To War or Not to War
As we wait and watch on the eve of war, I
thought I would post some interesting bits culled
from today's news. Some might make you more certain
that the U.S. is doing the right thing, some might
make you question our actions further. Certainly,
there has been enough material flying left and
right these past months to keep me questioning my
conviction, to hold me back from taking a firm
stand one way or the other. There seem to be so
many good reasons for taking out Saddam Hussein,
yet so many good reasons for taking it slow,
deferring to the U.N.'s authority. I'll let you
form your own opinion, because my mind's still far
from made up, even at this late juncture.
Hidden WMDs?
The Sunday Times of London reports
that an Iraqi official who supervised the burial of
chemical weapons outside of Baghdad just before
U.N. weapons inspectors arrived last November was
executed as he tried to flee Iraq. The members of
Iraq's Special Security Organization who hid the
weapons were reportedly all killed to keep the
location secret. Khalis Muhsin al-Tikriti, the
engineer who oversaw the operation, then tried to
escape, suspecting he was next. He was.
Iraqi Freedom of Speech
That same Sunday Times article reported a
decree by Saddam Hussein several weeks ago
proscribing anyone from discussing reports that he
step down to avoid war. The penalty was
death—a punishment which at least one Iraqi
received. Iraqi civilian Mohammed Hadid, overheard
talking about Saddam's exile, was taken to Baghdad,
tied to a post, had his tongue cut out and was left
to bleed to death.
The Other Cost of War
In an editorial
in today's San Diego Union-Tribune, Joyce
Neu made a point regarding the cost of war which I
hadn't previously considered. Opponents of a war in
Iraq have made much of the billions that have been
or will be spent on military preparations and
action against Iraq. They contend that expending so
much money when the domestic economy is in such
dire straits is fiscally irresponsible. Neu added a
whole new column to that spreadsheet by including
the cost of rebuilding into the argument. If
the U.S. goes it alone in a war against Iraq, will
we not have to foot the bill for rebuilding Iraq
alone as well? If it costs billions to bring down
buildings and destroy infrastructure, how much will
it cost to rebuild all of it?
Our Responsibilities in Iraq
Daniel Terris followed a similar
line of reasoning in an editorial in the Los
Angeles Times. He asserted that once an outside
nation intervenes militarily against another
nation—as we will be doing if/when we effect a
regime change in Iraq—the intervener is
responsible for the outcome. Once U.S. planes drop
the first bomb, we will shoulder the burden of
restoring Iraq's infrastructure, ensuring the
welfare of Iraqi civilians, and establishing and
maintaining a stable democracy in the aftermath of
the war. If the result of President Bush's "moment
of truth" is war, we have to be ready and willing
not only to take out Saddam and disarm Iraq, but
also to build a new country for the Iraqi
people.
Development note: I've
noticed that this site doesn't look like it should
in Netscape Navigator. Rather than waste time
jury-rigging it to look right in a
soon-to-be-obsolete browser, I'll just add the
cliché "This site best viewed with Internet
Explorer."
©2003 Michael
Strickland ALL RIGHTS
RESERVED
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Previously...
3/15:
So
Long, Seau
3/14:
Telemarketing
Pays
3/13:
Free,
For Now
3/12:
Chicken
Little Gets Respect
3/11:
Axis
of Evil
3/10:
Writing
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3/9:
King
Arthur
3/8:
The
Women are Smarter
3/7:
Salt
on Old Wounds
3/6:
3/3/03,
3:33 p.m.
3/5:
Beer
Day
3/4:
Pulling
the Trigger
3/3:
Make
'Em Laugh
3/2:
Whither
Iraq?
3/1:
Strickland
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