Can someone please tell me why the US didn't step in to save lives...?

sarge927

You know, there were a lot of people in the U.S. Armed Forces (myself included) that would have jumped at the chance to go in to Rwanda and put a stop to the genocide. I'm not 100% sure about this, but I believe the reason we did not get involved is the U.S. has a long-standing policy of not getting involved in civil wars like the one in Rwanda unless we're asked for help. The governments of Bosnia and Kosovo requested U.S. aid, including military aid, in the mid-1990's when their civil war was raging with Serbia and Herzegovina and we responded. There was no such request made by the Rwandan government.

P.S.: I'm very sorry to hear that your days left here on Earth are few in number. Don't know if you believe in God, but I hope and pray that He will be with you and comfort you in your last days.

P.P.S.: Please DO NOT believe everything the mainstream media is trying to sell you. It's almost entirely a tissue of lies. There WERE stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction recovered in Iraq, we DID capture or kill hundreds of al-Qaeda operatives (I have colleagues in all the branches of the service that have seen the WMD stockpiles and the captured/killed al-Qaeda operatives with their own eyes), and the assertion that our military members are killing innocent men, women and children is an out-and-out falsehood -- it's the terrorists and the factions that are fighting for power that are killing innocent civilians. Our troops are doing everything humanly possible to keep the number of injured/killed non-combatants to a minimum.

MikeGolf

Because we do not go to war merely because you want us to.

Besides - if we had gone into Rwanda you would be accusing us of: "going into a country and blowing it up, killing many inncent people, women, and kids are under the pretense of keeping us free."

namsaev

Why should it be the US who does all the stepping in? Why not China, Russia, or even North Korea? All of their armies are bigger than ours. We could have turned the entire country into a glass parking lot. Is that what you want the US to do?

If it's the job of the US to do everything what purpose does the UN serve? Shouldn't it be the UN that steps in in places like Rhuanda, Somolia, Sudan, Palestine, Iraq, and Afghanistan? Why are you getting mad at one thing the US does then getting mad because the US doesn't do something else? The US wasn't the ones dong the genocide thing. Who would you have had us bomb? We do have smart bombs that can hit almost anything anywhere. Where do you want them?

Stretchy McSlapNuts

Here's the brutal, geopolitical answer to your question.

It wasn't in the strategic interest of the United States to intervene...

There... now you know.

Doesn't mean it was the RIGHT call, but I doubt anyone will argue with my answer too much.

I'm as cool as ice cubes

How come we always have to be the "good guys"....It seems like we are in a lose-lose situation. Every time someone needs some help with anything the US is the first country they turn to. But when we do go over to help out other countries every one is saying...hey why cant the US just mind there own business, why do they have to get envolved in everyone elses problems

Sean

Perhaps for once the powers to be decided to leave it up to the UN. Doesn't the UN have a peacekeeping army? Shouldn't they be the ones to do things like this?

bereal1

For one , Clinton pretended he knew nothing about what was happening.. Meanwhile he had American soldiers and any UN peacekeepers removed. Its strange how you interpret this act of genocide different from the genocide Saddam practiced against his people... The US steps in and are accused of "blowing up women and children" regardless of the truth.. That being insurgents, not American soldiers , are using themselves as suicide bombers killing civilians by putting themselves in populated areas.. Hmmm, now you may think "if we weren't there it wouldn't be happening"... Well maybe the insurgents wouldn't be there , but Saddam would and he had estimates of over a million killed.. sounds like genocide to me.... If you really want to know Clinton's reasoning , here is a link to the unclassified documents concerning the US non-involvement... I promise , it will make you angrier and maybe , just maybe , appreciate what are troops are really accomplishing in Iraq...
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB53/press.html

Yura

There was absolutely nothing to be gained in Rawanda. It's time that people loose this naive Willsonian idealism, that US always does whats the best and is so altruistic and cares about interests other then it's own. If you are interested, have a look at the historical involvment of US in Cambodia, Nicaragua, Cuba, Afganistan and Middle East.

To be fair to US, In the Rawanda, it wasn't enterily it's fault. At the time, UN peace keeping force was in the area led by Gen Romeo Dallaire's. He called for more troops to the UN and but no on listened. When genocide came about, he was able to save the lives of a couple of tousand, but he felt personaly responsible nonetheless. He resigned and had mental break down. He wrote a book 'shake hands with a devil' which i think has been made into a film.

Akkita

Can't explain anything Clinton did or in this case didn't do.
The link to 100 days of slaughter gives you the nice press quotes of Clinton's but no action is taken, until his administration ask the Rwanda ambassador to Washington in July to leave...................

In April 7, 1994, the Hutu majority in Rwanda organized and implemented the mass slaughter of the Tutsi minority. In just 100 days, 800,000 Tutsi were slaughtered.

On July 16, the Clinton administration expelled the Rwandese ambassador to Washington. "The United States," said President Clinton, "cannot allow representatives of a regime that supports genocidal massacres to re main on our soil." Taken in April, the gesture and the words might have had meaning; in July they reeked of opportunism and hollow moralizing. The U.S. had broken a solemn covenant under taken nearly a half century ago that never again would the civilized world al low genocide to occur.

Throughout this protracted episode of dithering and caution, the State Department was in tune with U.S. public opinion-at least as it was represented by the mainstream media. An April 13 Newsday editorial asked, "What is to be done?" and recommended "nothing." The New York Times was scarcely more subtle: "No member of the United Nations with an army strong enough to make a difference is willing to risk centuries-old history of tribal warfare and deep distrust of outside intervention." Later, in support of the administration's position, the Times wrote: "...to enter this conflict without a defined mission or a plausible military plan risks a repetition of the debacle in Somalia."

ggraves1724

Rwanda has been in civil war for one reason or another for decades. History tells us that one tribe doesn't like the other or a particular dictator was not in favor with the people. No matter what the reason, the type of murder (genocide) that has happened and, likely continues is a disease of ignorant people and should be stopped at all costs.

The reason for the lack of interest in the troubled country is any ones guess. Considering the head of the United Nations, Cofee Annan (sp?), who is African or least a descendant, has done nothing but provide a token force to the area. That fact alone speaks volumes on what the international community thinks of Rwanda! And, as you know, the US was involved in a terrible situation in Somalia (Black Hawk Down infamy), which resulted in Clinton simply getting out of the country. I can't help but think, our government considers any involvement in African civil war is a waste of time and ultimately is detrimental to us.

Considering the above sliver of events that I'm aware of, it's no wonder nothing has or is being initiated to help those people. A similar situation was occuring in Iraq. Conservative estimates link Saddam to 4-5 hundred thousand murders (genocide) but, we invaded that country for other reasons.

A popular idea through out governments of the world: Civil unrest, as a rule, should be handled by the people of that country. Both, democracies and fair minded nations tend to follow this unwritten mandate.

You are absolutely right about dropping the ball! The governments of the world are probably saying: Whose ball is it and whose should it be? Don't blame yourself for not being aware and know this, the United States, although powerful, is one of a handful of countries that could have gone into Rwanda to stop the genocide. The most logical would have been France, followed by the United Kingdom.

chagganon

U.S. foreign policy is shaped by public opinion. Public Opinion is usually weak when it comes to anything on the African continent.

TAHOE REALTOR

Greetings,

My sincere sympathy about your news. First, let me say that whether or not you are religious or not Jesus loves you and that he died for your sins. If you believe in him and ask Him into your life He will meet you in your hardest hour and comfort you with a peace that is not of this world. If we humble ourselves and ask like a child He will give you all that you could ask for...and more.

As for Rawanda, no one knows for certain, but my speculation is that our country had no political or economic interest and unfortunately, did not desire to be the police man of the world at that time. It is horrible, but our country in history committed its own genocide with the native americans in the manifest destiny.

AFwife

it was a civil war? why are we responsible for Rawanda? Iraq has broken over 20 treaties!?! doesn't that count for something, they WERE working with Al Quada, and we are NOT going over there and killing innocent women and children, SOMEBODY is listening to much to the liberal biased media! i guess you support john kerry to right? my husband is in the military, are you calling him a murderer? do you understand how many terrorists in iraq kill there own innocent people everyday??? THATS what we're trying to stop now, there is democracy in iraq but now ALL of these terrorists are trying stop that, think about it, women and little girls can ACTUALLY go to school now there, for you its a normality for them its a gift

It is in Africa where dark-skinned people live. It seems to me that the government is more concerned with politics and securing their own financial securities. This is what happens when you take God out of everyday life.

LOOTSKA

First of all, I am sorry to hear about what is happening to you, on the other hand you have asked a very important question. I will do my best as an International Peace Studies/Political Science major to answer your question honestly and accurately.

It is my view that the United States as a whole suffers from some kind of massive schizoid sociopathic psychosis that allows them to live a life style unfettered by not only the atrocities their government commits and/or ignores but the impact that the average American lifestyle has on the rest of the world and/or the people who make that lifestyle possible.

The United States is perhaps unwilling to acknowedge their role or lack their of in many genocides because the U.S. was founded on a massive genocide of Native peoples perpetuated by the government that we as a culture continue to ignore. On top of that we enslaved another culture and built our nation on their backs.

If you were to study U.S. history in foreign policy you would find that more often than not, we have supported dictators and genocide over peace. The U.S., CIA, and our military are responsible for supporting coups of governments and the resulting civilian bloodshed in countries such as Guatemala, Panama, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Argentina, Hawaii (we stole it), Puerto Rico, Haiti, the Phillipines, Guam, Iraq, Afghanistan, etc.

The list is too long to list here. See: A Peoples History of the United States by Howard Zinn.

The U.S. is actually responsible for millions of civilian deaths all over the globe, continuing at this very moment in time.

Why are we the strongest country in the world? Because we stand on the backs of everyone else. Every lifestyle choice we make from the car we drive to the banana we purchase in the supermarket, to the coffee we consume in the morning, affects a person somewhere in the globe.

Trade agreements, war, weapons sales, and foreign "aid" all benefit the U.S. and condemn millions to a lifetime of disease and poverty. 100,000 children die everyday of disease and malnutrition.

A genocide on the scale of Rwanda is occuring at this moment in Sudan.

Over 600,000 civilians are dead in an illegal war in Iraq.

The strongest country in the world still does not provide health care, education, a living wage, or job security to its citizens. It does however have the largest defense budget in the world.

We may have a very plentiful material existance here in the U.S. but what are we doing as a culture to the rest of the world?

The U.S. also has the highest teen pregnancy and STD rates out of the industrialized nations as well as one of the highest rates of depression, alcoholism, suicide.

Looking at the broader picture does not paint a picture of strength, but of weakness, ignorance, and brutality that each and every American citizen benefits from in some way.

As a sidenote to those defending the U.S's illegal occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan...there is plenty of info. out there on how the U.S. midwifed Saddam's brutality. We did sell him the weapons and look the other way. Check it out for yourself.

The only thing we're protecting is our national interests, ie: the defense budgets interests.

Soldiers don't protect U.S. citizens, they protect the government and the corporations. The people who fight for equality, health care, education, justice and civil rights are everyday citizens and civilians, not the military.

TIE MY SHOE

there is no profit....america only do stuff that they can profit in them

Michael R

1. Rwanda has no oil
2. Rwandan government never tried to assassinate president Bush
3. Africans never blew any buildings in the U.S.

The list goes on...

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