Emotions of Killing Soldiers - Essay Example

? I always have always questioned why soldiers commit crimes against women and how they can have a conscious and heart to kill other people. This book helped me to find the answers to my questions. Moreover, it allowed me to view soldiers from a different perspective, as I began to believe that they are victims as well. In fact, the author indicated that soldiers are trained to kill and obey orders without questioning their commanders. Not only this, but soldiers are treated violently to use weapons and harm their enemies. I was really shocked to know that many of the American soldiers who went to Iraq and Afghanistan were fighting only to protect their friends (other soldiers). It was especially interesting to find that the military established a brotherhood for soldiers, where each person was to protect the other. Many soldiers express joy when killing their enemies, yet the author indicated that these emotions are far from joy because when killing the enemy most soldiers have no fear and feel like they cannot be harmed. The author also stated that many soldiers face a psychological condition where they feel that they have changed. This can be seen through their actions, yet they feel unconnected to their bodies and minds; this makes it hard for them to find a rational explanation to their behavior. The author also pointed out another fact that was interesting to me, which was that most people killed in conflict with the USA are referred to collateral damage, yet when American soldiers are killed they are referred to as innocents who lost their lives. Not only that, many policies created by the leaders come from using the religion and culture of other nations as a threat to the USA. This is done to reshape the image of these countries to the public toward a negative perception so that people will start viewing them as enemies. Chapter (1-8) The author of the book indicated that it is important to include women in the field of politics, yet many women who are involved in the political sphere do not have their opinions taken into consideration by their male peers. This can be connected to the idea that men are viewed as stronger than women, who are considered to be weaker and more peaceful. I believe that it is important to respect the opinions of women because this will not only help people to view politics from a different perspective but it will also help to understand and recognize crimes committed against women in conflicts. Indeed, the author indicated that many women do not report that they were are sexually assaulted or raped. As a result, it is hard for human rights organizations and the United Nations to recognize acts of rape as a serious issue. I believe that if women are more involved in making policies then more victims of rape and war will be encouraged to talk about their issues. Moreover, the author pointed out that Laura Bush focused on liberating the women of Afghanistan. However, in my opinion, and similar to what I pointed in my QIP, Laura Bush focused more on liberating women from wearing Burqa instead of focusing on their freedom. Indeed, many movements and policies are made to benefit women, yet they mostly fail. I believe that organizations and policymakers tend to view these issues from their own perspectives and not from the perspectives of the affected women. As a result, they end up making policies that do not suit the needs of those women. In addition, this leads to an emphasis on the importance of negotiation between two parties, as it helps each party to understand each side's opinion and then respect that opinion. In addition, I was also impressed with the veracity of non-violent movements that women have led all over the world. This takes me back to the film we watched in class, “Pray the Devil to Hell.” The film shows that when women start to protest the motive was to get rid of violence in their countries. They were able to satisfy their goals by using religious and faith communities to gather as many women as they could find. What was really interesting to me was when those Liberian women decided to protest. The first thing they did was remove all their makeup and wear white clothes. This made me think of the idea that women are viewed as sex tools in conflict. I believe that when the Liberian women decided to remove all signs of female traits, it helped to show how serious they were and that men should stop raping and physically harming them. This could also be seen when the Liberian women decided to have a sex strike. 11 and 12 Chapter 11 and 12 talked about the issue of militarization and how society has a patriarchy that works on shaping the character of men. I believe that it is important to understand the effects of militarization on any society, especially how it can affect human life, both negatively and positively. In the book the author described the effects of militarization on men in a negative way. The ways communities are militarized depend on making the patriarchy stronger by concentrating on armed conflicts (290). Indeed, many men tend to use these forces on the patriarchy, which views men as stronger than women in their homes. This is also done by physically harming them or by controlling their freedom. For example, in the past many Gulf countries viewed men as the dominant power in the family and the family's keeper and protector. Indeed, the tradition of these countries encouraged a man to control his family and for women to listen to her husband and obey him. Indeed, disobeying the man of the family is a sign of disrespect and shame. Moreover, women represent the purity and reputation of the family. Thus, it is important for men to protect the honor of their family by protecting the women of the family. Yet many men do not understand that protecting women does not require the use of violence. Instead women in Arab world need to be listened to so they can express their feelings and opinions. The reason why I’m saying this is because being an Arab female I have noticed from many of my friends that their families respect, listen, and appreciate the men in their families more. This prevents them from doing any wrong actions that may negatively affect their fathers or brothers. Read More