False Dichotomies

The call came from the camp commander. There was an infiltrator on base, and we were to remove him. Igor’s new jeep was the best placed vehicle to do the job, with its state of the art beams and terrifying sound system. We were both armed to the teeth, but were wary nonetheless of what we were being told to do. As we asked for a description of the invader, my mind drifted to the film Shooting Dogs, set during the Rwandan genocide. The title referred to the fact that UN soldiers stationed in the country were not permitted to lift a finger in order to help the victims of the slaughter, but were allowed to cull the dogs that scavenged among the bodies of the dead. Read more