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クリントンの言葉と行い
クリントンの言葉と行ない
今年7月、クリントン大統領が
九州・沖縄サミット出席のために沖縄を訪れ
平和祈念公園で県民に向けて演説をした。
沖縄の平和のためには米軍基地の維持が必要だと
力説したが、彼は今までさまざまな場面で
平和重視とは言えない行動を取ってきたのではないか。
Clinton'S Words, Clinton'S Deeds
By DOUGLAS LUMMIS
On July 21 this year, U.S. President Bill Clinton gave a talk at the Cornerstone of Peace, at
Peace Memorial Park in Okinawa, just before the G-8 Summit.In it he skillfully used the
language and images of the Okinawa anti-base movement to reach the opposite conclusion.
The Battle of Okinawa taught Okinawans to hate war, he said, and it is precisely to prevent
war that the bases are here. If you believe "life itself is a treasure" (nuchi du takara), you
should welcome the U.S. Marines.
What qualification has this man to talk about peace? True, it was once believed he was a
conscientious draft resister. But in retrospect we can see that he was only a draft evader,
which is quite different. From his actions (as opposed to his words) he is the most
militaristic U.S. president since Richard Nixon.
Moreover, the evidence is overwhelming that twice he ordered military actions to distract
attention from his sex scandals.
On August 20, 1998, Clinton ordered missile attacks on a pharmaceutical plant in Sudan, and a
military training camp in Afghanistan. Neither government was warned. This was three days after
Clinton had "apologized" on TV for his affair with Monica Lewinsky. And it was the very
evening Lewinsky was resuming her testimony before the grand jury.
Clinton claimed the pharmaceutical plant was manufacturing a chemical used to make nerve
gas, and that it was financed by the alleged terrorist Osama Bin Laden. But as it turned
out, the U.S. couldn't prove either claim. All evidence indicated that the plant was
manufacturing medicines, and that Bin Laden didn't own it.
As for the camp in Afghanistan, Clinton claimed that there was a meeting of Bin Laden and all
his associates there, so this was an excellent opportunity to kill them. (Since none had been
convicted in a court of law, and the U.S. had not declared war on them, I suppose "murder"
is the correct term.) But as it turned out, none of the suspected terrorists was hit by a
missile. Only some Pakistani troops training there were killed.
On December 16, 1998, Clinton ordered a missile attack against Iraq. This was the day before the
impeachment debate in the House of Representatives was to begin. Clinton said that the
government of Iraq was not complying with the U.N. inspection team investigatingwhether Iraq
was manufacturing "weapons of mass destruction."
But, Iraqi non-cooperation had been known for months. Actually on November 14, 1998, an attack
had been planned, tacitly supported by the U.N., but Clinton personally cancelled it after the
planes were in the air. At the time no one understood why. Now it seems he wanted to save
the attack to use later, in case the impeachment debate started to go against him.
And this man dared utter the words, at Okinawa's heiwa no ishiji, "life itself is a treasure".
[Reference: Chapter 5, "Clinton's War Crimes", in Christopher Hitchens: No One Left To Lie To,
Longon/New York: Verso, 1999.]
On July 21 this year, U.S. President Bill Clinton gave a talk at the Cornerstone of Peace, at
Peace Memorial Park in Okinawa, just before the G-8 Summit.In it he skillfully used the
language and images of the Okinawa anti-base movement to reach the opposite conclusion.
The Battle of Okinawa taught Okinawans to hate war, he said, and it is precisely to prevent
war that the bases are here. If you believe "life itself is a treasure" (nuchi du takara), you
should welcome the U.S. Marines.
What qualification has this man to talk about peace? True, it was once believed he was a
conscientious draft resister. But in retrospect we can see that he was only a draft evader,
which is quite different. From his actions (as opposed to his words) he is the most
militaristic U.S. president since Richard Nixon.
Moreover, the evidence is overwhelming that twice he ordered military actions to distract
attention from his sex scandals.
On August 20, 1998, Clinton ordered missile attacks on a pharmaceutical plant in Sudan, and a
military training camp in Afghanistan. Neither government was warned. This was three days after
Clinton had "apologized" on TV for his affair with Monica Lewinsky. And it was the very
evening Lewinsky was resuming her testimony before the grand jury.
Clinton claimed the pharmaceutical plant was manufacturing a chemical used to make nerve
gas, and that it was financed by the alleged terrorist Osama Bin Laden. But as it turned
out, the U.S. couldn't prove either claim. All evidence indicated that the plant was
manufacturing medicines, and that Bin Laden didn't own it.
As for the camp in Afghanistan, Clinton claimed that there was a meeting of Bin Laden and all
his associates there, so this was an excellent opportunity to kill them. (Since none had been
convicted in a court of law, and the U.S. had not declared war on them, I suppose "murder"
is the correct term.) But as it turned out, none of the suspected terrorists was hit by a
missile. Only some Pakistani troops training there were killed.
On December 16, 1998, Clinton ordered a missile attack against Iraq. This was the day before the
impeachment debate in the House of Representatives was to begin. Clinton said that the
government of Iraq was not complying with the U.N. inspection team investigatingwhether Iraq
was manufacturing "weapons of mass destruction."
But, Iraqi non-cooperation had been known for months. Actually on November 14, 1998, an attack
had been planned, tacitly supported by the U.N., but Clinton personally cancelled it after the
planes were in the air. At the time no one understood why. Now it seems he wanted to save
the attack to use later, in case the impeachment debate started to go against him.
And this man dared utter the words, at Okinawa's heiwa no ishiji, "life itself is a treasure".
[Reference: Chapter 5, "Clinton's War Crimes", in Christopher Hitchens: No One Left To Lie To,
Longon/New York: Verso, 1999.]
Shukan ST: Sept. 8, 2000
(C) All rights reserved
chu.htm
- (見出し)deeds
- 行ない
- Cornerstone of Peace, at Peace Memorial Park
- 平和祈念公園にある平和の礎(いしじ)
- G-8 Summit
- 主要8ヵ国首脳会議
- skillfully
- 巧みに
- antibase movement
- 軍事基地反対運動
- reach the opposite conclusion
- 反対の結論に達する
- The Battle of Okinawa
- 沖縄戦
- precisely
- まさに
- bases
- 基地
- nuchi du takara
- 沖縄の言葉で「命こそ宝」という意味
- U.S. Marines
- 米海兵隊
- qualification
- 資格
- conscientious draft resister
- 良心的徴兵拒否者
- in retrospect
- 振り返ってみると
- draft evader
- 兵役を逃れた人
- as opposed to
- とは対照的に
- militaristic
- 軍事優先主義の
- evidence
- 証拠
- overwhelming
- 圧倒的な
- distract attention from
- から注意をそらす
- pharmaceutical plant
- 薬品工場
- was warned
- 警告を受けた
- affair
- 情事
- was resuming her testimony
- 証言を再開していた
- grand jury
- 大陪審
- was manufacturing
- を製造していた
- chemical
- 化学薬品
- nerve gas
- 神経ガス
- was financed by
- が資金を提供していた
- alleged
- といわれた人
- Osama Bin Laden
- アフガニスタンを拠点とする反体制テロリスト、オサマ・ビン・ラディン氏
- as it turned out
- 結局のところ
- prove
- 証明する
- indicated
- 示した
- As for
- に関しては
- associates
- 仲間
- had been convicted
- 有罪判決を下された
- court of law
- 法廷
- had not declared war on
- に宣戦を布告しなかった
- correct term
- 正しい言い方
- impeachment debate
- 弾劾論争
- House of Representatives
- 下院
- was not complying with
- の指示に応じていなかった
- U.N. inspection team
- 国連査察団
<
- "weapons of mass destruction"
- 大量破壊兵器
- had been known for months
- 何ヵ月も前から知られていた
- tacitly
- 暗黙のうちに
- save to use later
- 後で使うために を取っておく
- in case
- の場合に備えて
- go against
- の不利になる
- dared utter
- よくも を口に出せたものだ
- Reference
- 参考文献