Peg Life Vol. 24

Some of you may have seen recently the email sent by Jerome featuring a video captured by the night vision camera on an American attack helicopter as it gunned down a trio men preparing an ambush on a road in Iraq. I hope everyone was as disturbed as I was that what they were watching was three human beings being blown apart and killed by the explosive rounds of the gunship's cannons. And I'm not just trying to vilify the Evil American Empire by being an apologist for the Iraqis who I'm sure would have killed the American gunners had their positions been reversed. My point is that when seeing something like that some people need to be reminded that when the commander comes over the radio saying, "Take him out," he's not referring to polygons in a video game. The "targets" that disappear into dusty explosions are not lifeless electronic simulacra generated for the purpose of being obliterated. They were born to mothers as we all were. To die is never wrong, but to kill is never right.

Tony Hawkins thinks he has more to say