Whilst things continue to go from bad to worse in Iraq, a forgotten aspect of the invasion and resultant war has been the history of that now war-torn country.
Ignoring the culture and artifacts of Iraq may not be a priority right now, but as Matthew Bogdanos, a colonel in the Marine Reserves and an assistant district attorney in Manhattan, the author, with William Patrick, of “Thieves of Baghdad" writes in this op-ed piece in the NY Times:
"With the situation in Iraq growing seemingly graver by the day, Americans are increasingly reluctant to risk American blood to save Iraqi lives. So it’s a pretty tough sell to ask people to care about a bunch of old rocks with funny writing.
But what if they understood that the plunder of Iraq’s 10,000 poorly guarded archaeological sites not only deprives future generations of incomparable works of art, but also finances the insurgents? Having led the United States investigation into the looting of the Iraq National Museum in 2003, I know that millions of dollars’ worth of antiquities flow out of the country each year. And it would be naïve to think the insurgents aren’t getting a major share of the loot.
And what if Americans understood that our failure to appreciate the importance Iraqis place on their history has added to the chaos faced by our troops? Four years after the initial looting — and despite having recovered almost 6,000 antiquities — we cannot keep pace with the artifacts being stolen every day. This continued failure to protect an artistic heritage going back to the dawn of civilization has convinced many in Iraq and the Middle East that we do not care about any culture other than our own."
Ignoring the culture and artifacts of Iraq may not be a priority right now, but as Matthew Bogdanos, a colonel in the Marine Reserves and an assistant district attorney in Manhattan, the author, with William Patrick, of “Thieves of Baghdad" writes in this op-ed piece in the NY Times:
"With the situation in Iraq growing seemingly graver by the day, Americans are increasingly reluctant to risk American blood to save Iraqi lives. So it’s a pretty tough sell to ask people to care about a bunch of old rocks with funny writing.
But what if they understood that the plunder of Iraq’s 10,000 poorly guarded archaeological sites not only deprives future generations of incomparable works of art, but also finances the insurgents? Having led the United States investigation into the looting of the Iraq National Museum in 2003, I know that millions of dollars’ worth of antiquities flow out of the country each year. And it would be naïve to think the insurgents aren’t getting a major share of the loot.
And what if Americans understood that our failure to appreciate the importance Iraqis place on their history has added to the chaos faced by our troops? Four years after the initial looting — and despite having recovered almost 6,000 antiquities — we cannot keep pace with the artifacts being stolen every day. This continued failure to protect an artistic heritage going back to the dawn of civilization has convinced many in Iraq and the Middle East that we do not care about any culture other than our own."
Comments