It’s not ISIS that is the biggest terrorist threat; rather it’s our own government.

By E.F Nicholson 

It seems like Australia has now signed on to put troops on the ground in Iraq, to combat the evil menace of ISIS, this month’s bogeyman, Assad and Al Qaeda are so 2013. It’s no surprise that Abbott has been gasping to send some troops somewhere to kill some poor people. It wasn’t enough to indefinitely detain and criminalise asylum seekers. No, Big T needed a proper war to show his manly chicken-hawk credentials. So now 600 Australian troops have been sent to Iraq to destroy this “death cult” as Abbott has called it. I assume by killing them, without any trace of irony intended.

Then the beheading of a British journalist has supposedly just sealed the deal of the UK now getting involved, as if they really give a shit. David Cameron made this statement

“This is a despicable and appalling murder of an innocent aid worker. It is an act of pure evil. My heart goes out to the family of David Haines who have shown extraordinary courage and fortitude throughout this ordeal.

“We will do everything in our power to hunt down these murderers and ensure they face justice, however long it takes.

It’s true what he was saying but it’s also very clear that sympathy and compassion is only for those who are killed by our official enemy. I don’t recall any similar statement being made about 1800 civilians, most being children murdered in Israel’s latest carnage in Gaza. Ok they weren’t beheaded by a knife on YouTube , rather incinerated or cut to pieces by US made hellfire missiles. This seems to be somehow less shocking and less news worthy.

Obviously leading the charge is the US, the world’s bully extraordinaire. Obama has committed his air force to basically bomb the shit out of them. Their ability to bomb and murder the “enemy” without killing civilians, is probably as doable as Israel was able to bomb Gaza without killing civilians. Which means, in the process of destroying ISIS, if we kill more civilians then militants, that will be a price we have to pay. This is all ignoring how ISIS is USAs own Frankenstein. Neither will it tackle the root motivation of these extremist, as whatever it is, you could see how bombing them will only fuel their desire and gain them more sympathy. Its too much of a radical paradigm shift for the US to consider there  are some problems you just can’t bomb into non-existence.

In the media the debate its set around the parameters of what should be done to destroy ISIS. Fox news questions “Obama’s ISIS plan: Is it enough and will he follow through?” The Daily Mail shouts out “How many more will Jihadi John be allowed to kill before we get him? Discussion of why and other alternatives just don’t seem to come into the question.

As we are so immerse in our own cultural narrative it is hard not  to see things in this way. As on the surface it looks quite simple. We the “goodies” trying to save innocent lives, spread democracy and freedom. All against them the “baddies”, who cravenly behead innocent civilians and imprison them in barbaric regimes.  Framed in that way, what is there to question?   This narrative is drilled into us from early age and gets perpetuated through media, schools, and other state institutions. The assumption of we are “goodies” is very hard to break from, yet the reality is that it’s not that simple. In fact, with the weight of evidence it points that we are as bad, or maybe even worse than those we deem baddies.

To see this in a honest and factual way, gives context to what is happening and takes us off the high moral ground. As US, Britain and Australia are poised ready to attack, what is left out is this is only happening because ISIS existence is not in the best interest of western power. If for whatever reason it wasn’t, you would find the talk and tone very different. You don’t even need to go far back, as when these same “terrorist” were fighting Assad they were called  “rebels” and “resistance fighters”, even though  back then they were cutting people hearts out. Cameron didn’t vow to avenge these “un-peoples” brutal death. The absurdity seems to be lost of the mainstream media, as David Cameron took a vote to the commons and lost going to war with Syria. If he had won the vote in parliament ,it would have meant arming these very same fighters  they are now hell bent on destroying. Honestly you can’t make this shit up.

Most people are not aware that the US has been responsible for up 10-20 million deaths since world war two and the UK 6-10 million. Some estimate even more, so that figure is on the low end.  That’s three times the holocaust.

Yet listening to the media and the tone of the talk you would not think that .Yet if we don’t acknowledge and recognise what happened, how can we ever stop or prevent it happening again? Thinking that we already have only recently the blood on our hands of over 1 million Iraqis and 4 million displaced, with that in mind, that all caution should be taken. Yet all this is glossed over as we see the US and UK being state identities with extreme  malignant narcissism. The feeling of being special, the sense of entitlement, the taking advantage of the vulnerable, exploiting and bullying whoever they can, are all the criteria for the malignant narcissist  and they are all attributes of the US and UK governments.

Yet all of this can only happen with the docile consent of the public. This why the narrative of  “We are the goodies” is so crucial to keep up. (For a more detail breakdown of how this narrative is built ,maintained and furthered you can read “Why Are We the Good Guys? Reclaiming Your Mind from the Delusions of Propaganda” by David Edwards. ) As facing the reality of what we really do, for many people would feel too confronting after a life time of thinking “We British/US may make mistakes or miscalculations but our heart is in the right place”. We are a nation of good people aren’t we? And yes we are, as all nations are made of good people. The issue isn’t the public’s goodness, it is the fact  that our countries are run by crooks and con-men. As the biggest “long con” of them all is “We do our best to make the world a better place, spreading democracy and freedom where we can”.

This is why a situation like this with ISIS is seized upon, as it fits so neatly into that narrative. We will then just leave out our relationship with Saudi  Arabia, Egypt ect.. and other horrid and murderous states because it doesn’t fit into the neat narrative.  So whatever the west “does” or “doesn’t do”, the public should know that action is only taken if it’s in its own benefit . Knowing this can help cut though the long con and allow the public to see that the most extreme, fundamentalist  and murderous regime, devoted to the God of money and power is  our own governments. To know this we only need to look into the mirror and be honest with what we see.