September Mourn

Many believe that come September the debacle that is now Iraq will be ending or at least beginning to end. Those who believe this still do not understand who or what they are dealing with. This administration will stop at nothing to further its agenda and the continued occupation of Iraq is a major part of that agenda. So what can we expect to hear in September from General Petraeus when he makes his report on the progress of the “surge” strategy?

Here is what I think is going to happen. The good general will appear before Congress and will be very polite and very engaging and will state unequivocally that the “surge” has had mixed results. That there will be enough meat on the bones to allow them to continue to follow this inane strategy is almost guaranteed. Why my cynicism you ask? Because this war serves the political agenda of both sides and no one in politics that can stop it wants to really stop it. All one has to do is to listen to the rhetoric of both sides to understand the political stakes at risk. There is an ongoing chorus echoing throughout the halls of power concerning Iraq. Just look at all the blog posts that are dedicated to it, if someone were to land from outer space they would think this is the only thing in the world happening.

How does this serve the powers that be? The Republicans still believe that they can salvage their grand plans of installing a client regime in Iraq and extending America’s colonialist power in the Middle East. Can you imagine the influence of having large military bases in the Middle East without the populace screaming “bloody murder”? I guarantee you they have and the possibilities are endless and much too rewarding to just give up. This war is not about Iraqis or freedom or anything else for that matter. It is about the grand scheme of domination by the wealthy using as proxies the poor. Do not be fooled there are more than a few Democrats that would accept this scenario as well as long as it’s somebody else’s idea. With bases in Iraq, America could extend its collection services on behalf of the large corporations and hold a mighty big stick over the uncivilized Islamist.

This world view has been spelled out over and over by all the neo-con thinkers and corporate apologists. America must exert its muscle to subdue an unruly world. The only small problem is that the world does not want to be subdued by America. If our involvement in Iraq continues at its current rate, I think the populations of the world will protest vehemently and could topple some governments. These protests will not be able to be contained by our “friendly” dictators and could spill over into regional violence. Make no mistake; this is no longer just about Iraq to many this is part of a larger global resources grab by the “greedy” Americans. There are many in these worlds that are willing to sacrifice themselves to right a perceived injustice. We have never been able to grasp this about our enemies. True strength is not in the type or amount of weapons one possesses; instead it is about being willing to do what the other guy won’t do. Anyone ever unfortunate enough to do any street fighting can tell you that.

We can see the Republican explanation for further bloodshed, but what could the Democrats possibly get out of our continued involvement? The answer to this is two-fold and depends on which side of the party you reside on. Believe it or not there are some “hawks” in the party who also share a similar world view as their Republican counterparts. There are some Democrats that are in bed just as deeply with corporate lobbyists as the Republicans and have the same agenda. It would be quite a coup to be able to inherit the Middle East at the Republicans expense, all the benefits with none of the bashing. If you listen to some of the Democratic candidates you can hear them laying the groundwork for continued involvement, if only in some limited capacity. Do not be fooled anyone that is not calling for the complete withdrawal from Iraq is playing both sides against the middle. They can claim to want to end the war and still for humanitarian reasons keep US forces in Iraq to continue the same agenda.

The other side of the same coin for the Democrats is that as long as the war continues the base and many independents have been whipped up to a seething rage. Fund raising has never been easier. It is so heady that many believe it doesn’t matter who is nominated, they will trounce the Republican nominee. This is fool’s gold. Not being George Bush will not get anyone elected. I caution the Democrats to take seriously their candidate and not be overwhelmed with the desire to see America as they want it to be and not as it truly is. It is one thing to have a friendly discussion about the merits of electing women and minorities to the office of President in June, it is an all together different matter in November. I know no one wants to talk about it, but there is a reason we have only had white males in that office and don’t see any compelling reason for that to change, even if it is on the heels of George Bush. We have had incompetent before.

In the final analysis the war will continue after September and there will be outrage, but not enough to change the course. The blogosphere will scream to the rooftops and the rest of the country will continue to be more concerned with “American Idol” than with “American idols”…

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Let’s Blame The Iraqi’s

There is a growing chorus here in the states to blame the Iraqi’s for the strife and suffering that they are now experiencing as a result of the invasion and subsequent occupation. While this attitude is becoming politically popular, it undermines the real problems that were uncovered by the invasion. It also belies the terrible job that was done with post invasion planning and reconstruction.

I have stated previously that the military phase of this adventure ended with the taking of Baghdad. At that point it became a political and a logistical problem. How best to relieve the human suffering that was indeed to come should have been foremost, instead what was foremost was the “neoconservative agenda”. How to help the Iraqi’s to overcome the physical and emotional scars of repression in a constructive way should have been the mission. Let’s face it, the majority of people in Iraq have been raised under the tyranny of a dictatorship, to expect them to become young George Washington’s and Thomas Jefferson’s overnight was irresponsible and overly optimistic. It was unrealistic to believe that after years of abuse that they would take the high road and let bygones be bygones. This goes against human nature and human history.

You have two majority groups who have been shut out of the political, social, and economic fabric of a country for decades. When given the opportunity to exact some retribution would anyone think they wouldn’t? To believe this is to know nothing about the region or its customs. In societies that have experienced these types of trauma there is always a need for healing, a national reconciliation and recognition of the tragedies of the past. Rather than assist the Iraqis in their efforts to accomplish this we were pursuing our own agenda. It was just assumed that once we “liberated” them they would sign on to our goals and agenda. Well, time has shown that nothing could be further from the truth. Not only have they not accepted our agenda, they have gone so far as to have an agenda of their own. How dare they?

The violence must and should end and the outcome of this must be completed by the Iraqis. Being responsible for the future and taking blame for the past are two distinct things. It is like blaming the rape victim for being raped, because they haven’t healed as fast as we think they should. Blaming the victim is always easy; it removes any responsibility for our actions and feelings. It makes us feel safe. The victim obviously did something to cause the misfortune, so I am safe so long as I don’t do what they did. Unfortunately, life is not as simple as a Karl Rove sound bite and sometimes bad things happen to good people.

All the troops in China are not going to fix Iraq. What Iraq needs is the international community and that means the UN and the Arab League. Neither of these institutions can bring their power to bear until we leave. It is time for us to acknowledge the fact we don’t have the expertise for nation building. The last time we did any nation building it was 60 years ago and I don’t think we have anyone left around who remembers how to do it, definitely not in this administration.

Thanks to our constant bombing and sanctions the infrastructure in Iraq was already demolished prior to the invasion. With the invasion, we come in and destroy what little bit of social fabric they were left clinging to. We terminated their legal, political, and security systems without any thought as to what we were going to replace them with. Instead of securing the people, we secured the oil. The Iraqis with the help of the international community have to learn to trust each other and their government to get things done. Right now that government is failing them as a nation and must learn to overcome sectarian interests for national interests. Are we any different, consider the current regime in Washington. Have they allowed sectarian interest to cloud what is best for America? We have had a few centuries to practice and we still need work, so all those thinking that after decades of corruption, torture, repression that the Iraqis are just going to start espousing liberty or death are delusional. And as that delusion comes crashing down around them there has to be a scapegoat.

Unfortunately, there are some hard days ahead for the Iraqi people. Starting a country from scratch with three different factions, each with their own agendas is a monumental task. This is their legacy to write for their children and generations to come. Despite our best efforts, we cannot control the pace or the outcome. Conflicts in the Middle East have their own timetables; some have even lasted a thousand years. The deep seated animosity and mistrust between countrymen will take years to overcome and will come with a price; the tree of liberty and all that.

Are the Iraqis responsible for their country? Yes, but are they guilty for what it has become?

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