US airman dies after setting himself on fire outside Israeli embassy : worldnews

[-] Sylver@lemmy.world 149 points 1 year ago

I wish to share my most sincere gratitude and love with the service member and their family. According to the article this is the second self immolation outside an Israeli embassy in the US.

Israel is committing genocide, and the US is complicit. Don’t let anyone forget that.

[-] ULS@lemmy.ml 15 points 1 year ago

Can anyone Eli5 us and Israel connection.

I don't know much about politics.

[-] assassinatedbyCIA@lemmy.world 43 points 1 year ago

The middle east is an extremely geopolitically important region for the US because of all of the oil it has. The US therefore wants a country that it can use as basically a base of operation and client state in the region. Israel as a european settler colonials state is the client state that America wants because it largely is culturally closer to the US than the surrounding arab states. Consequently, the US defends Israel to the hilt regardless of the constant stream of atrocities that it commits.

[-] PowerCrazy@lemmy.ml 26 points 1 year ago

Perhaps that was the initial impetus, but it is also 50 years out of date. Now-a-days, Israel is self-propagating even if they had zero strategic value for US interests, they are the number one donator's to many top Republican and Democrat campaign funds. In addition they represent a useful tax-haven for all the "high-tech" industries in the US. They are allow by law to develop for the MIC both hardware and software without being restricted by the usual import/export restrictions for national defense. Israel is considered international so corporations aren't taxed on income from Israel, and Israel will pay large subsidies to American corporations to open offices there. Of course those subsidies are just money the US Government pays to Israel anyway. It's grotesque, and even if Israel weren't an apartheid state, the incestuous relationship the country has built with the US ruling class should give anyone with morals pause.

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[-] DarkMessiah@lemmy.world 13 points 1 year ago

The US is funding Israel to be their minion in the Middle East. A lot like China and North Korea, now that I think about it. Israel has a bit more autonomy than North Korea, though.

[-] jonne@infosec.pub 15 points 1 year ago

There's no way China would just let North Korea do anything like Israel is doing. The difference is that Israel has outsize political influence in the US through AIPAC and the like.

[-] MsPenguinette@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Isn't North Korea doing simular levels of atrocities to their own people?

[-] driving_crooner@lemmy.eco.br 8 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Question: Have North Korea ever shoot a Chinese military ship, killing 34 crew members and wounding 171 more?

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[-] LinkOpensChest_wav@midwest.social 68 points 1 year ago

Aaron Bushnell, hero and role model

[-] queermunist@lemmy.ml 41 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I wish he had another choice. We failed him by not being organized enough to welcome him as a comrade. Instead he chose to do the only thing he could. I admire his courage, but it's a damn shame we lost someone willing to die for Palestinians.

[-] LinkOpensChest_wav@midwest.social 23 points 1 year ago

We've failed him, we've failed the Palestinians, we've failed our immigrants and refugees, we've failed our LGBTQ+ people and people of color, we've failed our poor. The story of America is a story of one failure after another.

And I say "America" even though this is world news, because he was American.

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[-] LinkOpensChest_wav@midwest.social 32 points 1 year ago

I'd like to know why anyone would downvote this. Do you support genocide?

[-] hasnt_seen_goonies@lemmy.world 53 points 1 year ago

Maybe people are understandably uncomfortable with self immolation? Nobody has ever liked an effective activist in their time. The civil rights protesters in USA had a <25% approval rate in the 60s.

I think this person did what he thought was right, and I will remember him for that. And peace can't come soon enough.

[-] LinkOpensChest_wav@midwest.social 20 points 1 year ago

I fully agree. I have mad respect for him, which is why I expressed my admiration and support.

[-] Cylusthevirus@kbin.social 13 points 1 year ago

How about suicide? Less fond of that one.

[-] LinkOpensChest_wav@midwest.social 29 points 1 year ago

It takes courage and convictions to do this kind of protest. There's no need to reduce it to just a suicide. It was a courageous and highly honorable act. I've got nothing but respect.

[-] philo@lemmy.zip 11 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

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[-] LinkOpensChest_wav@midwest.social 36 points 1 year ago

Bullshit. You are insulting everyone who's had a legitimate reason to commit suicide and their loved ones by proxy. Get this puritanical nonsense out of here. I've known multiple people who've committed suicide, and while it hurts to lose them, they've all had valid reasons, and it's really tasteless for me to dismiss that or guilt trip people who want to check out.

And in this case, it's objectively one of the most selfless acts imaginable.

[-] philo@lemmy.zip 7 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

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[-] LinkOpensChest_wav@midwest.social 24 points 1 year ago

It was a protest against our nation's complicity in genocide. This was objectively one of the most selfless acts and meaningful sacrifices imaginable. I have nothing but the utmost respect.

[-] philo@lemmy.zip 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

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[-] MrVilliam@lemmy.world 21 points 1 year ago

He was serving a military which was helping Israel to commit this genocide. Even removed from that, Americans are working and paying taxes which are being sent to fund Israel's campaign to achieve genocide. It doesn't matter whether he was pulling triggers himself, he knew that he was indirectly supporting the cause that he was so staunchly opposed to. I have too much to lose by standing (or dying) with him, so I don't. I'm too cowardly to do what he did. I fucking despise that we are supporting Israel, but I can't throw it all away in protest like he did. I'm not strong enough, and my family isn't strong enough without me. Or maybe they are and I'm too selfish to self terminate for this cause.

Because if what he did, we are talking about it. We are all wondering how many more airmen this will cost. Just because we aren't putting our people on the ground to catch those bullets in person doesn't mean there isn't a cost. If we didn't support that genocide, Aaron Bushnell would be home with his family tonight. You can blame him all you want, but I don't think he was looking for a reason to abandon his family, I think he was disgusted by what he swore an oath to. We're supposed to defend the weak, house the exposed, feed the hungry, wash the unclean, etc. Instead, we're helping Israel to bomb schools and hospitals after telling people that those places are safe from their hellfire. History textbooks will reveal that we were standing idly by while our government funded this, downplayed this, and vetoed every attempt to pause this. There is no legitimate excuse to have allowed this to continue. I fucking hate my country for this. I'm ashamed to be an American, just as much today as I was during trump's presidency. But I still want to take a moment to remind everybody that trump would've 100% made this even worse. I'm not saying to not vote for Biden. I'm saying please, for the love of God, vote in local elections, vote in primaries, and get us somebody better than this fucking shithead neolib next time, but in the meantime help him to beat the autocratic fascist because Biden is way better even though he still fucking sucks.

[-] MsPenguinette@lemmy.world 15 points 1 year ago

I truly beleive that this falls under sacrificing yourself to save lives

[-] MedicPigBabySaver@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

If you think this is legit reason to suicide. You're as stupid and crazy as the dead guy.

[-] HerbalGamer@sh.itjust.works 32 points 1 year ago

That my friends, is a cowardly and selfish act.

Forcing people to stay alive against their will while they suffer in one way or another because you can't deal with missing them is cowardly and selfish.

[-] MedicPigBabySaver@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

Mental illness can be treated. This guy had issues that needed help. Not gasoline and a match.

[-] davel@lemmy.ml 12 points 1 year ago

Unless you were his psychiatrist this is just armchair conjecture.

[-] lanolinoil@lemmy.world 9 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I think we can have compassion for people who commit suicide because of suffering and are young, but not think it's a good or ideal thing. I think the protest here or euthanasia because you're old/sick is a different thing.

For everyone (for me) condoning suicide too much -- I always think about it like this:

We were dead for billions of years and we will be dead for billions of years. This little sub 100 year run we all have is just a flash in the pan and even if you're not having a good time at all and think you can't ever have a good time, surely just sticking it out for the novelty if nothing else is better in most cases of suffering than checking out too early. We'll all be back there soon enough.

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[-] iAmTheTot@kbin.social 17 points 1 year ago

Can we please not call people who set themselves on fire role models?

[-] LinkOpensChest_wav@midwest.social 38 points 1 year ago

Aaron Bushnell is a fucking role model

I wish I had half the courage it took

[-] WldFyre@lemm.ee 12 points 1 year ago

I don't get this, I'm sure right-wingers would wish you had the courage, too. Why would you idolize this instead of looking at it like a tragedy?

[-] LinkOpensChest_wav@midwest.social 21 points 1 year ago

Because I am not going to disrespect a deep and meaningful selfless act like his. I'm not so disrespectful

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[-] OsrsNeedsF2P@lemmy.ml 24 points 1 year ago

Absolute legend.

[-] davel@lemmy.ml 18 points 1 year ago

Eyes Left Podcast: A Guide to Getting Out of the US Military (Now) w/ the GI Rights Hotline
GI Rights Hotline: https://girightshotline.org/

[-] Omega_Haxors@lemmy.ml 7 points 1 year ago

ACAB doesn't include cops/military who quit.

[-] iAmTheTot@kbin.social 14 points 1 year ago

My thoughts are with his family.

[-] AngWay@lemmy.world 13 points 1 year ago

This is crazy

[-] Cylusthevirus@kbin.social 11 points 1 year ago

All it takes to get people to cheer on suicide via self-immolation is doing it for the right cause, I guess. Gross.

[-] Szymon@lemmy.ca 30 points 1 year ago

Well, we're here talking about an important issue and he'll be remembered forever.

What are you using your life for?

[-] Cylusthevirus@kbin.social 3 points 1 year ago

What are you using your life for?

This is where you start asking yourself if you're really a good person after all.

[-] archengel@nichenerdery.duckdns.org 11 points 1 year ago

I'm not sure what you mean by that, can you clarify? For example, I took that as a question that makes someone think about how they could be making the world a better place.

[-] Szymon@lemmy.ca 4 points 1 year ago

If he's asking me, he's an asshole. I choose to interpret it the way you did, and use it as a way to improve yourself and your community.

[-] FaizalR@kbin.social 10 points 1 year ago

Will news/ acts like this change anything to US policy towards Israel?

[-] PowerCrazy@lemmy.ml 9 points 1 year ago

Never. Israel pays too much to US politicians and election campaigns for the ghouls they get elected to ever change. If they do have a change of heart they are easily replaced.

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