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04/09/03
Tanks rolling through Baghdad. Cheering Iraqis tearing down Sadam
statues. Marines rescuing starving civilians and repairing broken
stuff. Ahh..the smell of Victory. Now the Iraqis will be free!
Who can argue with that?
So I'm sitting there watching all this happen on Sunday night.
I had just finished convincing my 1/2 Jewish best friend how bloody
awful this war is and then it's over. Doh. The funny thing is
he while he still seemed convinced, I was the one with second
thoughts. I started to consider the propaganda surrounding the
images (we were watching Fox) and wondering if this wasn't such
a bad thing. Certainly, Sadam was some kind of cross between Yogi
Bear and Mussolini and certainly being free of him is something
I'd want for myself. How can I begrudge the result? Is it fair
to protest these people's liberation? So I skipped the protest
on Monday at the Carlyle Group where a couple dozen more resolute
than I got arrested and gave the whole issue a rethink.
Pros: Iraqis free of Sadam. This is a tough nut to crack. Let's
take a closer look at what kind of freedom they will be receiving.
How free will the Iraqis really be under coalition forces? Will
they be given the right of free speech? Including the right to
protest the occupation or American foreign policy? Will they be
free to congregate without fear of an undercover police agent
reporting their names addresses phone #s to the 'authorities'?
Will they be free to vote for whomever they choose or will there
be a 'selection process' to which only a couple candidates will
be offered neither of which really sounding much different than
the other? Will their votes be tabulated electronically by Election
Systems & Software (ES&S)? Will their election be subject
to an 'Electoral College' or some other majority defeating device?
Will their news papers and TV stations be run by Clear Channel
and Murdoch Inc?
Will they be allowed to own guns? Will they be allowed any privacy
whatsoever? If they are not allowed these things what might their
response be? If occupying Iraq means imposing martial law as the
US wages war with Syria, Iran, Jordan etc.. how long will the
Iraqis be cheering? Is it possible Iraq will turn into another
even more brutal Palestine? While we are promising freedom do
we really know what that word means? Does it mean being beholden
to a state that demands obedience to command and control? Although
the Iraqis have been liberated from Sadam, what share of their
oil will they own now that he is gone? If they end up paying for
the reconstruction to American companies and Uncle Sam how many
of their oil wells will need to be reserved for that bill? Who
will be making these decisions? Will the Iraqis be allowed to
decide how this money is spent or has it already been spent for
them?
How does this situation help the situation in Palestine? Is living
under American martial law any better than living under Sadam?
If the Americans do not impose martial law how will they stop
the terrorist attacks and suicide bombers? Or is Iraq simply expected
to become Nebraska? Is Nebraska really free? Does freedom include
the right of government to know every detail about you, including
where you shop what you buy and who you know?
Now that Sadam is gone the Infitada will be not be supported by
cash payments nor used as an excuse to wage war on the West. It's
true that not only Sadam was a terrorist to his own people but
he also incited the Infitada and whatever other group was willing
to take a shot at Israel or the US. The US can breathe easier
knowing he is out of action. Unable to either develop or distribute
weapons of mass destruction. The world is a safer place without
him.
Cons: Or is it? If Iraq becomes another Palestine how safe will
the world be then? If defending Iraq from terrorists means invading
their bases of operation in Jordan, Syria, Iran, etc etc is the
world a safer place? Is Israel any safer under these conditions?
Shall we just assume than none of this is going to be over until
the entire Middle East is under American martial law? At which
point how many lives have been lost to defend Israel's 'right
to exist'? Does Israel have a 'right to exist'? It says so in
a couple treaties. Does that make it so? Does anybody who isn't
a Jew wish to live in a Jewish State? Can we really expect there
to be peace in the Middle East as long as the Jewish state has
a right to exist? Honestly, the more I think about the more I
am convinced it's the wrong way.
Yet maybe just maybe it is the right way if people like me would
just shut up. Israel does have a right to exist because to say
otherwise only encourages the 'terrorists'. It's the terrorists
who are the bad guys although they have killed far fewer Israelis
than the Israelis have killed of them. All dead Palestinians must
have been terrorists right? Of course the children are the worst
terrorists of all, brainwashed from birth to be jihad warrior.
And the Israelis are only defending their ground which of course
they have every right to according to some treaties. And this
all is going to just go away some day. Because we the holy Americans,
leader of the "free world" allowed it to happen.
Cons: risk of all out nuclear war. It's true this is dramatic
but I really don't think it's out of the question. It is a risk
we are taking with every day we spend dropping bombs and imposing
our perverted Brand of Freedom over there. The problem is that
for us to be liberating anybody we first need to be liberated.
Unfortunately, our government is the most dangerous weapon of
mass destruction on the planet. And it's hard line attitude jeopardizes
us all. For what purpose? So that Jews can have a homeland? This
is the crux of the problem. This the reason there is no peace
over there and that dictators like Sadam can come to power by
playing the chaos to their advantage. Just like everybody else
over there who exercises their authority by keeping a lid on the
pressure caused by the Jewish State.
So I guess time will tell if Iraq becomes the paradigm of freedom
and democracy for all others over there to emulate or will people
like me who question the fundamental values behind the situation
ruin it for everybody? I realize I risk fomenting rebellion over
there and putting American soldiers in jeopardy but how else to
understand the situation without being perfectly honest about
it? If you really believe in freedom you will question too and
think to yourself, "does it really have to be like this?"
| Democracy is a conversation |
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