interpellate

It has recently been pointed out to me that if there’s one thing that the US military knows how to do, it’s raping women. Not only has the rape of Iraqi women been ubiquitous and almost entirely unpunished, but apparently male American soldiers routinely and gleefully rape their female counterparts without consequence (for the men, I mean). Since the US is all about equality, this article has thankfully pointed out that not only do American troops rape declared enemies and each other, they also rape American allies:

US military prosecutors in Japan have charged a US marine [Staff Sergeant Tyrone Hadnott] with the rape of a 14-year-old Japanese girl on the island of Okinawa…

Lieutenant General Edward Rice, the recently-appointed commander of US troops in Japan, demanded high standards of behaviour following the high-profile allegations against US servicemen, including the rapes and murder.

Last month a US sailor was indicted in the stabbing death of a taxi driver near the US naval base in Yokosuka, south of Tokyo. Four other marines from a base in southwest Japan also face court-martial over the rape of a Japanese woman last year.

How much you want to bet that the charges laid against Hadnott (or any of the other men) don’t stick? American officials have already issued a statement proclaiming that these are merely accusations, and that a trial will be required before his guilt can be determined. Too bad all the women around the world who have been raped by American soldiers didn’t have the benefit of a hearing before they were punished.