Bummer, guys; you're gonna have to find a new whine. This one is going bad by the minute: (WSJ Online- requires subscription) Donny George, the director-general of restoration at the Iraqi Antiquities Department, Wednesday said his staff had preserved the museum's most important treasures, including the kings' graves of Ur and the Assyrian bulls. These objects were hidden in vaults that haven't been violated by looters. "Most of the things were removed. We knew a war was coming, so it was our duty to protect everything," Mr. George said. "We thought there would be some sort of bombing at the museum. We never thought it could be looted." Also this today: Lt. Col. Eric Schwartz of the U.S. Army's Third Infantry Division "said he couldn't move into the museum compound and protect it from looters last week because his soldiers were taking fire from the building--and were determined not to respond." So lets see what we have: a) The most valuable stuff was not stolen, but is hidden away safe and sound (which would help explain the Knight-Ridder report yesterday: Replicas of artifacts, which would look authentic to members of an angry mob, appear to be untouched. The national museum's Egypt collection, valuable but not particularly unique, also was left alone. b) Some specific items apparently were burgled as troops were approaching, rather than looted by the locals http://www.post-gazette.com/World/20030417museumswp4.asp "The people who came in here knew what they wanted," Donny George, director general of Iraq's state board of antiquities, told Knight Ridder. "These were not random looters." Reportedly, the thieves used keys on the display room doors and glass cutters on the cases. Random looters? Ya really think? It also explains how some of the items have already appeared for sale in Europe. Somehow it seems unlikely random street looters have that capability. c) The US troops could have been there sooner, but they were taking fire and didn't want to respond for fear of damaging the museum and it's contents. Your "outrage" over this "disgraceful and indefensible" behavior is looking, well, more and more ridiculous by the minute. Looking more and more like you're going to have to go shopping for ANOTHER new excuse for disparaging America. Sorry. Don't say I didn't warn you.
I wish coalition forces could have done more to minimize and even prevent acts of looting throughout the country. However, why are Iraqis completely absolved of blame by so many people? It's as if these people are saying the Iraqis are too stupid to think for themselves so it's up to coalition forces to prevent them from acting like morons. As with so many examples today there's a lack of accountability for one's own actions.
Right, but the only way to stop the looters would have been to shoot them on sight. But we can't have that, can we? Sachin