Ten years ago today WikiLeaks ‘Collateral Murder’ video was published, depicting a horrific scene on a Baghdad street in 2007. Here is a talk by the one U.S. soldier who sought to save young victims of an American massacre.
Soldier Reveals What Happened on
Baghdad Street; WikiLeaks Webinar
On 10th Anniversary of Video’s Release
Consortium News
Ethan McCord was a U.S. soldier on patrol in Baghdad in July 2007 when he came upon a scene he says he’d never encountered. Lying dead on a street were inanimate objects that turned out to be dead civilians, slain in cold blood by a U.S. Apache helicopter still filming the carnage from above.
McCord found a child still alive in a civilian van the US soldiers had gleefully struck. She had a stomach wound and glass in her eyes. The soldier carried her away to seek help, as seen in the cockpit video that U.S. Army intelligence officer Bradley Manning would soon pass to WikiLeaks. It was published on April 5, 2010, alarming the Pentagon and putting WikiLeaks on the map.
Later on Sunday, register to view a webinar with Editor-in-Chief Kristinn Hrafnnson, scholar Nozomi Hayase and Col. Ann Wright on the release of “Collateral Murder.” Hrafnnson traveled to Baghdad to meet the two children that McCord saved. The link to the webinar is below.
Here is a 17-minute talk given by McCord to the United National Peace Conference, in Albany, NY over the weekend of July 23-25, 2010. It was produced by the United National Peace Conference Media Project, the Sanctuary for Independent Media and the Hudson Mohawk Independent Media Center. McCord puts the events in context, explaining that U.S. military killing of Iraqi civilians was routine. He also exposes the reaction of the command to his actions to save the life of an innocent girl.
Here is how to register for Sunday’s webinar.
We're excited to announce that @AnnWright46 will be chairing tomorrow's online event
Collateral Murder: 10 Years On, with WikiLeaks' @khrafnsson and @nozomimagine.
Sunday Apri 5
5pm BST/ 6pm CET/ 12 EST
Register: https://t.co/4mzuefmPUe
Simulcasts via twitter, facebook, Youtube pic.twitter.com/nJZ5Uur4he— Don't Extradite Assange (@DEAcampaign) April 4, 2020
Well done Mr. McCord! Very well done!
We continue to talk about everything but the worthless government that gets us into these tragedies.
Suffice to say that America has a few generals and fake leaders who need to be in the HAGUE.
People elected to high office like the “Village Idiot from Crawford Texas, and far too many who were never elected to anything are responsible for selling lies to the public.
Americans get too much credit from D.C with respect to having some concept of “the public discourse”. When less than half of those of voting age in this country fail to vote and then when they do the U.S. gets a leader like the Supreme Leader. I see the theory of the Overton Window and the idea of the public (political) discourse as being terms that D.C. uses to tell us what it is we believe. To believe otherwise is laughable.
Jeff Morley has a post at his Deep State Blog, “Three Questions for the Investigators of the COVI19 Intelligence Failure, in his post he relates a story about a Cipher Brief group call. He asks former H.S. chief Micheal Chertoff about ODNI’s buried spot on warning about a pandemic and whether the failure to communicate it was an intelligence failure. Chertoff ducked the question by asserting, “There is always the issue of what the consumer [meaning the rest of government and the White House]wants. to hear.”
The shades of Allen Dulles are upon us, the public discourse be damned.
Morley’s piece is well worth reading in it’s entirety .
Thanks all at CN
well put:”the shades of Dulles”
It is hard to believe so few people don’t see why the rest of the world does not see the US as their savior, as we believe they should. This is just one example of what has been going on since WWII all over the world.
I notice wikipedia needs an Ethan McCord page
This video combined with Ethan’s commentary has become a complete documentary film.
Bradley(now Chelsea’s) leaked video was amply shocking, disgusting and revealing as it included the crude morbid comments of the helicopter crew.
Now Ethan has, while showing bravery by doing it, provided an on the ground addition just as if a reporter showed up and started interviewing witnesses. By providing the reactions to those around him; the one soldier who puked vs. the sergeant who told him to “suck it up “; he exposed how rotten and sociopathic the US military has become; as well as counterproductive to their own alleged goals. No wonder they can’t win a war. Most of what they do ,when they go in, is create a lot more enemies than when they started.
“I am a US military Vietnam combat vet”; now why TF I have to preface my point of view shows just how F’d up Americans minds are, why should my view upon viewing this horrible murder, hold more validity than one who was never in military?
The historical evangelical like elevation of US military as being heroic and above criticism is much akin to Christian bs of, “Don’t ask reasons why the answers belong to the bye and bye”; a matter of faith not in a godhead but in men who act in gods stead choosing who shall live and who shall die.
Let me, who is but a singular man, whose lifes exeriences have led to not an opinion but a personal knowledge of that there are men and women who enjoy killing, want to kill, and one can find them in all walks of life.
The military are volunteers, and for one to volunteer for combat occupation status, of course the concentration of that mindset will predominate.
Yet those in combat arms are supported not just by the I to 8 of uniformed military but by hundreds to 1 of civilians all involved in making war.
That over 350 millions of US population feel no shared guilt cannot be explained by lack of knowlege, but more by deliberate ignorannce and a deliberate callousness towards others towards lives of others.
The surrendering by volunteers of free will and the escapism allowed from personal responsability, even surrendering decisions over life and death, added to the large portion of populace who claim victimhood of soldiers, should be seen as claiming humanity is no different than that of herd animals, predators and those preyed upon.
I was born and raised in US, but priveledged to wander out of its borders, and while within its borders was indoctrinated into believing that we the people governed our national character, we choose those who represent our views and can condemn and remove those who violate that charcter, all of which was-is a blatant lie or else the characters within US borders, are predominately are of low base character or are indeed mentaly become much like animal life, living from moment to morent, driven by events they have no control over.
All military actions in Iraq are by predatory animals, there was even a lack of fears of starvation or survival need in attacking them, actions were more along lines of animalistic sensing weakness and smelling blood we attack.
Listen again to tone of voices begging for approval to kill, anxious they will be denied an opportunity, that is maybe one reason, and.having heard such wanton words and behaviors of others and possability by themseves, that some of us add the preface, “Am an ex-military combat vet” even knowing full well it is in itself neutral as far as supporting or objecting to such murdering by the military, because most of populace do not give a fly’n pig about your opinion if it challenges their “beliefs”
Amen.
Vietnam was not voluntary, there was a draft then.
I wonder if this is what Krystal meant by “A New American Century”?
iwas unable to watch on sunday. is there some way i can access it when my computer gets fixed?
thank you, nadja chamberlain, nadjacr444@gmail
We must do all possible to free Assange, exonerate both him and Manning. And, we cannot continue to absolve Obama who when after these two and in total, more whistleblowers than all presidents before him combined … and far more viciously. As well-spoken and diplomatic as Obama was able to present himself publicly, as well- supported when first elected to the Presidency both by the public and a Democratically controlled congress, it is my view that he became the greatest tragedy of our time as he embraced the thinking, the policies of those who are referred to as ‘neo-cons’ on both sides of the aisle. Absent a strong moral compass, he continued to lead this country down the path of greed, excessive wealth, murder (Osama Bin Laden) – no trial, no jury, no defense counsel – eight years reinforcing and expanding the worst of public and foreign policies that contribute to enabling Trump.
Everyone who has viewed this: Please write to the British Embassy at 885 2nd Ave. New York, NY 10017 and demand the U.K. courts and government release Julian Assange who published the video. Giving the public the truth and exposing the murders of the journalists and citizens in the video is not a crime. Write also to Priti Patel, the British Home Secretary: 2 Marsham Street London, SW 1P 42F to grant bail to Julian Assange as he is not a violent criminal nor has he ever been charged with anything before he becomes a victim of the C- virus as it is now in the prison and he is most vulnerable after years of psychological torture and lack of medical treatment for severe physical ailments. PLEASE EVERYONE DO THIS IMMEDIATELY! There is very little time to waste. Call the Whitehouse and your congressional Reps. Tell them to drop the extradition request and TO STOP MEDDLING IN THE BRITISH COURT PROCEEDINGS.
Tulsi Gabbard had to know this was going on. Why did she not take off her uniform and shout from the rooftops about this. It was happening every day. And she still brags about serving her country—as an accessory to murder?
I believe that the major part of her platform was to stop these senseless “regime change” wars. There is only so much you’re allowed to say and still have access to the MSM. She crossed that line and was excluded from further discussion. No doubt she was fooled into joining the military by the events of 9/11, but she was young (and still is) and had a lot to learn. Her service was in a medical unit. I wouldn’t call that an “accessory to murder.” There are many in the military who become disenchanted once they see the reality of war, but they are trapped once they’re “in theater”.
I have always had my doubts about Tulsi, but supported her as the only “peace” candidate from a major party. She did get a valuable message out during her limited exposure, and was the most googled candidate during each debate she appeared in. Her support for Biden is what I find most troubling on many levels. I believe she may be supporting Biden to help her win her $50m lawsuit against the wicked witch of the east. Per the usual pattern, I will once again vote Green Party in the general election.
Americans have become brainwashed on a massive scale so ANYTHING the US military does is considered, WITHOUT QUESTION, to be the “right thing” to do. Here are a few factors I consider to be important to keeping Americans “in support” of USA’s military adventurism-
1) lack of education about things, including history, wars, crimes, etc.
2) denial about “your guys” being the bad guys.
3) fear of possessing an “un-American” attitude or perspective- fear of being socially ostracized.
4) US educational systems include all the lies of the government, maintain government coverups and dissuade students from “controversial” topics. Schools are there for indoctrination instead of REAL factual education!
5) propaganda from the mainstream media AND government “leaders” to support wars by using fear and lies.
6) soldiers are generally supported by their families and friends and when there IS a draft, those soldiers coming back in coffins makes people question the “reasons” for the wars.
7) A more “professional” military, plus mercenaries for hire, makes these combatants look more “professional” and they get more respect from being a murder technician!
8) Wars are glamorized in movies, making many young people want to join in the fun.
Hate + ignorance = wars.
Ask Captain Crozier what happens when you try to take the absolutely most moral course of action in the U.S. military though it may reflect badly on your “chain of command.” Equally dire consequences would have befallen Tulsi had she spoken out sooner and more stridently. Then she never would have had a podium from which to inform the public. There is being purely idealistic and immediately reactive which gets you the Chelsea Manning treatment by the “guardians of our American freedoms,” and there is the realistic approach which allows you to gather the facts, recruit influential allies and build a bridge to the public through powerful institutions like the media and the government. (I know there are frauds who only make you think they are doing this: Obama was one such.) She tried changing the system by working through it. She was slapped down hard by the establishment in her first attempt. I hope she comes back, as they say tanned, rested and ready, for another go in four years time.
I just hope that Chelsea is in a secure location and is planning an escape from the US. The bastards aren’t finished with her. I hear Cuba would be about the only viable sanctuary, as they are not nuts about the trans issue.
And the cowards are those who perpetually support war and send someone else to do their fighting for them while they stay at home safely; warm, cool, plenty to eat, dry, clean, free to travel without fear of being attacked, having sex with their wives and girl friends and making more and more money. And feeling self sanctified. They could care less about the deaths of innocent people, until, maybe, just maybe, it’s one of their own people. And even then, their pain is doubtful. They have their money.
On a summer day in 2006, the woman I was dating and I went to her daughter’s home to pick up her grandchildren. A friend of the daughter’s husband happened to be there. He was enlisted—on leave, yet “excited” to return to Iraq for another “tour”. Bluntly speaking, he basically conveyed that he enjoyed killing and that it was not only encouraged by his command, but also that it was something of a competition, a matter of “belt-notching”.
The revulsion I felt that day has never left me.
Watched this video – oh my. Thank you Nathan McCord for coming to your senses and to your humanity during the time of your involvement. Think about this – upon release of this video ONLY those who were responsible for it coming to light were punished and not those who committed or encouraged the murders it clearly shows. This is what is done in our names, it’s called MURDER. There is NO justification for it – NONE at all. What are we doing ?