A Dark Corner of Europe, Part II

Sarajevo war cemetery, photo copyright New York Times

From Middle East Journal:

“The Balkans produce more history than they can consume.” – Winston Churchill

“Sarajevans will not be counting the dead. They will be counting the living.” – Radovan Karadzic, Bosnian Serb leader, war criminal, fugitive

Sarajevo can be startling for first-time visitors. Shattered buildings, walls riddled with bullet holes, and mass graveyards are shocking things to see in a European capital in the 21st Century. The war in Bosnia-Herzegovina was more violent than the others in the former Yugoslavia, and it shows. If I believed in ghosts I'd say Sarajevo must be one haunted place. At the same time, the reconstruction and cleanup work is impressive. The destruction gave me a jolt, but at the same time I was slightly surprised I didn't see more of it.

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My Comment: I just love these long and detailed reports from Michael Totten. He makes you feel that you are there with him, seeing everything that is happening through his eyes. It is unbelievable that reporters like him or Michael Yon have not won Pulitzers.

This column is another must read from him. Bosnia occupied so much of our lives in the nineties, one can only hope that the anger and pain which that conflict unleashed will be gone 75 years from now.