yep, the bush cabal is telling the truth: iraq is getting safer & safer. freedom's on the march! (and other BS fascist slogans)

So Pat, what you're saying is that they're fully justified in killing Marla?

The ones who started this war are the killers, "they" are Bush/Cheney and their war loving supporters of this unjustified illegal war.

The United States government has been and still is 'the greatest purveyor of violence in the world' (MLK Riverside Church speech, April, 1967)

It took like five seconds to find what I was looking for. A few years ago, when activist Rachel Corrie died while she was attempting to disrupt Israeli bulldozers I was mildly shocked to read Republican bloggers who thought it was funny. I can't recall exactly what they said but it was standard Republican hate speech along the lines of, the dumb liberal had it coming; thanks for removing your hippie genes from the gene pool; &c. It was really sick, poisonous stuff anyhow.So when the news broke of Marla Ruzicka's death, the heroic humanitarian aid worker who risked her life going door to door documenting Iraqi civilian war casualties in a car bombing on Sunday, I checked out some conservative blogs to see if they were making fun of Ruzicka too.

Like I said, it only took about five seconds to catch them red handed. Big time. "Guess what?," crows the Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler (nice handle dude), "The number of civilian casualties just went up by one." Hilarious, right? It gets better. Anti-Idiotarian readers comment, "Yeah, they called your number. Sorry to say it, but we're better with her out of the gene pool."

Outdoing Goebbels for pure ideological sadism, one Anti-Idiotarian reader offers the following helpful advice to Ruzicka's grieving mother: "Hey Ma..maybe...jest mebe...had you taught your children some common sense...rather then how to be a barking moonbat...she wouldn't be in pieces parts scattered over the Iraqi Countryside??...Hmmmmmm." (Apparently, on fascist war blogs, antiwar activists are "moonbats," proving once and for all that there's nothing less funny than amateur conservatives trying to be funny.)

Keyboard cowards like this aren't even qualified to speak Ruzicka's name, much less criticize her, a woman who showed more courage in the service of her convictions in one day than all these Republican cubicle dwelling freaks put together ever will.

In their honor, I've invented a little game to help keep track of hate spewing Republicans bloggers.

The Internet game Six Degrees of Marla Ruzicka requires connecting prominent pro-war conservative blog to fascist hate speech celebrating or mocking the death of fearless humanitarian aid worker Marla Ruzicka as quickly as possible and in as few links as possible. The concept is simple, but finding the fewest number of links can be difficult. The way you link a conservative blog with Republican hate speech is like so:

Pick a Republican blog, any Republican blog. Link the blog you've chosen via post links or the blogroll to hate speech mocking Ruzicka's death in as few links as possible. Here's an example, using National Review's The Corner:

1. The Corner links to the Conservative Philosopher blog,

2. whose blogroll links to Little Green Footballs, where we find a jackpot of sadistic, warmongering hate propaganda:

"Awww, that too bad... Who will be blamed for this?" - Golden Jerusalem

"I am trying to muster up some tears - but it just ain't happening." -aridog

"Everybody has to be [sic]somewhere.....surprise, surprise...mess around in a war zone and...boooom, you be dead. Stuff happens. Buh-bye sow."

"Yahoo says she went to Iraq as part of 'Code Pink'. First class, major league moonbat and 2005 St. Pancake Award Nominee."

"May she rest in piss" - Vedado

"May she rest in pieces" - WarBicycle [Click it. I'm not making this shit up.]

Lets try Instapundit, the blog of "moderate" conservative law professor Glenn Reynolds.

1. Instapundit blogrolls Rantburg, which proudly features sick hate speech mocking Ruzicka:

"Why wasn't she in prison for her trip to Cuba? . . . She wasn't one of their victims; in her case it was "friendly fire" that did her in." - Posted by: Robert Crawford [http://www.kloognome.com/]

"Bomb Kills American Idiot" -Posted by: legolas

Yes, it's the new net craze: Six Degrees of Marla Ruzicka. Just log on to any prominent conservative blog, and fascist wingnut speech mocking fearless humanitarian aid worker Marla Ruzicka is just a few clicks away!!

I'd hold off on the canonization process just yet. Marla was about raising money and distributing it to civilian war casualities in Iraq. Period. Direct action against the war? Hardly. After leaving Code Pink, she deliberately distanced herself from the organized anti-war movement because she wished to lobby the US government for funding, and be able to function in occupied Iraq without being impeded by occupation authorities because of her former activism. Indeed, by her own accounts, she aggressively lobbied US military and civil occupation authorities for assistance...and endeared herself to US military personel. Marla's NGO functioned like any other US approved charity operating in the country. It is as simple as that. Marla died because her car was traveling near an armed convoy of US security contractors on the way to Baghdad Airport which came under attack by the Iraqi resistance. Her loss, while tragic, simply cannot compare to the tens of thousands of Iraqis who have already died because of the US war on Iraq.

She was a CIA patsy and sometimes the machine will sacrifice some of its less important components, for reasons known only to it.

Leave Iraq Now or Die!

"Yes, 'n' how many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they're forever banned?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind,

Yes, 'n' how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry?
Yes, 'n' how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind."-Dylan

this was a woman who was trying to help people. not in the help you by killing you with bombs way, but in the let me try to make your life better in spite of what my government is doing way. it is an awful indictment of the so called progreesives and anarchists who frequent indy who are pissing on her grave. she gave her life trying to help people. i guess should would be more worthy of respect in these circles if she smoked american spirits, wore black and skimasks and engaged in pathetic little temper tantrums characterized by mindless idiotic vandalism that earn the contempt of about 99.99999 percent of the population of all classes races occupations etc. . . or maybe I am all wrong and she was a "little eichman" who deserved to die and all "real" progressives should relish in her demise.

The fact is the right wing bloggers, and the 'christian right' in general, don't really give a crap about who gets killed in Iraq as long as it isn't them personally. They don't publically make fun of the dead troops, but feel no shame to make sick jokes about Ms. Ruzika or others who had more humanity than a convention full of purple heart band-aid Republicans.

Bush supporters honestly do not care how many troops, children (Iraqi- or even their own kids in the military), aid workers, contractors, etc. die in this, the most pointless and sure to be the most worthless unnecessary war in US history. As long as it is not them being stuffed into a transfer tube. You don't see any laments over the daily human sacrifice of unlucky US troops killed or maimed by anyone on the fascist right wing of US politics.

If the right wing Bush backers were anything but hypocritical self-centered cowards the National Guard and the Army would be swamped with recruits. So it is totally expected that the trash on the right will continue to heap scorn on the dead of this war.

I feel for the poor victims of my employers criminal trespassings. I am here to pressure "my government" into feeling the pain of it victims.

Well it isn't your government and a kinder gentler criminality is a load of BS.

Your problem chuckles is being unable to accept the fact that the legal owners of Iraq (the Iraqi people) have all the justification in the world to kill and wound as many of its victimizers as they can possibly kill and wound-- that goes for the PR shills, as well.

Want to save lives, leave Iraq now!

One of my mentors is a close friend of Marla's, and he and I have been talking a lot about this. We're anthropologists, and have been looking at Marla's life, and the media coverage of her death, from that perspective. Their portrayal of her as a "blond-haired angel," a cheerleader from California, while accurate descriptions of her body and past activities, absolutely present her in a propogandized light. They make her out to be a hero that conservative Americans can feel sorry for. Marla would have hated that. She arrived in Washington as a naive, green, anti-war activist. Over the last few years, she made an immeasurable contribution to the lives of thousands, in Afghanistan and Iraq. Yes, she worked by lobbying congress and the military, yes she used her blond hair as a negotiating tactic at checkpoints in Iraq. She worked within the system. Big fucking deal. She helped make peoples' lives easier. She attempted to rectify (in a way that I'm sure even she would admit is not enough) the injustices done by the US. Her parents are hard-core Republicans (which makes the right-wing bloggers even more rediculous), and are full of pride for the compassion that Marla showed throughout her life.

Anyway, to disparage the dead, whether you're a rightwing blogger or an anarchist here on Indymedia, is whack.

Love,
JOsh

"She was a CIA patsy and sometimes the machine will sacrifice some of its less important components, for reasons known only to it.

Leave Iraq Now or Die!"

I feel for the poor victims of my employers criminal trespassings. I am here to pressure "my government" into feeling the pain of it victims.

"Well it isn't your government and a kinder gentler criminality is a load of BS.

Your problem chuckles is being unable to accept the fact that the legal owners of Iraq (the Iraqi people) have all the justification in the world to kill and wound as many of its victimizers as they can possibly kill and wound-- that goes for the PR shills, as well.

Want to save lives, leave Iraq now!"

this is the most base, idiotic, simplistic, bullshit, and you and anyone else who agrees with it knows it.

it is shit like this, pissing on the grave of a good person, that exposes that many of those who claim to be progressives are hypocritical, hateful, stupid, unprincipled and powerless little people. until you grow up you will never be taken seriously by anyone who matters.

such is the fate of all those who play good cop/bad cop, (CIA style) in Iraq.

To save lives, they must all leave Iraq now!

Actually, Josh, Marla's being eulogized by more than just the mainstream press in the US. Both US occupation forces and the puppet Iraqi government are paying tribute to Marla - whom they're quite cleverly holding up as an example of "construcitve engagement" by NGO's in problem solving in Iraq, and another unfortunate victim of Iraqi terrorist violence. If they have their way, Marla's enduring legacy may just be to put a 'human face' on the occupation the American public can be comfortable with.

How much detailed info about Iraqi civilians did Marla trade with Coalition forces, or US Army intellegence personel - operating under cover as civilian assistance staff - in order for her NGO to be operate effectively in Baghdad? To get the appropriate transit passes, purchasing permits, currency and banking services, vehicle rentals ect? No doubt, she thought this was harmless data, and she was trying to be carefull, - but it's like talking with the FBI, trying to be clever or "cute" with these folks can only backfire. Every tidbit of info helps complete the bigger picture.

Get this straight. This ain't tsunami relief in S. Asia, or Operation Save the Children. This is a guerilla war in an occupied country. There are no rules. Everybody's a potential asset or threat, and everybody's exploitable. There are no neutrals there.

With her stated mission to seek out and assist the civilian victims of US aggression, - many who because of their experience and loss might be inclined to be sympathetic to the Iraqi resistance, - would it be surprising that US intellegence on the ground would shadow her and her companion to see what leads they might inadvertantly reveal?

Wonder how many of those Iraqis ended up in Abu Ghraib?

The moral of this story is that you are simply dimwitted clown who hasn't a clue about what's going on in Iraq and believes verbatim what you're told by the corporate press and are heartily disappointed that the resistance in Iraq doesn't give a rats ass about your delicate moral and ethical standards as you sit comfortably behind your keyboard, while your government kills with impunity in Iraq.

Or you're a PW troll and neocon apologist who is dismayed that your little imperial project is tanking. Or both. Either way, moron, you have a lot to learn about the real world. But with a draft likely in the US, you might get the chance to find out. Iraq is not a treesit in the Cascades.

Want to save lives, leave Iraq now and pay back the slaughter, suffering and devastation caused.

To Veteran et. al.,

The idea that Marla Ruzicka was somehow complicit in her own death, or was killed by the CIA, etc. ranges from puke-inspiring to loopy.

I forget where I am though - Indy.

Thank God the only thing lower than your morality is your political influence.

RIP Marla Ruzicka.

Thank Lucifer the only thing higher than your political influence is your immorality.

The arrogant war criminal assholes whine when those they illegally invaded, and still occupy, exercise their rights to eject them by any and all means. As to collaborators, shills and proxies-- they should take their cue from what happened to those in France who aided the Nazis after Hitler was thrown out.

What part of "Get out of Iraq Now" don't you comprehend? Or should we rephrase it-- like in "hit the road Jack."

Stop sitting on your asses and typing all day, get up and DO SOMETHING. I have an idea PROTEST YOUR LOCAL MILITARY RECRUITERS!!!!! All U mutha fuckas do is talk.

and lern what fit speccimens for humanitee us Marine recruters reely our.

"it is shit like this, pissing on the grave of a good person, that exposes that many of those who claim to be progressives are hypocritical, hateful, stupid, unprincipled and powerless little people. until you grow up you will never be taken seriously by anyone who matters."

Oh, you mean we won't be taken seriously by the fuckers in Congress, or the CIA, or the State Department, or the Pentagon, or the White House, or in the media? Really? They won't take us seriously?

Well guess what? FUCK THEM! Do you really think we should bend over backwards and make sure that we "say the right thing" just so those fascist war criminal sons of bitches "take us seriously"? Fuck them.

"She was a CIA patsy and sometimes the machine will sacrifice some of its less important components, for reasons known only to it.

Leave Iraq Now or Die!"

The solution is not to sacrifice the less important components of a machine but the machine itself.

Love Iraq. Iraqis need love, not bombs.

relishing in her death, real cute. many of you must like seeing people die, whether it be Iraqis or Americans or anyone else.

the "resistence" is killing more Iraqis than anyone else right now, and doing things like beheading children in a "zionist hotel" and blowing themselves up in schools and mosques where Iraiqi people go to worship and seek refuge, check out the news this week, from both corporate and non-corporate sources.

If you are ok with this shit than you are an asshole, plain ans simple.

Have you thought that maybe, it is possible to be against the war and not with the so called "resistence," or are you too really too feebleminded, and bloodthirsty to understand that.

"she [Marla] made an immeasurable contribution to the lives of thousands, in Afghanistan and Iraq." -- Josh, April 22, 2005; 8:47am.


From Christian Parenti's book (read what progressive journalist Christian Parenti had to say about the darling of the U.S. imperialist military war machine):

_THE FREEDOM: SHADOWS AND HALLUCINATIONS IN OCCUPIED IRAQ_ : paragraph at the bottom of page 55 ending at the top of page 56:

Marla Ruzicka is one of the occupation's NGO groupies. She is the type who gets 10 percent of that 10 percent that trickles down to the ground. Known for her dyed blonde hair and flashy style, Marla is talking up the fact that she leveraged $10 million from the US government so her organization CIVIC [The Campaign for Innocent Victims in Conflict] can "aid" victims of US military action. She and CIVIC and the US occupation authorities do not use the term "compensate" because that would imply American culpability. The US government maintains that because Iraq is a war zone, its military is not legally liable when it kills innocents, and so the operative verb is "aid". I interview Marla at the Hotel Agadeer, a dive favored by Eastern European journalists and broke American freelancers. It turns out that Marla hasn't actually received $10 million; USAID captured the grant, and the money will not actually be disbursed as aid to the survivors of US military actions but will instead be spent on unspecified development projects that will _indirectly_ "aid" war victims. When I press Marla further it turns out that CIVIC is serving *ONLY FIVE FAMILIES* [caps and *'s added] who have been "negatively impacted" by US military operations.