Live data from Hacker News

Photos of Mosul 2017

petapixel.com

71–80 of 136 posts

Re: Photos of Mosul 2017

#71

These shots capture the harshness of human conflict and how we (human beings) change in the face of it. Thank you. I disagree with people saying these are good shots. In the collection another user posted ( http://www.kainoalittle.com/mosul ) there are better shots technically and artistically. Yet that the photographer chose these shots for the article speak tons. These aren't photographs to make you feel better, th…

https://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2017/07/PwUqoz6-800x534...

It really hurts seeing little kids caught in this crap.

Re: Photos of Mosul 2017

#72

The recent drone footage from Mosul is some of the most mind blowing, surreal stuff imaginable. God help anyone trapped in that city. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IW_F2ntQOcQ

I've been watching live combat footage on the Internet. War is an astounding phenomenon.

where is that available?

Re: Photos of Mosul 2017

#74
post #50
post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you have some malware on your device; closing all other tabs isn't something a website should be able to do.

The device rebooted like 10 minutes later so I'm breaking the tinfoil hat out. Anyone got good advice on how to handle possible infection on an android phone?

Factory reset

Re: Photos of Mosul 2017

#75
post #44

These shots capture the harshness of human conflict and how we (human beings) change in the face of it. Thank you. I disagree with people saying these are good shots. In the collection another user posted ( http://www.kainoalittle.com/mosul ) there are better shots technically and artistically. Yet that the photographer chose these shots for the article speak tons. These aren't photographs to make you feel better, th…

I always found disturbing the way a mixing "art" with this kind of subject. It's giving a much more positive feedback, as in "it looks cool" or the feeling of emotions you get in a movie (because it doesn't look real). Let's not forget war is freaking horrible and there is nothing worth idealizing one way or another about it. That's my personal belief, but I don't think art has its place here. Any form of heroic spec…

Art certainly has a place here. The purpose of this are isn't to look cool. The purpose of art is express and/or provoke a reaction. In this case, it's a reminder that these people exist and are suffering due to war. Most of us know war is horrible, but we don't know it the same way someone who has experienced it has. Part of the reason these pictures exist is to give us a glimpse of that understanding. And maybe if we're lucky next time around, people won't choose war.

Re: Photos of Mosul 2017

#79

The recent drone footage from Mosul is some of the most mind blowing, surreal stuff imaginable. God help anyone trapped in that city. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IW_F2ntQOcQ

I was there in 2010 and it was pretty peaceful. Now it's a total disaster, along with most of Iraq.

I was there in 2005-2007 and it was peaceful at times, punctuated with violence. I can't imagine what it would be like to have lived there from Saddam days through today without being able to leave -- at least 5 big waves of violence.

Re: Photos of Mosul 2017

#80
post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While I strongly support this journalist's work, I'm extremely hesitant to support the Free Burma Rangers. In Iraq they are an armed religious group, and while their goal of supporting refugees is admirable, their methods seem likely to make things worse. To be clear, their methods involve actively seeking out firefights. See http://www.freeburmarangers.org/international/kurdistan/ for some idea of how they think abo…

They are armed and they are religious, but they don't seem to be acting as combatants. The article you cite doesn't indicate that FBR members participated in any fighting. Yes, they actively seek out firefights because - rather obviously - that's where their services are likely to be needed. There are arguments for and against being armed in such an environment, but none of that suggests they're an "armed religious g…

Not being armed in such an environment is insane. I spent most of a decade in Iraq and Afghanistan, and unless I was on US bases with vastly better security, was armed in any situation where it was possible (there were a couple exceptions in Afghanistan and they were horrendously stupid.)

(Not religious, and not a "security contractor" -- we ran wifi and satellites and such -- but zero interest in being kidnapped and beheaded in a crappy video like one of my high school classmates. Never had anything bigger than a .30cal, and generally low profile vs big armored trucks, but also never got kidnapped.)

Given the lack of US QRF in the conflict areas of Iraq today, the case for every humanitarian or commercial entity being armed is even stronger now.

Some form of neutral, armed-for-self-defense entities for both commercial and NGO services would make a lot more sense than relying on foreign governments. While I love a lot of what MSF does, they have been criminally negligent in securing their personnel in places like Afghanistan.

Post reply on HN