Are All Lives Equal? Not According to the Way the US Compensates Victims

El_KabongEl_Kabong Posts: 4,141
edited July 2006 in A Moving Train
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0703/p09s01-coop.html

from the July 03, 2006 edition

Are all lives equal? Not according to the way the US compensates victims
By Anas Shallal

WASHINGTON – Question: How much is an Iraqi life worth? Answer: A lot less than an American or British life, according to the amount of compensation paid to the relatives of victims.
It's hard to get definitive data on compensation for Iraqi victims. However, it is clear that the precise sum of money paid is often done so at the whim of the commanding officer.

This compensation is channeled through a discretionary fund that is given to the field commanders, and the criteria for disbursement are subjective at best.

In the early months of the invasion, the United States paid Iraqis $106,000 for 176 claims - averaging about $600 per claim.

During the siege of Fallujah, where US soldiers killed 18 people and wounded 78 during an April 2004 firefight, the American military commander in the area paid $1,500 for each fatality and $500 for each injury.

More recently the US paid $38,000 for Haditha victims' family members. That comes up to less than $1,600 per person killed. What a bargain.

The most any Iraqi has received to date for injury or property damage is $15,000.

By comparison, the Libyan government recently settled a lawsuit for victims of Pan Am 103, which was blown up over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988. The Libyans paid $2.7 billion for 270 passengers with an average payment of $10 million per death. Shortly after the war with Iraq, the Bush administration pressed for legislation to double the death benefits paid to the families of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan to $500,000.

Last year a Seattle woman was awarded $45,000 for the wrongful death of her cat.

For Iraqis to get a claim paid is harder than getting a rebate on your iPod. First you must have all your documents in order - birth certificates, witness accounts, proof of identity, etc. Most witnesses are afraid to come forward for fear of retribution. Obtaining birth certificates and proof of identity for some is nearly impossible, due to displacement or other mitigating circumstances. Then, you must get "proof of negligence of US soldier from a US soldier or unit."

That's a task that is virtually impossible, being that US soldiers are instructed not to assume blame. The claim must be filed within 30 days of the death along with a phone number for contact, making it out of the question since the overwhelming majority of Iraqis do not have phones.

Furthermore, the loopholes are so complicated that for most Iraqis it is nearly impossible to get a claim filed, let alone paid.

When payments are made, liability is never acknowledged and oftentimes family members are asked to sign waivers to exempt US personnel from any legal action.

Beyond the initial payments there is little recourse for the families of the victim. Until today no American soldier has been prosecuted for illegally killing an Iraqi. Commanders refuse even to count the number of civilians killed or injured by their soldiers.

Under CPA Order No. 17, issued by the Coalition Provisional Authority prior to its dismantling in 2004, Iraqi courts are banned from hearing any cases filed against American servicemen or any foreign officials in Iraq.

Those who were allegedly involved in the Haditha massacre are awaiting a trial.

Waleed Mohammed, the attorney representing the victims, told The Washington Post that he has little hope for a fair outcome: "They are waiting for an outcome although they are convinced that the sentence will be like one for someone who killed a dog in the United States.... Iraqis have become like dogs in the eyes of Americans."
standin above the crowd
he had a voice that was strong and loud and
i swallowed his facade cos i'm so
eager to identify with
someone above the crowd
someone who seemed to feel the same
someone prepared to lead the way
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • catefrancescatefrances Posts: 29,003
    jeez El, what weird warped world do you live in where all people are not only created equal but considered equal by their kind? ;)
    hear my name
    take a good look
    this could be the day
    hold my hand
    lie beside me
    i just need to say
  • jeez El, what weird warped world do you live in where all people are not only created equal but considered equal by their kind? ;)

    I know....I guess such ideas would be considered 'utopian' to many here.
    If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they'll kill you.

    Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.
    -Oscar Wilde
  • catefrancescatefrances Posts: 29,003
    I know....I guess such ideas would be considered 'utopian' to many here.

    and those are the supposed compassionate people.
    hear my name
    take a good look
    this could be the day
    hold my hand
    lie beside me
    i just need to say
  • What a disgusting, ghoulish article! I can't believe anyone would accept the idea that a nation ought to pay out as much to civilian casualties of a war as it does to the families of its soldiers. To compare the United State's actions in Iraq to Libya's involvement is beyond heinous.

    You really ought to be ashamed of this thread.
    Pronounced: (mo-KAY-lay em-BEM-bay)

    "So I made a mistake, ONE mistake, can't a man start over?! DO I HAVE TO KEEP PAYING?! Maybe I should make another mistake... maybe I should make two."

  • El_KabongEl_Kabong Posts: 4,141
    What a disgusting, ghoulish article! I can't believe anyone would accept the idea that a nation ought to pay out as much to civilian casualties of a war as it does to the families of its soldiers. To compare the United State's actions in Iraq to Libya's involvement is beyond heinous.

    You really ought to be ashamed of this thread.


    you're right, we should just tell em 'democracy doesn't come cheap, get over it!'

    we're supposed to be over there liberating them, yet 3/4 of iraqis want us gone pretty much the same % sees us as occupiers.

    so we build em a few fuckin schools (who got the contract? i wonder how many overcharges there were?) most don't have power on a constant basis or clean water! i'm sure from the comfort of your safe home it's easy to push the reality of cluster bombs and depleted uranium weapons (which the un says should be illegal on both counts) they are forced to confront this reality every day
    standin above the crowd
    he had a voice that was strong and loud and
    i swallowed his facade cos i'm so
    eager to identify with
    someone above the crowd
    someone who seemed to feel the same
    someone prepared to lead the way
  • catefrancescatefrances Posts: 29,003
    What a disgusting, ghoulish article! I can't believe anyone would accept the idea that a nation ought to pay out as much to civilian casualties of a war as it does to the families of its soldiers. To compare the United State's actions in Iraq to Libya's involvement is beyond heinous.

    You really ought to be ashamed of this thread.

    you're right. civilian casualities should be paid MORE
    hear my name
    take a good look
    this could be the day
    hold my hand
    lie beside me
    i just need to say
  • you're right. civilian casualities should be paid MORE

    Your an idiot.
    Pronounced: (mo-KAY-lay em-BEM-bay)

    "So I made a mistake, ONE mistake, can't a man start over?! DO I HAVE TO KEEP PAYING?! Maybe I should make another mistake... maybe I should make two."

  • Your an idiot.

    it's spelled "you're" ;)
  • I know....I guess such ideas would be considered 'utopian' to many here.

    i seem to remember reading about equailty on some "document" somewhere...i can't recall the name of it or the country that proclaimed it....hmmmm :)
  • it's spelled "you're" ;)

    Hey, typin' is hard 'n shit.
    Pronounced: (mo-KAY-lay em-BEM-bay)

    "So I made a mistake, ONE mistake, can't a man start over?! DO I HAVE TO KEEP PAYING?! Maybe I should make another mistake... maybe I should make two."

  • catefrancescatefrances Posts: 29,003
    Your an idiot.

    WOW!! what a intelligent response.
    hear my name
    take a good look
    this could be the day
    hold my hand
    lie beside me
    i just need to say
  • WOW!! what a intelligent response.

    I know, I posted it.
    Pronounced: (mo-KAY-lay em-BEM-bay)

    "So I made a mistake, ONE mistake, can't a man start over?! DO I HAVE TO KEEP PAYING?! Maybe I should make another mistake... maybe I should make two."

  • And what did you expect me to post? You didn't say why they should be paid more. You just went for the one-up, like this was the third grade.
    Pronounced: (mo-KAY-lay em-BEM-bay)

    "So I made a mistake, ONE mistake, can't a man start over?! DO I HAVE TO KEEP PAYING?! Maybe I should make another mistake... maybe I should make two."

  • El_KabongEl_Kabong Posts: 4,141
    And what did you expect me to post? You didn't say why they should be paid more. You just went for the one-up, like this was the third grade.


    actually, i'd think the person calling the other an 'idiot' is the one acting like this is 3rd grade
    standin above the crowd
    he had a voice that was strong and loud and
    i swallowed his facade cos i'm so
    eager to identify with
    someone above the crowd
    someone who seemed to feel the same
    someone prepared to lead the way
  • And what did you expect me to post? You didn't say why they should be paid more. You just went for the one-up, like this was the third grade.


    of course they should be paid more. they didn't ask for us to come over there and 'liberate' them. we are in their homeland bombing it to pieces and slaughtering their people.
    If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they'll kill you.

    Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.
    -Oscar Wilde
  • $45,000 for the wronful death of a cat? The world has clearly gone bonkers........how long did it take for the Libyian government to pay up again? oh and btw how disgusting is it that the three leaders (bush blair and howard) who sent their men and women to die in a war that shouldn't have happened actually did well the last time their countries went to the voting booth? thats what happens when the oppositions parties are so weak and pitiful.....
    The wind is blowing cold
    Have we lost our way tonight?
    Have we lost our hope to sorrow?

    Feels like were all alone
    Running further from what’s right
    And there are no more heroes to follow

    So what are we becoming?
    Where did we go wrong?
  • MariusMarius Posts: 40
    Guys, you must remember that Mokele has a different background than anyone from the USA, which would obviously change ways he / yourselves and I see things in this world. Mokele, what would be the right way to handle this be in your opinion?
  • EvilToasterElfEvilToasterElf Posts: 1,119
    You know who's actually worth the least, less than dead Iraqi's even?

    Babies

    Babies are essentially worthless according to insurance, children then aren't worth a whole lot either, unemployed people would probably come right after illegal immigrants etc...

    We've been putting value on human life for a long time. In a society where energy is represnted by money and vice versa it's a necessary evil.

    ...and everyone knows the document said "All American born white land owning males were created equal"
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