Murtha: Armenian genocide vote to fail

[sabra]

Source: AP

WASHINGTON - Rep. John Murtha, a prominent Democrat, said Wednesday that his party's leadership underestimated opposition to a resolution on Armenian genocide and predicted that such a vote would easily fail.

Murtha's comments came as President Bush urged Congress not to infuriate Turkey, considered a key U.S. and NATO ally that has facilitated the flow of critical cargo to American troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The House proposal, which would label as genocide the killing of Armenians a century ago by Ottoman Turks, has inflamed U.S. tensions with Turkey, which says the death toll has been inflated and was the result of civil unrest. Support for the nonbinding resolution deteriorated this week after Turkey recalled its U.S. ambassador to Ankara and congressional opponents including Murtha, D-Pa., warned their colleagues that it would cripple U.S. relations with Turkey.

Murtha is considered an influential voice among Democrats on military affairs. Chairman of the panel that oversees defense spending, Murtha helped House Speaker Nancy Pelosi lead anti-war efforts this year.

"If it came to the floor, it would not pass," with some 55 to 60 Democrats opposing the measure, Murtha told reporters. As of Thursday, House Democrats will hold a 233-200 majority.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071017/ap_on_go_co/us_armenians_genocide_7

[nightrider767]

1. Thanks John,,,

You're doin a hell of a job. You and "Browny" are a coupla aces.

[LisaM]

2. I have a question about this - please don't flame me -

Why won't Turkey admit what happened?

[flyingfysh]

3. I think it has to do with internal politics

Turkey has to deal with lots of ethnic groups, I don't know the details. Democracy Now interviewed someone about this a couple of days ago, I should have paid attention.

Perhaps if a resolution about Armenian genocide also included mentions of the massacres of the Indians and the brutality against Negro slaves, it might be more acceptable to everyone.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

4. The same reason the US won't admit to the genocide of Native Americans and blacks...

Our government is afraid to admit we were involved and complacent in something so evil. It is afraid of appearing weak by admitting fault. And quite possibly there are members of our government (as there are members of our society) who refuse to believe it was wrong to slaughter these people.

[Hulk]

5. They would prefer to let it slip quietly away into the night...

Much like WE didn't want to acknowledge our imprisonment and stripping civil liberties away from the ethnic Japanese in WW2, and the Germans wanting to forget their rape and plunder of the Jews, Polish, minorities, political opposition.....we just want to forget that unpleasant time of history. To bring it up again, and to make a "statement" of their atrocities is to open up something they prefer to let sleep in the quiet dark corners of history.

The same as what WE did to the Native Americans...the Indians of this country. We have NEVER taken responsibility for our slaughter and plunder of the indigenous peoples of what is now called the US. We prefer to keep it hidden and no one talks about our barbarism. Same reason. And WHO THE F*CK are we to be casting our self righteousness on others when only TODAY, we are responsible for in the area of A MILLION Iraqis' deaths? What a self righteous, pompous nation we are.

[Karenina]

9. "the Germans wanting to forget ..."

The Germans and the South Africans are the only peoples on this globe who have TAKEN RESPONSIBILITY for their past. Americans would do well to emulate them by FIRST telling the TRUTH.

[DinahMoeHum]

6. For one, Turkey is afraid of demands for reparations, monetary or otherwise.

For another, Turkey is stuck between wanting to be accepted into the European Union and their inability to acknowledge that their past has a lot of skeletons in their closet.

The following link will help explain things - it's still relevant although it was written in 2004:
http://www.mojones.com/cgi-bin/print_article.pl?url=http://www.mojones.com/news/dailymojo/2004/04/04_534.html

(snip)
Fear of being forced to pay reparations -- monetary and territorial -- is often cited as a reason for Turkey's refusal to recognize the Armenian Genocide. Some Armenians are still calling for "the return of the lands" from which their ancestors were expelled, a demand that is not going to be supported by the international community. In any case, even if it was, mass migrations from Paris and Los Angeles to populate Turkey's rural areas are not realistic either -- the descendants of the survivors are well-integrated into their "host countries." More likely, international courts will require that Turkey pay massive reparations.
(snip)
Turkey's drive to enter the E.U. has been met with constant promises of "tomorrow, tomorrow." The Europeans have pointed to Turkey's poor human rights record, Cyprus, and lack of progress on democratization, but unwillingness on the part of Europe to let a poor, populous Muslim country into the club is a reason as well. The E.U. has not made the acknowledgement of the Armenian Genocide a requirement for Turkey's entry, but it has urged Turkey to re-examine its past in keeping with the E.U.'s commitment to the protection of minority rights.
(snip)

In short, Turkey has their balls stuck in a cleft stick of their own making. France, in particular, is adamant that Turkey acknowledge what they did in 1915 as a prerequisite to joining the EU.

:shrug:

[rodeodance]

7. a story last night said many of co-sponsers were withdrawing

[madrchsod]

8. natural gas pipelines trumps genocide

it`s all about pleasing the turks so the west can go around the russian pipelines...do the democrats had principals? we`ll see in a couple of days who does and does`t

[Xenotime]

10. Damn! I was hoping this would pass. Then I was going to submit...

that we label the raids the Germanic tribes and other people launched along the long north European border, particularly into Gaul and across the Danube during the times of Marcus Aurelius as racist.