03/25/03
A lot has happened since I last wrote about war with Iraq. The war has actually
begun. Lives are being lost. Prisoners are being taken, and things don't look
good no matter which way you look at it. Will we win this war? I think that depends
entirely on how you define "win." Will Saddam and his goons be out of power? Of course.
There's very little question on that. On the other hand, the price to be paid
may not be worth it.
The stock market recently reflected the misinformation that the White House
was trying to put out. Dick Cheney commented, before we went in, that he thought
the Iraqis would simply put down their weapons and let us waltz right on in. On
this news, stocks soared. A couple days later, some of our men were killed, and
stocks plummeted
How incredibly naive. I mean, I know there are a number of people in Iraq who
hate Hussein and his government. They've killed, tortured, and maimed thousands
upon thousands of their own people. He and sons are animals. But at the same time,
if you ask most Iraqis, Iraq is their country. They don't want us occupying their
country. No more than your or I would like the Libyans to come in and "save" us
from a president we don't like.
Frankly, I think the Iraqis will be very mixed on this. Some will be happy
enough that Saddam is gone, that they won't care that a foreign power is occupying
their nation to accomplish that task. On the other hand, you're going to have a
great number who aren't going to be happy about us being there, even if they do
hate Hussein.
Is Opposition Unpatriotic?
I haven't supported this war from day one. Don't get me wrong, I support our
troops, and I pray that they are victorious and that we have as few casualties
as possible. I don't, however, support my president. A lot of people have been
saying that, in a time of war, even if we disagree with the president, we should
support him. I recently received this quote in an e-mail, and I'd like to share
it with you; "To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or
that we are to stand by the president right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic
and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American Public." These
are the words of a Republican. A Republican president, in fact. These are the
words of Theodore Roosevelt.
For those who have been saying that to publicly disagree with the president
at a time of war is unpatriotic, I don't recall all those people saying that
when people were yelling
and
screaming about Bill Clinton sending troops to
Bosnia/Kosovo. What about the sharp criticism by the GOP of Clinton's cruise
missile strikes on Iraq. Need a
reminder? So, let those in glass houses keep their stones in their hands.
Should we have finished the job before?
I'm really torn on this. In the past, I had always criticized George Bush, Sr.
for not finishing the job. I always suspected the reason we didn't "finish the
job" had to do with who would replace Saddam. I now know that the Bush administration
knew better than I who was in line for succession: Uday Hussein. (Since then
he was shot 6 times, probably by his brother Qusay, and is now crippled, so his
brother Qusay is now in line.) I have heard the comparison like this: Saddam is
a psychopath, but he's a predictable psychopath. Uday is an unpredictable
psychopath. From what I've read of him, I tend to agree with that and now understand
why the elder Bush's administration was reluctant to get rid of Saddam.
Qui sommes-nous à parler?
Translation: "Who are we to talk?" I wish the French would just shut the hell
up. Look, I've been clear, I don't support this war, but it's no secret that the
French have been supplying Bagdad with solid rocket fuel (uh, guys, that's against
sanctions that you supposedly support). Don't believe me?
Have a look for yourself. Wan't to know
who armed Iraq? Despite what many people want to believe, it wasn't us.
Those aren't American made fighter jets they have. They're Russian and
French. Those aren't American guns they're shooting, they're Russian. Those
aren't American missiles they're firing, they're French, Russian, and Chinese.
Strangely enough, the three countries who opposed this war the most. We didn't
help Iraq build a nuclear reactor,
the French did. So, if you're French, and you have something to say about this war,
do the rest of the world a favor, and keep it to yourself. The French lost
their right to have an opinion about this war a long time ago.
I found it kind of funny how quickly France kind of back-tracked and said
if chemical weapons were used by Iraq, they would then be inclined to join us.
Do us a favor. Don't join us. Don't help. The last thing we need is for France
to get involved. Next thing you know, they'll be surrendering their country to
Iraq and we'll have to come rescue them again.
France has been nothing but trouble for us. We rescued them in World War I,
then again in World War II, then we get dragged into the whole mess of Vietnam
because France wanted to regain control after being defeated there. So do us
a favor. Just stop being involved in anything outside of your own country.
It simply causes problems for everyone else.
And so it goes...
Personally, I want to see the Iraqi people freed from the rule of a sadistic
dictator whose hero is Joseph Stalin. I'd prefer if the Iraqi people freed
themselves, and frankly, I think they'd prefer that as well. I'd definitely prefer
to have UN backing on this war, but since three members with vetoing power have
been supplying Iraq with weapons, I don't really see that as a happening
any time soon.
This is going to be a long, hard, war, and a lot of good people are going to
die. I'm concerned that the end result, while it will probably be better for
the Iraqi people, in the long run, will probably be significantly worse for
Britains and Americans in the long run. I think this war is simply going to
incite more radicals to join the army of terrorists we're already fighting.
I think it's going to do incredible damage to an economy that hasn't been able
to find stable footing. I think it has already alienated a number of our
allies, and is going to do significant harm to our ability to get support
in the future.
But the course has been set, and all I can do now is say that I will continue
to support our troops and hope that they can come home soon. I have a friend
in the 101st Airborne, and I hope to see him again some day.
