Bush urges rejection of Armenia genocide resolution (of course)

Damn you, Bush, it WAS genocide, and history DOES matter. And check what the Turks have in store for us at the end of this excerpt; look out, DU, here comes more war:

http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSWAT00825320071010

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush on Wednesday urged U.S. lawmakers to reject a congressional resolution calling the 1915 massacres of Armenians genocide, saying it would do "great harm" to U.S. relations with Turkey.

"This resolution is not the right response to these historic mass killings," Bush told reporters at the White House.

The House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee is to consider the Armenian genocide resolution later on Wednesday. If it passes, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a longtime supporter of the measure, could then decide to bring it before the full House for a vote.

Many Democrats, who control Congress, support the resolution, which has 226 co-sponsors, more than half the House.

The measure comes at a delicate time for Turkey-U.S. relations.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, who telephoned Bush last week about the Armenian resolution, confirmed on Wednesday his government was drawing up plans to authorize a cross-border incursion into northern Iraq to strike Kurdish rebels after 15 Turkish soldiers were killed in attacks in recent days. . .

Map of the genocide:

I live around the largest concentration of AA's in this country, and they went for Bush in a big way....I guess they can be added to the list of folks he has suckered. :evilfrown:

I worked in the early 1970s as a summer camp counselor for Armenian kids, and they ALL lost relatives in the genocide. I would have thought the Chicago area has the highest concentration. Anyway, they are a beautiful people (the women are stunning, no doubt) with an incredibly rich history, and W. no doubt ever even heard of the genocide before taking this position, the ignoramus.

as a group we are very loving caring people, and the first nation, I must say who accepted Christianity. That was drilled into my head for the longest time.

can you imagine if he did this to the Jews??? They would be all over him.

The people who were slaughtered deserve better. And it's vital that we learn from the truth of our past; that's what this is about. It's not about hating the Turks now. The truth matters.

i have no idea what effect Congressional recognition of a 90 year old genocide would have, but it seems like this is one of those political anthills certain interest groups kick around once in a while.

And the fact that it is 90 years old is not relevant. History matters. Many deny the Holocaust. We end up with people like George W. Bush in office, and wars like Iraq, because we don't listen to history. It's time the Turks acknowledged this part of their history.

is the Aremenian genocide any less factual without a Congressional resolution?

is the lack of a Congressional resolution on the Armenian genocide responsible for Chimpy and the war in Iraq? (you'll need to draw me a picture for that one, because i just don't see it)

in what way will a resolution by the US Congress change the position of the Turkish government on the genocide?

the fact that it is 90 years old is terribly relevant. the fact that this resolution has been in Congress for years is terribly relevant. this is pure politics,nd it's disgraceful that Congress is trying to score points on mass graves. Congress has no business passing a resolution like this, which will have no effect but to interject US political posturing into what is, for some, an open sore.

You are right about it being an "open sore." It is that way because the Turks deny the genocide. "Score points?" This is about basic decency. If Germany denied that the Holocaust took place, or we denied that slavery existed here, would you call efforts to accept those realities "political posturing?"

my original question, which you still refuse to answer, is how does a Congressional resolution fix any of that?

i still don't understand how a resolution by the US Congress (or lack thereof) in any way alters the fact of the Armenian genocide.

against the Armenian people.

I have relatives that fled Armenia due to the ethnic cleansing. It's not a joke.

And for the record, I don't hate the Turkish people, I just want them to acknowledge what they did, and move beyond it.

nor am i denying that Turkey committed genocide against them. it's a tragedy beyond comprehension.


i simply do not believe that a resolution by the US Congress will have any impact at all on Turkey's acknoledgment of the genocide (which they've denied for 90 years now).

I apologize for insinuating that you are a genocide denier. That was not intended, but I can see how others might read that into it. As far as the case at hand, it's important that we as a people acknowledge the truth, particularly in light of Turkey's denials. They simply can't be allowed to get away with their lies; genocide cannot be allowed to be swept under the rug. If it causes us problems with Turkey, the fault lies with the Turks, not those of us who will never accept the Turkish version of the intentional deaths of 1.5 million people. (And no, I am not Armenian - both sets of grandparents came over on boats from Sweden and Norway at the start of the 20th century).

Now more than ever, in the age of George W. Bush, we need to acknowledge and revere the truth of history, wherever that may lead us.

Armenian people, my grandmother left Armenia because of the Genocide and emigrated to Seattle and then moved to the East coast, it just needs to be acknowledged, and now we have an imbecile of man in the WH, who is committing his own genocide on the Iraqi people, no justice no peace.

The decider has decided that the Armenian Genocide did not take place.
Why do I get the impression that Bush is now in charge of at least two branches of government? I mean WTF???

It comes down to the ATC, graft, and the military complex. It comes down to helping silence Sibel Edmonds. It comes down to hiding criminal activity in our government. It's all related and shows the people are less represented than foreign contacts and self enrichment.

the Holocaust. Now Bush is denying the Armenian genocide. Hmm

This resolution IS a big deal. Turkey needs to acknowledge this so it can move forward. I've called my congresscritter to urge him to support HR106.

Burton (R-IN) is saying that by passing this resolution, it could destabilize the Middle East. Hey ding-dong, the ME is already destabilized because of Bush's warmongering.

have to pay the price. shit!!

I was appalled when I first learned of what happened to the Armenians. It's one of those stories we don't hear about very much, I guess because Turkey is our "ally," but it was a shameful historical event.

While they're talking about genocides, they should talk about what the English and other Europeans did to the Native Americans. Not quite such recent history, but a genocide nonetheless.

I acknowledge that also. All aggression against any nationality is a crime, but, what if this administration rejected that the Jews were ever exterminated, the Jews would be in a uproar.

George is very selective about which genocides he chooses to emphasize and which ones he chooses to ignore. For him to say that there was no genocide of the Armenians is no different than Ahmadinejad "denying" the Holocaust. This administration's double standards and hypocrisy are truly breath-taking.