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   Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 11:10:48 JST Evan Prodromou

   Wow. About 88% favourable. That's high!

   Some people in replies said that being vigilant against genocide was everyone's job, so there's no special responsibility. I'm not so sure.

   • Embed this notice
     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 11:16:59 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     I'm obviously thinking about this topic in relation to the case before the International Court of Justice on the ongoing crisis in Gaza.

     My two countries -- the US and Canada -- have a history of genocide, but have both dismissed the South African case. The NSC communications coordinator called the case "meritless."

     "We find this submission meritless, counterproductive, and completely without any basis in fact whatsoever."

     https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings/2024/01/03/press-briefing-by-press-secretary-karine-jean-pierre-and-nsc-coordinator-for-strategic-communications-john-kirby-36/

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     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 11:20:59 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     The Foreign Affairs Minister of Canada, Mélanie Joly, said in an official statement, "Canada’s unwavering support for international law and the ICJ does not mean we accept the premise of the case brought by South Africa. We will follow the proceedings of South Africa’s case at the International Court of Justice very closely."

     https://www.canada.ca/en/global-affairs/news/2024/01/statement-by-minister-joly-on-south-africas-case-against-israel-at-the-international-court-of-justice.html

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     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 12:37:15 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     • tuban_muzuru

     @tuban_muzuru hey, I am so sorry that happened to you. I don't know how we get past genocide as a species, but I do know that we need to unite to take on the challenges of the 21st century. We need everyone here.

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     tuban_muzuru (tuban_muzuru@ohai.social)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 12:37:16 JST tuban_muzuru

     in reply to

     @evan

     I was 11 years old when I knelt in the back of my father's little Peugeot and watched a group of Yoruba men hack one of my father's Igbo students to pieces.

     To pieces. Like a goat.

     Human beings like to think they're very advanced, Einstein, Mozart, Da Vinci. They're just eight billion baboons, a culture of bullying from top to bottom, roaming the world in troupes, killing each other.

     Genocide is way down deep in the human soul. Can it be evicted? I wonder.

   • Embed this notice
     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 12:39:10 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     And Germany has asked to intervene on Israel's side in the Gaza case:

     https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2024-01-14/ty-article/.premium/germany-announces-decision-to-intervene-on-israels-behalf-in-icj-case/0000018d-0787-dd07-a7df-cfff1f090000

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     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 12:45:25 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     I guess, at least, I would hope that countries that have had a history with genocide would show some humility when approaching the topic. The United States, site of the murder, forced displacement, and ethnic cleansing of millions of Native Americans, doesn't have much moral standing to say that genocide cases are "meritless". Our sense of what's OK and not OK in waging total war on a people is not well attested. We need to sit back and let the court do its work.

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     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 12:47:44 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     But maybe even better would be taking these cases seriously and erring on the side of safety. If there's even a possibility of genocide, then we should be supporting an immediate cessation of hostilities and rapid access to humanitarian supplies. We should be proactive, not reactive, to the possibility.

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     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 12:57:29 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     • Dave Neary

     @dneary bombing the majority of homes; destroying civilian infrastructure like schools, mosques, and hospitals; denying civilians clean water, food, and medicine; none of that is helping find and rescue Israeli hostages. You can be in favour of bringing the hostages home and against the ethnic cleansing.

   • Embed this notice
     Dave Neary (dneary@mathstodon.xyz)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 12:57:30 JST Dave Neary

     in reply to

     @evan I am very conflicted about this topic.

     On the one hand, I want Israeli hostages to be returned, and I want the perpetrators of the October 7th attach to be brought to justice.

     On the other hand, I am disgusted by the violence against innocents in Gaza *and* the West Bank, and I despise the politics of the Likud-led coalition,

     How do you get from here to a reasonable place?

   • Embed this notice
     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Tuesday, 16-Jan-2024 13:33:06 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     Namibia called out Germany for supporting Israel's case, on the basis that Germany has a history of genocide against the Herero and Nama people.

     https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-67974067

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     Evan Prodromou (evan@cosocial.ca)'s status on Sunday, 18-Feb-2024 04:07:57 JST Evan Prodromou

     in reply to

     Re-reading this thread I feel remiss in not mentioning the other great genocide my native country is responsible for, namely, the Atlantic slave trade and enslavement of Africans.

     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_slave_trade#Human_toll