Pixelated Semantics

A schizotypical inventory

Sometimes an oyster

There is an intriguing reference inside one of the Courier Mail's recent Guns N' God military advertorials:

"On a mission during the Iran-Iraq war in 1989, he was detained for four hours by rebels and his life was at genuine risk."

The story concerns a Brisbane-born soldier who is also self-confessed "soldier of Christ" (and who "bristles with kinetic energy" - a clumsy attempt at heroic characterisation). But the thing to contemplate here is "a mission during the Iran-Iraq war in 1989" - because no Australian troops were supposed to have been there at that time. And indeed even during the following Gulf War 1 of 1990 our presence was supposedly minimal compared to the Second Installment. So, barring misadventure on the part of the journalist's appreciation of the facts, one is entitled to wonder what the Australian Army was doing in that region in 1989 and for whom. And just who are the reported "rebels" in question, when that war was one between two states, and not an insurgency. But do not expect answers anytime soon. Even a fairly thorough search of internet news archives provides very little illumination. Although this is ironic but very interesting to remember:

"In March 1986 [...] the UN Security Council proposed a declaration against Iraq's use of chemical weapons. The United States voted against the declaration. Britain and Australia abstained."

Yes, the same chemical weapons that suddenly became oh so dramatically important 15 years later. Perhaps the Courier has lifted the corner on another dirty little Aussie military adventure, or perhaps it's just maintaining usual standards of fact checking; either way, short of a first hand account, we may never know. But it's these little irritants that sometimes an oyster make.

Item posted by AutoEditor at 9:53 am ::