So often in war, we don't seem to see the real sights of the carnage. We here in America are shielded from the violence that takes place. The media is all to happy to show us grainy, green night footage of bombs exploding in the middle of populated cities, but they won't give us a close up of a bloody face or a dead child. These, after all, are too strong of images for us to manage. We can't even be allowed to see the coffins of dead American soldiers coming home--that might offend the sensibilities. This has been the case for at least the last few wars, so far as I can remember. I do not know what kind of images were widely disseminated in wars before the first Iraq war.
The images are out there, though, and I believe there is an importance in seeing them. As Americans, we are involved in this Iraq war whether or not we have supported it. This is Bush's war, yes, but as Americans we bear at least part of its burden. Even for those of us in America who disavowed this war from the very beginning, we will be forced to deal with its consequences for years to come. When George Bush invaded Iraq, he did it representing America. As such, any and all Americans must suffer the results of his actions.
Thus, we must do our best to fully comprehend the meaning of this war. We must do our best to truly understand the realities of it, the brutalities of it and the marks that it will leave in Iraq, in America, and throughout the world.
Many of these pictures are graphic. I urge you to view them anyway. We need to understand the current costs of this war so that we may better understand and face the future costs.