The United States is invading and occupying Iraq for its own strategic interests that include ending the "Arab Problem" once and for all, doing Israel's bidding by giving the [Iraqis] a completely compromised position on their homeland which was usurped from them, put in place a government in Iraq dominated by American and British views of the exiles (a minority of ex-Iraqis), and benefit everyone in their gravy train with the natural wealth of Iraq, oil.
Those who wish to take a contrary view of the above and indicate the sacrifice of the young men and women of the U.S. and British armed forces should show ample historical proof of their kinship and concern for the Iraqi people they are now invading. If the U.S. was freeing Britain from a foreign invader that occupied them one could understand. We could then point to the common threads that have linked these two countries historically even though they were once at odds. If Israel was attacked and occupied one would understand how the U.S. would rush to their rescue. Of course, no one would dare attack Israel. So there is no history of solidarity with the Iraqi people. Iraqis have to suffer first with the death of the bravest among them, then endure humiliation and defeat before those selected and imposed from outside will come to reap the benefits of the concessions they have already made and not spoken about correctly. Such opposition groups have no legitimacy in Iraq and though there are honest and honorable ex-patriots, the opposition is dominated by the likes of Ahmed Chalabi, an Iraqi Dick Cheney.
The Bush administration tried to make a case against Iraq for its possession of weapons of mass destruction, which they stated would be used one day by the brutal tyrant Saddam Hussein. They did not take into account, that despite his vile behavior, Saddam Hussein and his thugs have never entertained designs on the U.S. They were defeated so clearly in their misadventure in Kuwait more than a decade ago.
Saddam Hussein's disputes with Iran and Kuwait had specific roots that remained unsolved in both disastrous wars. Hussein is a product of his environment and understands Iraqi politics of revenge. Many of those who wished to oust him and take his place did not have benign intentions. They would have also resorted to butchering all who stood with him. The trail of blood that Saddam created omitted all of the accomplishments his regime made by nationalizing Iraq's oil and by taking a firm stance against the Israeli occupation of Palestine. However, their desire to remain in power at any cost not only alienated their people, but also revealed their contempt for international relations as they arrogantly went about solving their internal and external problems with the use of force. If the United States really cared for the people of Iraq they would have pressured the Iraqi government to conform to the spirit of the UN Declaration of Human Rights which Iraq signed long ago when the regime was still in its infancy. The U.S. administration and its close allies could have squeezed the regime further during the Iran-Iraq war years. Instead they provided the Iraqis with critical intelligence when the tide of the war changed in 1982. Diplomatic relations were then restored in late 1984 and a more favorable U.S. allowed western nations and itself to provide Iraq with the necessary components of their weapons of mass destruction programs. In their desperate hours, Iraqis used chemical weapons against the invading Iranians. Iraq also bombed the Kurdish areas close to Iran as punishment for collaborating with the enemy and to settle scores. Where was the U.S. then? Why did senators, congressmen, and special envoys like Donald Rumsfeld scurry to Iraq to appease this dictator? These matters should not be overlooked by the Iraqi people nor the world.
Once Iraq was defeated in the Gulf War, the U.S. again did not pursue the matter of the treatment of the Iraqi people. It took five years before the oil for food program commenced as haggling continued in the UN. The focus shifted to Israel, the Palestinians and the other countries neighboring Israel. Where was the American conscience during the twelve years of embargo against the people of Iraq? Yet, now they wish to claim they are indeed doing all of this to free the Iraqi people since they could not prove in any way Iraq was a part of the events of September 11, 2001 nor did Iraq constitute a realistic threat to American might (the war is proving that again and again).
The U.S. has long term interests in Iraq's oil. The concessions that will be granted will be criminal. It will be a trickle down plan that Republicans favor as the ordinary people of Iraq will say good-bye to prosperity and a better future for their children. The contracts for rebuilding what the U.S. destroyed will also plunge Iraq into further debt where they will have to be beholden to the U.S. for more years to come. Iraqi sovereignty will be questionable with Uncle Sam present on their land in the form of bases that could expand at anytime to fight Iran or Syria at anytime their excuses are all lined up.
Change in the modern world demands altering the ways of violence to those of legitimate diplomacy. When the Arab World doubts U.S. intentions their protests are based upon more than half a century of deception and duplicity; moreover, standing solidly behind Israel no matter how many times Israel had flouted UN mandates.
The seeds of disaster have already been planted. How do we expect Iraqis who lost loved ones and were betrayed by foreigners and their leadership alike to simply roll over and play dead? There will be future attacks on U.S. civilians here and abroad. These things could have been avoided if the U.S. foreign policy was based upon the spirit of the U.S. Constitution and the need to get the good word out through examples and deeds as opposed to creating dissent and hatred by "in your face" contempt of international law and using force to settle scores and to conduct diplomacy.
Operation Iraqi Occupation
By Dr. Henry Stone
henrystone@hotmail.com
Posted on the Independent Newswire on 4 April 2003.
Ref: www.indymedia.org/front.php3?article_id=308621&group=webcast
