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As with most propaganda campaigns, the truth in the present case of Iraq will be surgically omitted. The reason we attack Iraq is oil--the world's second largest reserves of oil and natural gas, none of it under the control of multinational oil conglomerates which, coincidentally, are the largest contributors to both Democrats and Republicans, not to mention closest friends with the Bush family. In the words of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger:

"Oil is much too important a commodity to be left in the hands of the Arabs." ˜

What about weapons of mass destruction? United Nations weapons inspectors scoured Iraq for eight years, finding and destroying some under that rubric but none in quantities alleged by American propaganda on the subject. American intelligence assets are heavily invested in Iraq -- spies, bribes, satellites, informers, etc. -- yet to date no administration official offers a shred of evidence of any such Iraqi weapons. Former chief U.N. weapons inspector in Iraq, U.S. Marine Captain Scott Ritter (conspicuously omitted from present Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing witness list), says Iraq's weapons of mass destruction are largely disarmed, the "Iraqi threat" built on a framework of lies.

If that's the case, why doesn't Iraq allow weapon ·s inspectors back into the country? Probably because UN weapons inspectors have a history of reporting first to the C.I.A. and second to the UN, as well as serving as target spotters for American bombers. It's like the cable guy in your home to do one job but in fact casing your valuables. Also, the U.S. has indicated every intention of attacking and removing Saddam regardless of weapons inspections.

What about human rights? Doesn't Saddam have a history of abusing human rights? Yes, he has. He was particularly brutal from 1975 through 1990 when he enjoyed massive, uncritical U.S. support.

Haven't Kurds, in particular, been brutalized by Saddam? Yes, but again, it is our ally Turkey which has killed approximately 40,000 Ku &endash;rds over the past 16 years -- the single deadliest use of U.S. weapons anywhere in the world by non-U.S. forces since the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon. Saddam's record doesn't come close. In fact, most Turkish Kurds look to Iraq for safe haven against Turkish forces. Kurdish TV and radio remain illegal in Turkey. The Kurdish language still may not be taught in schools or used by merchants on storefronts or in advertising. It is illegal in Turkey for parents to give their child a Kurdish name. To our knowledge, none of these prohibitions exist in Iraq.

Isn't Saddam undemocratic? Yes, but once again there have been, practically speaking, no elections for any of the Middle East governments we support -- Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar. Our closest Middle East ally in particular has kept three million Palestinians under brutal, illegal (contravening UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 383) military occupation since 1 «967, largely with our tax dollars.

How about Iraqi involvement in terrorism? Since September 11, 2001, the Bush Administration has turned every stone, sniffed every blade of grass searching for Iraqi involvement with al-Quada. The fact that thay have found nothing to date will not deter the Administration from claiming to have found something for the sake of justifying its war.

What is the price of our war and who pays? Our war, our embargo, our daily bombing, our policies and actions aginst Iraq since 1991 are directly responsible for the death of nearly one million Iraqi children who have nothing to do with George Bush, Dick Cheney, Saddam Hussein, Exxon, Unocal or al-Quada.

Is it worth the price? For those who find it hard to believe, following is the excerpt of an interview between Leslie Stahl of CBS and Madeline Albright when she was US Secretary of State. The segment was called PUNISHING Saddam, and Stahl was asking if the death of 500,000 ichildren was worth it to punish this one man. Leslie Stahl, speaking of US sanctions against Iraq:

"We have heard that a half million children have died. I mean, that's more children than died in Hiroshima. And -- and you know, is the price worth it?"

Madeline Albright: "I think this is a very hard choice, but the price -- we think the price is worth it." - CBS, May 12, 1996

About the Authors

Comments? Questions? Email the author(s) of Palestine Papers at mtorres@icehouse.net or yakr@icehouse.net

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