American Foreign Policy In Iraq
   by Jon Thompson

        His government has funded terrorist organizations, including Al-Qaeda. It is common knowledge that his government has an active nuclear and biological weapons program. This madman has executed more of his own people than any other leader
of his country in modern history, and stripped his people of many of their rights. He has never been legitimately elected by the people of his country. His government frequently tries to assassinate the leaders of other sovereign nations. He constantly ignores United Nations resolutions and is a threat to peace-loving people around the world.
 
        George W. Bush must be stopped.

        It's very Orwellian that the American government has the gall to accuse anyone else of threatening the world. Ever since 9/11/01, the Bush Administration has used euphemisms for its atrocities abroad and blames its problems on anyone who disagrees. We now have a "Department of Homeland Security." America wants to "bring about peace in Iraq." Do you disagree? "Your tactics only aid terrorists, for they erode our national unity and diminish our resolve," according to Attorney General John Ashcroft.
        Let's examine America's charges against Iraq. President Bush claims that Iraq funds and harbors al-Qaeda terrorists. False. Al-Qaeda and the Iraqi government are ideological enemies. Osama Bin Laden, a Muslim fundamentalist, despises Saddam Hussein's secular government. They would have no reason to team up just because they have a common enemy in the United States. Saddam is not foolish enough to give weapons to al-Qaeda; if a nuclear weapon ever fell into al-Qaeda's hands, Baghdad would be a more likely target than Washington.

        Washington also claims that Baghdad is actively building weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). Talk about the pot calling the kettle black! Aside from the obvious, that Bush has presented absolutely NO evidence that Iraq is making WMDs, Bush should worry about his own government's weapons before he orders other countries around to clean up their acts.
I suppose one could claim that Iraq is more likely to use nuclear weapons than the United States, but Saddam is not stupid.
His main goal is not the destruction of the West, but to merely remain in power. He knows that he would be obliterated were he ever to attack another country. Only an American attack on Iraq could provoke Saddam to use his weapons. If our tanks roll into Iraq, Saddam may feel he has nothing to lose and bomb American troops, Israeli cities, or the Kurdish area in Northern Iraq.
        Attacking Iraq in the name of pre-emptive defense sets a very dangerous precedent for other countries around the world. China could invade Taiwan for pre-emptive defense. Russia could increase its military presence in Chechnya for the same reasons. Israel would continue its invasion of Palestine, and India might invade Kashmir for the sake of pre-emptive defense.
If America objects to any of these actions, the aggressor could simply point to our government's own foreign policy as
evidence of American hypocrisy. A conflict in Iraq could very easily turn into the straw that breaks the camel's back,
sparking a world war.

        Bush's childish comments on Iraq as being part of an "axis of evil" are not a valid reason to go to war. Saddam was just
as bad in the 1980s as he is now, when Reagan and Bush Sr. were financing his war against Iran and providing him with WMDs. The American government continues to prop up the Saudi royal family, one of the most oppressively conservative governments on the planet. Pakistan's dictator, Pervez Musharraf, suddenly went from being a "bad guy" to a "good guy"
when he started helping the United States. The Shah of Iran, who brutally tortured his own people with his SAVAK police force, was pro-American. Clearly, the American government does not care if leaders are "evil," as long as they support the United States. Bush needs to learn why most of the Middle East hates America. Imperialism does not solve the terrorism problem; it exacerbates it. Ever since World War II, America has routinely thrown itself into any international conflict it can find. If it can't find one, it creates one. What arrogance the Bush administration has to assume that the United States is the bastion of all that is good in the world!
        The cost of war in Iraq in civilian casualties cannot be ignored. The American military routinely ignores this important factor in its foreign policy. Perhaps America doesn't intend to kill civilians, but we can hardly call it an "accident" when our government makes little to no effort to minimize casualties. Our government's military campaigns in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Vietnam show how callously our government disregards the lives of foreigners.

           Aside from all this, almost all of our leaders in Washington, regardless of political party, routinely ignore the
Constitution. Nowhere in the Constitution does the President of the United States have the authority to declare war.
So-called "military actions" or "peacekeeping operations" are illegal, because they are merely euphemisms for war.
In the 1970s, Congress passed the War Powers Act which has never been constitutionally challenged. This too is unconstitutional; Congress cannot simply cede its responsibility to declare war to the President without a Constitutional amendment. It's a shame that the Bush administration, Congress, nor the Supreme Court is interested in upholding the Constitution.
        How can you do your part to stop America's imperialistic foreign policy? Write to your Congressmen or President
Bush voicing your opposition to a war in Iraq. This November, vote for candidates who oppose an invasion. If the ultimate
goal of American foreign policy is peace, as our politicians claim, let's be an example for the rest of the world instead of an international bully.


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