US Infects Guatemalans With Syphilis During 1940s Experiments

Man always has , and always will commit stupid horrible crimes against one another . I would like to know who ( or how many ) knew / OK'd this .... very sad . We also used Chemicals in Minnesota or Michigan during WW2 , to see how to defend against a chemical attack/s . Those who seek high power often abuse that power .

To me every country has redeemable qualities. Clearly the German people have redeemed themselves as much as anyone can. Russia is a far cry from Stalin's USSR. Ditto for Mao's China. I mean, China is out there doing a lot of work in Africa to build their infrastructure while lending America money to wage it's wars. Granted a lot of China work in Africa is out of self-interest but a lot of good nonetheless.


What I mean by indirect apologies is the swiftness of response to basically point out how less faulty we are and how comparatively noble our system is. I would prefer we say "We fcked up. we should apologize and make up for it" rather than "Man, this is bad but it's not as bad as those Nazis who did the same shit at a much larger scale. Plus we're the nicest country in the world except those instances we weren't so nice." Let Americas body of work stand for itself and lets judge the good things and the bad things on their own merit without having to do addition and subtraction to mask the dump we just took with an air fresher and pretend our shit stinks but not that bad.

I can't honestly say America has transformed itself on larger scale, more rapidly and for the better compared to China, Korea, Japan, and Germany. Granted, those are homogeneous societies but unlike america they weren't built to be diverse. Have they improved their people's condition more so than United States has? On the subject of slavery (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abolition_of_slavery_timeline) I would have to find out when these respective countries abolish slavery and what that meant? Was the aftermath as bad as Jim Crow?
Nice post , however germany and many other European countries still embrace a culture of racism , injecting steroids into unsuspecting kids , and hurling racial slurs at professional athletes .Women and Steroids – The “Wonder Girls” (http://www.steroid-abuse.org/the-wonder-girls-women.htm) The Ugly Game - TIME (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1176955,00.html) Racism still a reality in European football - CNN.com (http://edition.cnn.com/2008/SPORT/football/06/18/racism.europe/index.html)

Nice post , however germany and many other European countries still embrace a culture of racism , injecting steroids into unsuspecting kids , and hurling racial slurs at professional athletes .Women and Steroids – The “Wonder Girls” (http://www.steroid-abuse.org/the-wonder-girls-women.htm) The Ugly Game - TIME (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1176955,00.html) Racism still a reality in European football - CNN.com (http://edition.cnn.com/2008/SPORT/football/06/18/racism.europe/index.html)

Two of the links are talking about the late 70s early 80s.

I don't see how that's surprising. We were already doing the same things right here at home.

NPR : Remembering the Tuskegee Experiment (http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2002/jul/tuskegee/)

To me every country has redeemable qualities. Clearly the German people have redeemed themselves as much as anyone can. Russia is a far cry from Stalin's USSR. Ditto for Mao's China. I mean, China is out there doing a lot of work in Africa to build their infrastructure while lending America money to wage it's wars. Granted a lot of China work in Africa is out of self-interest but a lot of good nonetheless.

Again, every country is made of humans and, as such, each may be "redeemed". The Germans have redeemed themselves in many ways and struggle with it still. This transformation occurred, however, after the US and its allies spent considerable blood and treasure destroying the prior militiristic society and then, through the Marshall Plan, spent massive amounts of money rebuilding our former enemy's economy. Russia's transformation came about after a long costly cold war in which the US opposed the dictataorial oligarchy of the Soviet Union. Without such constant opposition from the US, I would suggest that the Soviet Union and its disregard for individual human rights would still be a force for oppression in this world. See my notes on China below.

What I mean by indirect apologies is the swiftness of response to basically point out how less faulty we are and how comparatively noble our system is. I would prefer we say "We fcked up. we should apologize and make up for it" rather than "Man, this is bad but it's not as bad as those Nazis who did the same shit at a much larger scale. Plus we're the nicest country in the world except those instances we weren't so nice." Let Americas body of work stand for itself and lets judge the good things and the bad things on their own merit without having to do addition and subtraction to mask the dump we just took with an air fresher and pretend our shit stinks but not that bad.?

Okay. I don't disagree with that apologies should be just that apologies without qualification. I don't think the "addition and subtraction" is as rampant as you seem to think. I believe that, as a nation, we are more likely to admit to our faults than many others. Sometimes, to a fault. We will probably just have to agree to disagree on this one.

I can't honestly say America has transformed itself on larger scale, more rapidly and for the better compared to China, Korea, Japan, and Germany. Granted, those are homogeneous societies but unlike america they weren't built to be diverse. Have they improved their people's condition more so than United States has? On the subject of slavery (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abolition_of_slavery_timeline) I would have to find out when these respective countries abolish slavery and what that meant? Was the aftermath as bad as Jim Crow?

I can. Mainly because, but for the intervention of the US - Japan, Germany and Korea would not have been transformed. As for China, it's human rights violations are legion and the crimes it commits against its own citizens make a comparision to the US laughable.

- Germany's and Japan's society's didn't just wake up one morning and say - "Hey, let's tansform ourselves." Transformation occurred after their militiristic societies were beaten, their homelands occupied by the US, and their governments were remade during occupation along democratic lines by the US (in Japan's case) and the Western Allies (In Germany's case - specifically West Germany).

Korea? Which Korea? The one currently under a communist dictator or the one that the US and its Allies spent blood and treasure to preserve from North Korean aggression? But for US intervention and American lives spent, there would be no S. Korea to transform.

CHINA??? Are you seriously holding them up as a "transformed society"? Please:
Amnesty International has documented widespread human rights violations in China. An estimated 500,000 people are currently enduring punitive detention without charge or trial, and millions are unable to access the legal system to seek redress for their grievances. Harassment, surveillance, house arrest, and imprisonment of human rights defenders are on the rise, and censorship of the Internet and other media has grown. Repression of minority groups, including Tibetans, Uighurs and Mongolians, and of Falun Gong practitioners and Christians who practice their religion outside state-sanctioned churches continues. While the recent reinstatement of Supreme People's Court review of death penalty cases may result in lower numbers of executions, China remains the leading executioner in the world. China Human Rights | Amnesty International USA (http://www.amnestyusa.org/our-work/countries/asia-and-the-pacific/china?id=1011134)

Around the late 1970s, as the first generation of Communist Party leaders were replaced by a second, some reforms provided a foundation of rapid economic development (it is now an economic superpower). The political reforms away from authoritarian rule has remained elusive.

For example, the government continues to exert its absolute control over politics, and is often looks to eradicate domestic “threats” to stability of the country through excessive use of force and authority.

Imprisonment of political opponents and journalists critical of the government has been common. The press is tightly regulated as is religion. Suppression of independence/secessionist movements is often heavy-handed, to say the least.China and Human Rights — Global Issues (http://www.globalissues.org/article/144/china-and-human-rights#Chinasactionsfuelstheverythingitsaysittries tofight)


Sure, as a society, the US has plenty of black marks in its history - slavery, our treatment of the native Americans, our colonization of the Philipines, our treatment of Japanese-Americans during WWII, etc. We also have much on the other side of the ledger - a civil war to end slavery, the civil rights movement, our opposition of tyrany in various forms throughout history, etc. They are all part of the US's "body of work".

Again, in history, admitting that we are seriously flawed in our practice, I challenge you to find any other country that has done more to promote, provide and protect individual human rights and the rule of law than the US.

Sure, as a society, the US has plenty of black marks in its history - slavery, our treatment of the native Americans, our colonization of the Philipines, our treatment of Japanese-Americans during WWII, etc. We also have much on the other side of the ledger - a civil war to end slavery, the civil rights movement, our opposition of tyrany in various forms throughout history, etc. They are all part of the US's "body of work".

Again, in history, admitting that we are seriously flawed in our practice, I challenge you to find any other country that has done more to promote, provide and protect individual human rights and the rule of law than the US.

This is such a great way to describe our country.

The only way.

Thanks.

[QUOTE=firstdown;835168]Two of the links are talking about the late 70s early 80s.[/QUOTE
Yes , some things still exist today Racists target black soccer players - Washington Times (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2004/nov/26/20041126-010629-6032r/) , much of it sickening .

Nice work Joe......

I think a few years ago, when Samuel Eto'o of Inter Milan had bananas thrown at him while playing Lazio, an Italian soccer team. Lazio has a regular skin-head fan section in their stadium and they boo their own black players.

As a follower of soccer, this sort of thing is very common and occurs all the time. Racism is much more deep rooted and prevalent throughout Europe.

I think a few years ago, when Samuel Eto'o of Inter Milan had bananas thrown at him while playing Lazio, an Italian soccer team. Lazio has a regular skin-head fan section in their stadium and they boo their own black players.

As a follower of soccer, this sort of thing is very common and occurs all the time. Racism is much more deep rooted and prevalent throughout Europe.

I'm a West Ham United fan and most of the really foul verbal abuse aimed at black players slowed after Ozzie Ardiles and Ricoardo Villa played for Spurs. It gave people another group to focus their hate on.

I enjoyed the terrace humor but the racism is and will always be utterly retarded.

One of my favorite chants from back in the day was "Who ate all the pies" at Gascoigne when he was a chubby bastard. We'd also pelt him with Mars bars (Milky Way in the US). More modern examples are "There's only two Andy Goram's" (instead of "There's only one Andty Goram" as is traditional) as he was diagnosed as schizophrenic.

Anyone else have an example of terrace humor that they'd like to share?