Babylon's history swept away in US army sandbags

[sabra]

Source: AFP

BABYLON, Iraq (AFP) — Fragments of bricks, engraved with cuneiform characters thousands of years old, lie mixed with the rubble and sandbags left by the US military on the ancient site of Babylon in Iraq.

In this place, one of the cradles of civilisation, US troops in 2003-2004 built embankments, dug ditches and spread gravel to hold the fuel reservoirs needed to supply the heliport of Camp Alpha.

Today, archaeologists say a year of terracing work and 18 months of military presence, with tanks and helicopters, have caused irreparable damage. The Americans remained five months in Babylon and then handed over to the Poles who pulled out 16 months later.

Hands on hips, and wearing a seemingly permanent air of dismay, Maithem Hamza, director of the -- totally empty -- museum on the site, points to the soil: "Look at this land, it is packed with remnants. They filled their bags with them."


Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jvUpUKpfGU3mupF7Xpyb-WMQGQAg

[babylonsister]

1. Add this to the list of crimes the * admin needs to be given credit for. nt

[ColbertWatcher]

42. It's a list that's at least 150-pages long ...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=4611698&mesg_id=4611698

[bulloney]

57. That's one of the biggest atrocities of this Bush-induced war.

Maybe that's why Bush and people of his ilk have a different view of history--they're always destroying it so that they can rewrite it.

[rainy]

61. It makes me cry every time I think about the vast destruction we have done

in that country and to its people. I get sick every time I think of how we could ever repay them because I know there will be no justice for our atrocities.

[saigon68]

86. "Well at least they Have Democracy " stated The AWOL Chimpanzee

He is a Fucking criminal

[The Stranger]

2. Crimes against humanity and against civilization.

We will have a long memory.

[Solly Mack]

3. I know...it is beyond tragic..all by itself...what has happened

all that history...gone. :(

[Boudica the Lyoness]

4. How awful!

The world will also remember how they guarded the oil ministry building and left the museums to be plundered.
The Republicans, and most of the military, had no idea or cared that this region was the cradle of civilization.

[Baby Snooks]

8. Left the museums to be plundered?

They plundered the museums themselves and what they didn't take they destroyed. We have destroyed both a country and a civilization.

I have yet to hear any real outrage over it by anyone in Congress. Including, and glaringly so, the Democrats.

The UN should have intereceded but the UN obviously fears other member nations being "shocked and awed" and I will never support UNICEF again since it has "glorified" the Bushes in their fundraising efforts to help the children of Iraq. The children of Iraq wouldn't need help were it not for the Bushes. Shameful hypocrisy but then the UN is a sham since any member of the Security Council has the right to veto. The United States in particular. The International Court of Justice is a joke. Only "signatories" may be held accountable by the court. And of course Irag, which would demand justice, and the United States, which denied justice, both refused to become signatories to the court.

The standard for the rule of international law was set by Nuremberg and yet we seem to ensured that we would always be immune from prosecution ourselves. As if we are the standard-bearer. We are not.

And things will not change under Obama simply because we will not have an Obama administration but a Clinton administration. The Republicrats have prevailed and the dynasty, and the oligarchy, have prevailed as well. They have manipulated the markets according to some to plunge our economy into chaos. Makes it easier to finally establish the oligarchy.

[valerief]

30. Life is cheaper than historical artifacts to rich people. nt

[Odin2005]

38. You are totally correct except your BS attack on Obama.

"we will not have an Obama administration but a Clinton administration"

BS, total BS.

[Baby Snooks]

46. The cabinet speaks for itself...

The cabinet speaks for itself as does the staff and both speak of the "centrists" maintaining the status quo. Of the dynasty.

[jmowreader]

47. No, you're wrong. They knew exactly what they were doing.

The American occupation of Iraq looks very much like other occupations--the Japanese occupation of Korea comes to mind quickly. Start by destroying the occupied country's culture.

[Nihil]

99. Some were under orders to do exactly this.

Others were just pig-ignorant scum from the bottom of the barrel.

[ixion]

5. gee, destroying irreplaceable ancient human history

we should be so proud.

:sarcasm:

Stuff like this makes me ill. Our complete lack of concern, curiosity and interest about human beings past, present and future does not bode well for the survival of our species, or any other species for that matter, save for the cockroach.

[Chulanowa]

25. According to the bible, the babylonions were the bad guys, so screw them!

I've honestly heard that argument before, that the US looting and pillaging of babylonian sites is god's continued punishment against the babylonians

[iamthebandfanman]

58. its it where the gates of hell appear?

the whole whore of babylon and what not?


didnt saddam want to rebuild the old babylonian empire under his rule?

[On the Road]

110. By That Logic,

the Iranians are the good guys. Cyrus was almost a Messiah figure.

[calimary]

28. Yeah - no kidding. This makes me sick to my stomach. Art major here.

All those artifacts... all that history... HUMAN history. The history of human civilization from its earliest trackable moments. The work, the sculpture, the relics, the pottery...

Oh My Dear Freakin' Holy Beloved God...

This might be the worst sin of all. This is the World's museum. ALL of our heritage as citizens of Planet Earth. It's only "The Cradle of Civilization" we're talking about. It's cost us all the pricelss treasures of ancient Babylon. And it's gone. Lost. Trashed. Destroyed. If we're lucky, some of it was carried off and might be sold someday to another museum by a collector suddenly strapped for money. IF we're "lucky". Just like another fraternity house after some drunken bar brawl there (probably organized and hosted by duhbya during his reckless youth). Just gone. OMG. Talk about the Crime of the Century. This would constitute THE Crime of ALL HUMAN HISTORY. You can't bring back the ancient Sumerians or Babylonians... Shit. Just SHIT. This makes me sick.

:cry:

DAMN YOU, george bush. JUST DAMN YOU.

[Odin2005]

40. When I first heard that museums were being looted I was sick to my stomach.

They could defend the Oil Ministry but couldn't protect the frigging museums? :wtf:

W&Co. let the Cradle of Civilization be looted, fucking looted. :cry:

[truedelphi]

45. I was so very upset at the tragedy of the looting and now to hear this

People just do not get how destructive war is.

While we Americans busied ourselves with watching movies on the evils of the Nazis, who stole the art of the ages, we ignored the history in the making of how our coutnry was out there destroying the knowledge of the ages.

[Nihil]

100. There is a difference between stealing art and destroying it.

I agree that the Americans acted just like the Nazis in their theft of
the Iraqi art & historical artifacts but there is no excuse for the
brainless destruction that they perpetrated.

Maybe you didn't mean it this way but I find "people just do not get
how destructive war is" to be a mealy-mouthed excuse for wanton vandalism.

The main events weren't the result of unfortunately off-target bomb or
a few bullet-holes in the fascia of an ancient temple. They were deliberate
actions with the aim of eradicating ancient history.

[rucognizant]

52. You just finding this out?

I've been smoldering for 7 years....... Artist here!
Pre bush steal, I was gathering Aramco magazines from the library backroom. This beautiful glossy monthly magazine, was free for the asking if you wrote in for it, and one of our townsmen had done that. When he discovered that I cherishe4d the ans was taking them ohoome for my reference file he started dropping them off directly to my house. They featured the architecture, cuisine, lifestyle of the Middle Eastern Countries., ( yes I know it was put out by the oil company in Saudi, but they were still beautiful.) I could check off the destruction riffling through them.....then they stopped! After the bombing in Rhiad...........Some of the contemporary architechture was as magnificent as the antiquities! Ecologically geared libraries with sunlight streaming between modern columns,,,, you won't see any thing like it in Architectural DIgest!!
Back in the 60's when I lived in Phila. I was priviledged to be taken to the basement of the University Museum ( U of P)to see the Persian stained glass windows. They were made of thick chunks of colored glass set in poured concrete ( or something like it)intricite fretwork. ( And what the HELL are they doing in Philadelphia?? No wonder they hate us!)
And bush just appointed a hillbilly singer to a 6 year position on the NAtional Arts Council! ( To judge whether artists deserve a grant or not.
Tone deaf, color blind, buffoon!

:puke: :puke: :puke: :puke:

[calimary]

90. Oh no. I remember when it first happened, and that damned schmuck made the

announcement that nobody better touch the Oil Ministry because it'd be guarded. NOTHING. SQUAT. NADA. ZIPPO about The Museum of Antiquities. NOT A WORD said about preserving or protecting that MOST profound collection of irreplaceable treasures. That's OUR heritage as members of the human species. All six-and-some BILLION of us on this planet. That's our birthright. And bushco just let it all be trampled over, trashed, smashed, and stolen.

It's the Crime of the Millennium. It just hurt, anew, to see another story about it. Just reminded me of the total OUTRAGE.

And somehow... we STILL can't IMPEACH this bastard? We STILL can't hold him accountable??? Nancy? Harry? Barack? ANYBODY????

Makes me SEETHE. All over again.

[Book Lover]

6. That is one, repugnant, way of ensuring a place in history (nm)

[GReedDiamond]

7. The "Bush Legacy Project"...

...goosestepping into (and all over) History.

[DeepModem Mom]

9. I've been going through a large book picturing important art works...

from prehistory on. So far, it's been noted that three of them located in Iraq were damaged in 2003.

[liberal N proud]

10. Typical of the bu$h regime

They have shown over and over, time and again their complete disregard for any protocol, history or tradition.

[Politicalboi]

11. How can the Iraqi's

Be so ungrateful? Bush was liberating them. :sarcasm:

[sui generis]

12. but it was all worth it because the eye-rackis blew up nan-eleben.

I'm completely series!!!1!

I swear I heard that at the airport while waiting in baggage claim last year, and that's just the one "more stupider enough" to say it out loud.

[Crunchy Frog]

13. The most sickening thing of all to me about this whole business.

Killing thousands of people is one thing, but wiping out the early history of mankind is beyond horrible. No wonder the rest of the world thinks we're barbarians.

[cstanleytech]

14. While its sad to lose the history I think its only fair to point out that

this is nothing new and no I dont mean new with the Bush administration but nothing new as in lots of stuffs destroyed all the time even today.
Take for example those huge budda statues a few years ago that were destroyed by the taliban and then theres the Aswan dam in egypt which destroyed many sites when it was constructed as did the recent Three Gorges dam in china.

[rucognizant]

54. Well YEH!

That was the TALIBAN! I was sickened by the blowing up of the Buddahs too.
THEN WE DID IT TOO!
I remember the Aswan damn I think I still have the Nat Geographic with before pix!

[dixiegrrrrl]

63. Remember when people first started asking if Bush was the Anti-christ?

I am waiting for evidence to the contrary.

[12string]

78. The AntiChrist

They say the AntiChrist will be handsome and intelligent.That rules out the shrub.

[zonmoy]

112. the antichrist is supposed to be part of gods opposition

bush seems to be working for god in destroying the evidence of gods crimes and lies.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

15. I've posted this before, but I read an article by a Japanese journalist who was

embedded with some U.S. troops early in the war.

They were traveling along in a convoy when they passed a sign in Arabic and English announcing that the ruins of Babylon were only a few kilometers up the road.

The Japanese journalist was excited at the idea of being so close to such a famous archeological site, but the U.S. soldiers were unable to identify "Babylon" except for a couple of sci-fi fans who had heard of "Babylon 5."

(They actually teach world history in Japanese high schools.)

[Maat]

49. And ... we actually teach world history in our school ...

we're spending a year on it. Of course, I'm homeschooling (through a charter school, under the supervision of a credentialed teacher).

We just finished a unit on Mesopotamia (or "Mess-o'-potamia," as Jon Stewart puts it). This just sickens me. Luckily, we found pictures of the artifacts on the internet.

[dugaresa]

115. they teach ancient history in public schools too but remembering it has

more to do with the individual....I learned a great deal about ancient history in my public school experience.

my child is in a public middle school and loves learning about ancient history...and we encourage further study outside school...

how many parents out there have kids who come home excited about something they have learned and those parents just don't care?

[Lydia Leftcoast]

116. My high school was one that DIDN'T teach ancient history...in the 1960s

We were considered a "good" school district, largely because we were a suburban district with new buildings, but if you looked at the actual academics, you'd find that we had no real world history class (we had an area studies class that they called "world history," but it was just a study of five areas of the world), no AP classes (which did exist at the time), no math past trigonometry, only German and Spanish as foreign languages, no string orchestra.

Attitudes were anti-intellectual, as well, as they are in many parts of the country. It was not considered cool actually to remember what you had been taught in school once you had passed the test.

From what I heard from my friends in college and graduate school, this attitude is not uncommon.

[acmavm]

16. And george w. bush** has no regrets, he knows he did the right thing.

May he die a horrific, miserable death when it comes to be his time.

[democrank]

17. This is deeply disturbing.

I can`t even imagine how Iraqis feel.

[rug]

18. And we said the Taliban were barbaric for blowing up the Buddha.

[sellitman]

20. That was my thought as well.

We are no better than the Taliban.

[Roland99]

19. :-(

[Jackpine Radical]

21. Right up there with the burning of the library at Alexandria.

Well, Bush has guaranteed himself a place in history, all right.

[proud progressive]

22. when will we ever learn that the bigger the gov or the bigger the religion..

the more you and i get fucked!

[Deep13]

23. As a student of history...

...I deeply felt the looting of the national museum there. Now, I've got nothing left in my personal sense of moral outrage. The greed, cruelty and deliberate stupidity of this government has drained it dry.

[Alameda]

24. What treasures have been lost? What other Rosetta stones

will not be translated? What ancient knowledge was lost? This is one of the MOST tragic outcomes of this debacle. Was there perhaps an earlier version of the Epic of Gilgamesh? Maybe we lost another Code of Hammurabi?

[nolabear]

26. By the Rivers of Babylon

I'm posting a long post because I have such complicated feelings about how long and how deeply these feelings have run. I despair sometimes that we'll never learn that vengeance does not alleviate pain; it creates pain. When an individual speaks in such terms we call him (or her) pathological, dangerous, unfit for society. We it IS a society, whether a government or a religion, as long as it's ours, we hold it dear. It breaks my heart, but here's Babylon, in all its terrible history.


Psalm 137

By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept
when we remembered Zion.

There on the poplars
we hung our harps,

for there our captors asked us for songs,
our tormentors demanded songs of joy;
they said, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!"

How can we sing the songs of the LORD
while in a foreign land?

If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill.

May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not consider Jerusalem
my highest joy.

Remember, O LORD, what the Edomites did
on the day Jerusalem fell.
"Tear it down," they cried,
"tear it down to its foundations!"

O Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy is he who repays you
for what you have done to us-

He who seizes your infants
and dashes them against the rocks.

Passage cited from the New International Version (NIV), © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.

[The Stranger]

93. So is this some kind of revenge on Babylon?

I bet that the Bush followers secretly and proudly think so.

[BanTheGOP]

27. I dare anyone...ANYONE!!...to tell me with a straight face...

why the FUCKING rEPUPLICAN PARTY is allowed to exist!!!

I abhor profanity in casual use...so when I cuss it puts a huge emphasis on my statement.

I can NOT UNDERSTAND why the republican party, which has been the umbrella of this insidious hatred, destroyer of countries, and ultimate destroyer of the planet, is EVEN ALLOWED to EXIST. It is NOT...repeat...NOT!!!... a "political" party. The organization by itself makes any indiscretions caused by Rod Blagojevich seem like a minor speeding ticket compared to the mass serial homocide ("homocide," not "homicide;" in this case representing ALL humans, not just one) and terracide (murder of the earth) committed by MONSTERS.

YES, we should imprison all major republicans for life, preferably in International court, but to PREVENT such destruction, we MUST PROSECUTE the MOTHER of ALL ills in this world....the rEPUBLICAN PARTY ITSELF!!

Now TELL ME POINT BLANK why we should do ANYTHING LESS than BAN or DESTROY THE PARTY OUTRIGH!!

OK, rant over....but I'm still angry as hell!

[proud progressive]

33. i share your outrage about the gop BUT if you think the dems are pure, please share with me some of

your stash

[Tumbulu]

53. I agree, they should all be put in prison, period!

I am so sick of the absolute disdain for all things civilizing that they display. Past and future.

[baby_mouse]

68. That's what I think. It really is, even when I'm not angry.

But apparently that would make us "like them".

I still can't quite see how.

[liberation]

97. The GOP should have been outlawed long ago.

Not right wing ideals though, the party itself. I am sure other parties would have sprung to capture conservative ideals. I believe that a healthy democracy must have differing political views and parties, many of them of opposite nature.

The GOP is no other terms a criminal organization. All the way to the 30s, when Prescott Bush (our current president's grandfather) was part of a plot by business leaders and republican senators to OVERTHROW the United States President by force. If that is not treason of the highest order, I don't know what it is. The sad part? Prescott Bush, was not only not hang for treason... but two of his scions reached the office of the presidency.

And don't get me started with Watergate. Not only there were ZERO real repercussions other than the symbolic replacement (on his own terms no less, the little weasel) of Nixon. But vermin from that cabal (Cheney, Rumsfeld, Bush et al.. even Rove albeit indirectly) have been directly involved with directing policy in Washington in one way or another for the better part of 4 decades. And then of course we have the fun and games that was the Iran-contra with Raygun at the helm...

In someways I am astounded by both: the criminal nature of the GOP and their MOs, and the criminal incompetence of the Dems. Because only the Democrats would manage to go in less than a term from a GOP tainted in the worst presidential scandal up to that time (Both Reagan and Bush have made sure they outdid tricky Dick in every respect) to lose in a landslide to a GOP buffoon like Raygun.

If we review our recent history then a pattern emerges: the constant criminal behavior of the GOP, and the constant enabling by the Dems: Roosevelt pardoned (in the interest of "national unity" whatever that means) those who plotted to overthrow him. The Dems were none too eager to allow Ford to give blanket pardons regarding all the feces the Nixon presidency had left on our constitution ("hey if the President does it, then it can't be illegal" right Dick?) and in doing so they made sure they set the worst precedent in our nation's history: the concept that the office of the President is somehow above the law... which destroys the whole concept of checks and balances, and pretty much delivered a mortal blow to our democracy. Many people think, our democracy died with Kennedy... I don't think so, it was when the GOP was allowed to have a president to behave like a king, thus rendering our Republic less so (or none so).


And that enabling pattern continued: It was the Dems who let Raygun off the hook for among other things the Iran-Contra, which again in the interest of "national unity" we were told that we needed to "move on" from what seems to be the biggest case of treason perpetrated by the office of the presidency (of course, it was the biggest until Bush Jr decided to do all the old coots in his party and show them who is the new boss in town when it comes to corruption). And here we are, modern day with Pelosi and Reid not just enabling, but in some cases enhancing the GOP and their policies of detritus.


Sorry for the rant, but at this point it seems that the GOP is the "financial sector" of the politics of our republic, they seem to be "too big to fail" so we must always turn the other cheek and let them get away with murder (literally) in order to preserve our "national unity." I, for one, am quite sick of being told to "move on" to let "bygones be bygones" and to "look forward to the future and let the past be." Because all that bullshit is what enables this vermin to thrive. I am sure, that once this mess is cleaned (if it ever is) there will be a new generation of Bushs ready to resume their family's tradition of leeching off our republic.

Until we get rid of the infection, we will continue being a sickly republic...

[zonmoy]

113. both the democratic and republican leadership should be tried

for bushcos crimes. since both were active participants in said crimes.

Far as I am concerned both parties should be destroyed as criminal organizations and the libertarians become the right wing party and the greens the left.

[HEyHEY]

29. This needs to be investigated, did they just not know? Or what?

[Crunchy Frog]

39. They knew. They just didn't fucking care.

And it would never be investigated because, by and large, the American people don't fucking care either. The sorts of people who do care are scorned as "elitists".

[JCMach1]

31. Just a thought: imagine the looting of the place if they had not been there...

Rarely is everything so neat and packaged...

[Crunchy Frog]

41. If our military hadn't been there at all, there wouldn't have been a fucking war

in the first place.

[Hulk]

32. I'm as anti-war as anyone....but this seems a relatively simple fix...

...considering all the other devastation we have done to the region.

Simply open the bags and sift through the material. Wars have been waged in this ancient land since the beginning of time, and artifacts have been looted, destroyed and moved about. This is perhaps no different. NOT a good thing...but a reparable thing.

The lives that have been destroyed by our presence is much more serious. We all know that the injury, death and "collateral" destruction of property and the displacement of human life are much more a sin than any erosion and removal of artifacts could be.

Minor issue in comparison. Just one more offense to our list of crimes.

[Kolesar]

37. The relative position of the artifacts in the strata is important information

I think that the "continuing turmoil" that the bush government has caused in Iraq is also much more serious. Bunch of Visigoths

[Odin2005]

43. Methinks the Huns and Vandals are a better comparison.

At least the Goths too care to preserve stuff and institutions, when the Eastern Roman Empire kicked the Goths out of Italy then things really went to hell.

[Kolesar]

44. Well, I was quoting Charles from M*A*S*H ... eom

[semillama]

71. yes, without that information, it's all so much broken rocks, more or less

The effects of the Iraq War on Iraqi antiquities will be felt for the rest of human history. Sadly, this is the case for just about anywhere in the Middle East where there is both conflict and poverty.

Of course, Hussein had buried a lot of the ruins under his reconstruction, so that may have protected some of the archaeological remains (the remains he didn't screw up himself through the reconstruction, that is).

[struggle4progress]

34. As the threat of war grows, archaeologists make plea to spare Iraq's treasures (2002)

By Louise Jury
Media Correspondent
Thursday, 7 November 2002

... as the United States prepares for war, an international band of curators and historians anxious not to repeat the damage inflicted on Iraqi treasures during the Gulf War 11 years ago are appealing to the American government to take the historic sites into account ...

... the initiative, co-ordinated by Arthur Houghton, a former antiquities curator at the J Paul Getty Museum, aims to highlight the most important with the hope that the military might just be able to give them a miss ...

Dr Tripp added a grim prediction. He said: "Old Mesopotamia was the birth of civilisation. Clearly what might happen there is quite ghastly" ...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/as-the-threat-of-war-grows-archaeologists-make-plea-to-spare-iraqs-treasures-608656.html

Bottom line: everyone knew well before the invasion that the cultural losses could be devastating, but the war-mongers didn't care and made no meaningful effort to protect the archaelogical sites

[pleah]

70. I'm surprised at the numeber

of people that don't know about this or just don't remember. I remember trying to tell people about what was happening with the treasures and artifacts (it was on the tv news) but, all I got back was "We gotta fight the terrorist!". It was like people were blind to anything else.

[bread_and_roses]

89. I had same experience. We'll be excoriated through the ages for this....

...as well as the rest of our atrocities in Iraq and elsewhere.

[closeupready]

35. While things could have been worse, this is sad. Yet another reason to hate war.

n/t

[Odin2005]

36. WTF? This is fucking indefensible. This is fucking CRIMINAL!!!

:grr: :cry:

Whoever in the chain of command ordered this shit needs jail time and lots of it!!!

[Maat]

48. This just sickens me .... my daughter and I have been studying the "Fertile Crescent,"

and the "Cradle of Civilization."

I can't believe in the level of stupidity. What was lost wasn't the type of artifact that's common - rare artifact, over four to five thousand years old, were lost.

I'm just sickened.

[Baby Snooks]

77. The Cradle of OUR Civilization...

I suppose this is why we have never found much of previous civilizations - our ancestors destroyed everything in their wars as well. And our civilization appears to be headed where previous civilizations ended up. Being forgotten after they were gone because there was little left to remember it by.

[Maat]

92. Sad (n/t).

[Nihil]

101. This will have the same impact as the Spanish destruction of South American history.

The records that were burned as "works of the Devil" by the missionaries.

Also (as others have pointed out) the destruction of the library of
Alexandria due to the "heretical nature" of its contents.

Without evidence to the contrary, the propaganda myths being pushed by
the ruling powers displace the truth for future generations.

Truly sickening.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

50. How odd the fundies aren't outraged over this-

One of the Biblical signs of the End Times is the rebuilding of the ancient city of Babylon (a project Saddam was determined to carry out, before he was overthrown).

No rebuilt city of Babylon, no Rapture.

:shrug:

[baby_mouse]

69. Who's supposed to rebuild it? The good guys or the bad guys?

I can't keep up with Christianity. It's worse than Stargate.

[ooglymoogly]

51. Of all the dumbfuck criminal things....this is the dumbest

Why are we any better than the Taliban who destroyed their own history.

[OxQQme]

55. The Artifacts are gone, but

every piece has been photographed & measured and categorized.
Many more still exist in public and private museums around the world.
Those ancient records tell of the "Ages" of the MANY gods and goddesses.
I say, "It was a pre-meditated attack on the physical evidence disproving ONE god only. And our TRUE ancestry."

I like to think the coming 'Ages' will be softer. Less harsh and militaristic.

We, humanity's future, rest on the fulcrum point.

Thank you, Mr Gore, for the internet tubes. google cuniform, ancient history artifacts, or your imagination,
seeking what was lost to the physical world from this rape and plunder by these evil spawn.

[MorningGlow]

56. 'Twas always thus

Standard move out of the invading-army war playbook--destroy the culture in a dramatic way to establish superiority and demoralize the enemy. I'm sure the Bushies didn't care that the Iraqi people weren't supposed to be the enemy. And this bit of behavior puts us in pretty poor historical company. x(

[bobshin]

59. Somehow, these comments are ironic coming from Americans who

founded this country on the ruins of the native "american" culture they dessicated. It boggles the mind how ignorant Americans continue to be about history. The destruction of Babylon is just a symptom of not dealing with that black mark in this country's own history. Just sweep it under the rug and it'll be okay. And when it happens again shock and surprise becomes very disingenuous.

[tblue37]

60. Philistines. nt

[tblue37]

62. Remember the outrage when the Taliban destroyed 2 ancient Buddha statues?

The whole world, including the US, was aghast that they would destroy irreplaceable relics of ancient civilization. It was evidence of their irredeemable philistinism.

[bertman]

64. An unspoken and unprovable subtext of the invasion and destruction of Iraq by us was

to destroy the remains of the great ancient civilizations that flourished there. So-called Christians like Bush and his ilk of fundamentalists believe that the civilizations that preceded the "Christian" civilizations were ruled by Satan worshippers and their remnants need to be removed from the face of the Earth. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if the hard-core Zionist believe the same thing since the Babylonians in particular were their captors and tormentors.

Those types of people believe only what their leaders tell them. They don't give a damn about history unless it's praising Yahweh or Jesus. They do not want to know how those people lived and what their accomplishments were. Those accomplishments and the scope of their knowledge and their civilizations threatens everything they cling to as reality.

Try to tell a born-again Christian that the Romans proclaimed Augustus Caesar to be born of a virgin before Jesus Christ was even born. Try to tell a fundamentalist that the mythology and teachings of Christianity have filtered down through history from the mythology and legends of civilizations like the Sumerians, Babylonians and Egyptians. They cannot relate to such facts because their whole world view is based on a fantastical mythology that excludes any belief in or acknowledgment of any other possibilities other than those described in their bible. That is why they are so fervent in tearing down the wonders of the old world.

Couple that fanatical ignorance and cultural blindness with the ability to send forth "warriors of god" like many of our military leaders and it is easy to see why Babylon was treated with such shameful disdain.

[deaniac21]

65. Turn your watch, turn your watch back,

about a hundred thousand years.
A hundred thousand years.

I'll meet you by the third pyramid
I'll meet you by the third pyramid
Ah come on, that's what I want, we'll meet
in Mesopotamia. oh oh oh

(We're goin' down to meet) I ain't no student,
(Feel those vibrations) of ancient culture
(I know a neat excavation) Before I talk
I should read a book.
But there's one thing I do know,
There's a lot of ruins in Mesopotamia.

Six or eight thousand years ago
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
Six or eight thousand years ago
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa

I'll meet you by the third pyramid
I'll meet you by the third pyramid
Ah come on, that's what I want, we'll meet
in Mesopotamia. oh oh oh

(We're goin' down to meet) Now I ain't no student,
(Feel those vibrations) of ancient culture
(I know a neat excavation) Before I talk
I should read a book. (Mesopotamia, that's where I wanna go)
But there's one thing that I do know, (Mesopotamia, that's where I wanna go)
There's a lot of ruins in Mesopotamia.

Six or eight thousand years ago
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
Six or eight thousand years ago
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
In Mesopotamia. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
In Mesopotamia. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa

[kskiska]

66. The Parthenon

The battered structure and columns of the Parthenon are from the explosion of gunpowder. The Turks stored the gunpowder there, and in 1687 a Venetian cannon shattered the building. The Parthenon was a beautiful structure when completed. It is probably one of the best examples of classical architecture. Most of the remaining art was removed and placed in the Acropolis Museum in Athens and the British Museum in London(Web). Now, what is left of the Parthenon sits in ruins for the tourist and citizens to be admired; the great accomplishments and sorrows of man’s past.

[baby_mouse]

67. "History is bunk."

plus ca change.

[malta blue]

72. fucking bastards....

Yeah - I said it.

This comes as no surprise. As an archaeologist, this is the one of the most offensive crimes of the administration.

[slipslidingaway]

73. Glad to see this story getting some new life n/t

[ozone_man]

74. Mission accomplished.

Part of me thinks of this as a religious war. I suppose what better way to destroy the origins of the Abrahamic religions than to destroy the Zoroastrian foundations.

[Wabbajack_]

75. Fuck :(

[machI]

76. The only history the Bush's respect, is the fictional history they write

The winners get to write history, let's hope that George Bush is not a winner in the long run.

[TheLastMohican]

79. The new barbarians are trying to destroy an ancient civilization?

I am not surprised one bit.

[Usrename]

80. And I get chastised for calling them monsters.

:grr:

[undeterred]

81. No respect for the cradle of civilization from the uncivilized.

[LibertyLover]

82. I have a BA in Ancient Near Eastern History and Culture

from the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. All of my professors had excavated in Egypt or the Near East. Every day, going to class I past artifacts from Babylon. In my lab classes we went down the basement and handled artifacts. The stories our older professors told and the experiences our younger professors regaled us with were fabulous. One of my professors, Maguire Gibson, has written extensively about the destruction in Iraq. This sickens me to the core of my soul.

[undeterred]

88. I studied at the U of C

Divinity School and I knew OI students who went on digs as part of their training. And my favorite professors- had been on digs in Iraq and Jordan. When I think of how careful archaeologists are on a dig and contrast it to how these sites were trashed, it makes me sick. These artifacts are closely guarded in museums, but when you invade a country the mentality is looting.

[madrchsod]

83. bush cares nothing for the culture and history of other nations

so it really is`t surprising that this happened.

just before the war the certain antiquities dealers meant with bush to ask him to let them "guard" the treasures. he turned them down which led some to believe they placed their orders with the thieves. the stolen objects keep turning up now and then but the real treasures are probably locked in a room somewhere in a palace.

the Italian army`s duties included guarding important archaeological sites in iraq. as soon as they left the looters moved in.

in the grand scheme of things we are just another empire that has come to conquer the land between the rivers and another empire who will be buried in the sands of the desert.

[jeff30997]

84. One word:

Barbarians.

[Babette]

85. If you are ever in Chicago...

Go check out the Oriental Institute. It's a small building, part of the University of Chicago, that houses an amazing display of antiquities from Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Egypt. We were there a few weeks ago. They have a new exhibit section describing the looting of the museum in Iraq. Unfortunately, they don't really have a good set of photos on their website, but they have incredible displays. They have a colossal winged bull from the Palace of Sargon! Definitely worth a long afternoon.


http://oi.uchicago.edu/

On edit: They have a new book about the looting of Iraq's antiquities:
Catastrophe! The Looting and Destruction of Iraq's Past. Edited by Geoff Emberling and Katharyn Hanson, 2008.

[mopinko]

91. they have worked to create a data base so that looters cannot sell

their booty on the world market. u.s. customs check this data.
they raised money right after the invasion to scan in photos from their archives. local artists donated work that was auctioned off. i made them some buttons. and clemens reichel wore them all over the middle east.

[tabasco]

87. Cheney's pals now have libraries full of ancient, priceless treasures

that will never be seen by the public.

[illuminaughty]

94. A funny thing happened on our way to Baghdad

They did this on the way in...from the Get Go..Why don't more people know about this? Erase their culture so those growing up under the occupation will have no history (physically)and will submit to the new culture being pushed on them.

Here's a clip from "Shocking and Awful: Erasing Memory" a wonderful series of documentaries made in 2003 by Deep Dish TV. They knew what to take in the museum, it wasn't local looters. They destroyed the Ministry of Science. BUT, they protected the Ministry of Oil. This and all the episodes are heartbreaking to watch, but highly recommended.

The mofos wrote "Semper Fi" on the ziggurats. The before and after shots are disgusting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Rk3H-8Z-eY

[Nihil]

98. "Why don't more people know about this?"

Part of the reason is the total state of denial that exists in the USA.

> They knew what to take in the museum, it wasn't local looters.

> The mofos wrote "Semper Fi" on the ziggurats.

When people complained about this at the time, even on "progressive" boards,
we had our posts deleted amid accusations of "not supporting the troops"
and "spreading baseless pro-Iraqi propaganda".

I'm glad that more people are accepting the truth this time around
but still pissed off that it's been covered-up, avoided and denied
for long enough for the trail to go stone cold at catching those
fucking CRIMINALS who did these acts.

:grr:

[Lucian]

95. To me, it's an unforgivable sin to destroy places of important historical significance...

no matter what the excuse is.

I want to add any destroying any natural Earth formations is also unforgivable.

[leftofthedial]

96. typical

gawd bless repuke amurka

[annabanana]

102. Like burning the Library at Alexandria. .

The damage cannot be undone.

[Canuckistanian]

103. Vandals

Or are they Visigoths?

Either way, they've only destroyed their own biblical history.

The British Museum curator had it right:
"I don't think it's malicious: it comes from ignorance and stupidity, definitely."

[zonmoy]

111. Either way, they've only destroyed their own biblical history.

Which makes me wonder what archeological evidence was hidden there that they needed to destroy in order to preserve divine lies.

[myrna minx]

104. Yet another tragedy of this war. K&R n.t

[wial]

105. I'd suggest

Bush Cheney and their minions be put on a chain gang in Iraq, only they'd probably just wreck more stuff.

Of course, if it's anything like Hiroshima, we'll never even apologize.

[wial]

107. PS, Happy Human Rights Day,

Oh people of Iraq

Feel free now? How about now?

[raccoon]

106. Alas, Babylon.

"Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come."

Rev. 18:10 KJV

[Bake]

108. Mene mene tekel upharsin

You, George W. Bush, have been weighed in the balance and found wanting.

Bake

[liberation]

109. The irony of it all is that Bush is/was a history major

Which amplifies the magnitude of this calamity (if that was possible).


Way to go Yale, way to go...

[Nihil]

117. You mean that "HisTroYY maYjoR" written in crayon on his certificate?

I still think Barney is better educated than Bush ...
:shrug:

[windbreeze]

114. This is truly, truly sad....

can anyone convince me that none of our men knew what these artifacts were, and how important?? for shame...wb