Kevin Sites, the American reporter who stirred up the world with his videos of the Marine shooting a wounded Iraqi in a Fallujah mosque last year, has posted the entire video online. He's also given NPR a long interview about it.
More on this from Xeni Jardin at BoingBoing.
So, the democratic process has been rescinded again. The men at the top rungs of government have seized power through a (nearly) invisible coup and there's very little chance that they plan to leave office according to the normal protocols. (considering the litany of crimes they have already committed) This puts the American people in the unenviable position of trying to depose the current regime without resorting to violence. It looks like an uphill struggle all the way.
When the state succumbs to the use of force against its own people it is conceding that it has lost its popular mandate and its ability to win the "consent of the governed". Simply put, it is the end of the government's moral legitimacy (its right to rule) and the termination of the "social contract". The citizen is free to behave as he chooses, unencumbered by the rules and restrictions of the state.
Posted by: Steve | May 11, 2005 at 07:36 AM