, I mean, firebombers over dreden
Posted by: actus at November 19, 2005 11:54 PM
KV is stating a simple fact just like its a fact a coalition soldier is brave to go overseas and face enemy fire. Get over all the nationalistic bullshit and look at it from a rational POV. KV could not only be older but perhaps even wiser. All you have to do is think about it. Perhaps it makes sense on a more esoteric level.
Posted by: D.B.V at November 22, 2005 7:41 AM
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