The horror

And so it goes....

Coincidentally -- after all, no one in our government would be so callous as to use human lives to manipulate the populace, would they? -- a tape of an American contractor being beheaded was released to the media today. Coincidentally, of course, it came to light during Senate testimony about the abuse of Iraqi prisoners.

The video of the beheading of Nick Berg is horrific. Make no mistake, it is barbaric and depraved. I have seen the video, and it's one of the worst things I've ever seen. And it should be condemned by anyone with an ounce of humanity.

But I can't help but think it was released precisely because of the current hearings into the abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib and elsewhere. If the release was orchestrated by the U.S. -- and I'm only speculating that might be the case -- it will have the effect of inflaming the passions of many U.S. citizens and convincing them that the examples of the abuse of prisoners is mild and perhaps even necessary to combat the kind of monsters who would execute a civilian so cold-bloodedly. If the Pentagon leaked this video for propagandistic purposes, it is a masterful public relations coup.

If the timing is just coincidence, it still serves the violent elements on both sides of this conflict. The violence against the U.S. and against Iraqis will undoubtedly escalate.

It also illustrates the problems with sanitized war coverage. CNN doesn't do feature articles on Iraqis who are blown to shreds by U.S. cluster bombs, or decapitated by daisy cutters. You have to read the International media for that kind of coverage. But all it takes is one gruesome video of an American to excuse all the atrocities that have been committed in the name of George W. Bush and his cabal of Neo-con murderers.

Remember.... all of this is happening because the Bush cabal took us to war -- a preemptive, unnecessary war that was opposed by anyone with half a fucking brain and a milliliter of conscience. George Bush is responsible for Nick Berg's death, as well as the deaths of ten thousand Iraqis and over 700 U.S. troops.

But as I posted earlier, it's all part of the total strategy for global dominance. WWIII is a necessity to keep the bloated, oil-based machine of Western "civilization" limping along until it all falls apart. What happens then is anyone's guess.

UPDATE
Michael Berg's father has his say.