<< Back 6/5/02 The truth about collateral damage To the editor: I write to examine the term “collateral damage,” which is much in vogue of late. This term came into use in press briefings during the 1991 Gulf War to describe the overkill of conventional warfare. According to the Wordsworth Book of Euphemism, the word “collateral” means “that which is aside from the main subject, line of action or purpose of something.” In the nuclear era, “collateral damage” has become a euphemism for the destruction of people, cities and resources as a result of nuclear fallout, imprecise targeting, “friendly fire,” or plain error. But let’s put a human face on a term deliberately intended to sound otherwise. What does it really imply? According to a New York Times poll following Sept. 11, 58 percent of Americans support going to war “even if it means many thousands of innocent civilians may be killed.” But can we really accept this, both morally and strategically, knowing that such deaths simply generate more? Sister Mary Ellen McDonagh points out that “there are many unintended consequences of war, or ‘collateral damage’ — so many that the CIA has invented a phrase — ‘blowback’ — to describe what happens when short- term warfare decisions come back to haunt those who made them.” ° Consider that Osama bin Laden received U.S. training while fighting the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. During the Cold War, the U.S. government did not consider his fanatical religious views antithetical to “civilization,” but rather saw them as valuable weapons in the fight gainst communism. Though not directly, CIA funding, training and weapons made their way to Islamic rebels in Afghanistan. Only later did it turn out that all that money did more than repel the Soviets; it created a sense of invincibility in the rebels — a form of collateral damage! ° Consider how the U.S. presence in Saudi Arabia (bin Laden’s native land) during the Gulf War and since became a symbol of imperialism for many Muslims, which sparked resentment and led to the Sept. 11 attacks — another example of collateral damage. ° Consider the long-term environmental and human damage of the use of Agent Orange in Vietnam and Depleted Uranium (DU) during the Gulf War and NATO conflict in the Balkans — as these agents seeped into water, soil, and bodies to create a harvest of illness among the most vulnerable. Consider the long-term effects of the sowing of landmines--in Cambodia, the Balkans, Africa, Afghanistan, and now Kashmir. ° Consider the many unemployed the world over, including our own country, who have lost jobs due to the collateral damage of Sept. 11. ° Consider the UNICEF-estimated deaths of 5,000 children per month in Iraq as a result of US-imposed sanctions. ° Consider the over 3,000 Afghani civilians killed by U.S. bombs, and the thousands of others who have died of starvation or malnutrition because humanitarian aid could not be delivered to rural areas because of the bombing. And consider the “accidental” bombing — twice! — of a Red Cross hospital with a clearly marked roof. ° Consider all those who might benefit from health, education, and social welfare programs that could be funded by the millions spent on weaponry all over the world. ° Consider the many Israeli civilians killed by suicide bombers, and the many more Palestinian women, children, and medical personnel killed by Israeli tanks, helicopter missiles, settler sharpshooters, and IDF soldiers. ° Consider the innocent Arabs and Muslims in this country who have been detained by our government or persecuted by racist elements in our society. And consider the wave of anti-Semitism that has swept across the world in reaction to the wanton Israeli savagery and atrocities in Palestine cities and refugee camps. The term “collateral damage” sounds like a necessary and unavoidable side-effect of achieving a worthwhile military objective. But when we unpack it to see the insensitive brutality, human suffering, innocent loss of life and limb, family disruption, and destroyed hopes it involves, can we really continue to condone it? If we value the web of life, we must realize that “the bell tolls” for us as well, face up to the damage already incurred, and take action to prevent more death masquerading as “collateral damage.” Dr. Doug Wingeier, Waynesville