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Date:         Mon, 4 Jan 1993 06:43:38 EST
From:         Thomas Varouhakis <varouhak@ICARUS.MONTCLAIR.EDU>
Subject:      Re: Responses to Mideur-L posts on the Balkans, #1 of 8
Comments: To: Forum for the Discussion of Politics <POLITICS@ucf1vm.cc.ucf.edu>
Comments: cc: Multiple recipients of list POLITICS <POLITICS@ucf1vm.cc.ucf.edu>

>
> >> Germans are aware, I am sure, that Nazi Germany had 30 divisions
> >> in Yugoslavia in WW2 and did not accomplish all that much

> > Why do we have to care about issues like "Greeks (a NATO country)
> > are sympathizing with the Serbs" and "Romanian volunteers are
> > fighting in the Serbian Army, etc". We all know that each side has
> > moved back into barbaric anarchy at one point or the other.

I don't know of what kind of "barbaric anarchy" Greece has been
envolved lately, but if you really want to watch a "world class" (as
Perot would call it) "barbaric anarchy" why don't you turn to the
videos of the not so distant LA Riots?


> > ground troops.Modern technology can be used against snipers who
> > terrorize the population. (I am interested in discussing technical

It's very obvious that some people never learn. Modern technology will
do little in this area. Modern technology did MUCH less than what the
glamorizing Pentagon reports initially said; anybody heard of the
recent reports about the patriot missiles success -a couple of years
after the war was over??? (maybe the $25 hammers, and the $600 toilet
seats have something to do with it). Any serious military effort will
require hundreds of thousands of ground troops, and if the Serbs
choose to fight it will be very bloody indeed... Now if the
administration would want to risk that, the American people might be
interested to find out what the foreign policy apparatus has done to
avoid reaching this state; indeed very little to nothing; Greece very
early in the process warned about the outcome of an
uncontrolable/rushed break-up of Yugoslavia.  Few listened; The west
should have never rushed to recognize Croatia, Bosnia, etc before a
negotiated settlement was in place. When Germany riding high from the
unification (it is in an obvious crash landing now), rushed to
recognize Croatia very few (if anyone) publicly objected.

As for the American News media their coverage of the story has been
pathetic. (What should one expect from them, when by their own
admission they were taking for a ride in the coverage of the Gulf
war?). Even the mighty NY Times reports on 1-4-93 that the whole
conflict is more or less the "consequences of the Serbs' historical
complexes and defeats" of an "otherwise perfectly moral people." And
that's from the only paper worth reading in the NY metropolitan
area... For signs of totally unbiased coverage the same reporter calls
the Serbians who might have committed attrocities "nationalists" but
the Muslim and Croatians who migh have commited attrocities
"fighters", when the paper on the same page reports that in fact only
44% of Bosnia is Muslim.

For a country with so many race problems, that even envolved a very
bloody civil war, and with discrimination that continues to these days
in one form or another, one might expect journalists to exercise some
restrain from making judgements and taking sides into a conflict so
deep rooted that involves ethnic origin, religion, a 500+ year
occupation of Serbs by muslims, as well as a 700,000 to 1,000,000
Serbs killed by Croat/Muslim Nazi Collaborators.

Well, maybe there's still some hope for a negotiated settlement of the
whole situation before it escalates even further. Ironically hard-line
leaders like Milosevic might be easier to deal with because they
command respect from their compatriots, and they certainly don't have
to prove their patriotism, so it's easier for them to compromize.
(Beggin of Israel -one of its most herdline leaders- actually traded
land for peace with Egypt).


>
> VMS
>

Thomas-
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