Shocked Nation

By Clark Brittain
The nation was shocked by the 9/11 attacks nearly 2 years ago. Early evidence pointed to Osama bin Laden and the al Qaeda network as the culprits.
Bush asked the Taliban to hand over bin Laden

They agreed upon presentation of proof of complicity. Bush said, "this is not negotiable". Eschewing opportunities to treat this as a security threat and react accordingly, the Bush regime launched a war against al Qaeda and the nebulous Taliban.

Afghanistan, which has been abused for decades by the west, endured another assault. A humanitarian crisis occurred and tribal warfare re-emerged. The poppy fields recently fallow are again producing bumper crops, war lords control vast sections of the country and chaos is the order of the day most places outside Kabul. A past member of the board of directors of oil giant Unocal has been installed as the acting president. Most knowledgeable observers think the invasion was to secure a passageway for central Asian oil to be piped through Afghanistan then to the Indian Ocean for transport to lucrative Asian ports. It is interesting to note that the oil fields may not be as rich as anticipated, and there is still no security in Afghanistan for a pipeline.

The al Qaeda evaporated into various wildernesses and Pakistan. Several of their members have been retained in Cuba by the United States without basic Geneva Convention rights. Osama bin Laden remains free and threatening. The al Qaeda network is apparently regrouping. The Taliban may be facilitating Iraqi resistance against our occupation.

Article I Section 8 of the US Constitution clearly states 'Congress shall have the Power to declare War, grant Letters of Marque and reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water'.
President Bush appears to have illegally declared war on Iraq. He further illegally ignored the supreme law of our land- treaties, including those with the United Nations. President Bush and his cabinet fabricated information in an attempt to garner support for an invasion of Iraq. This included attempts to link al Qaeda to Iraq, Iraq to the 9/11 hijackings, and outright lies about Iraq's military capabilities. The weapons inspectors were vilified and ignored when they gave reports our government did not want to hear or see.

Virtually everyone (with the possible exception of the 535 drunken sailors we refer to as our congress) knew this invasion was simply to secure the world's second largest supply of oil.

How could anyone believe Hussein could be a clear and present danger to the US if he had no navy, air force, or long-range missiles? All inspectors and now our own troops on the ground have shown that there simply are and were no weapons of mass destruction. Bush and his cabinet further lied to try to make us believe the al Qaeda were somehow helping Iraq. Literally millions of Americans and other peace loving citizens of the world protested against a possible invasion. These honest and caring people were vilified by the neocons as somehow unpatriotic.

Theodore Roosevelt said: 'Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does NOT mean to stand by the President or any other public official save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country. It is patriotic to support him insofar as he efficiently serves the country. It is unpatriotic not to oppose him to the exact extent that by inefficiency or otherwise he fails in his duty to stand by the country'. Roosevelt went on to say: 'To announce that there must be no criticism of the President - or that we are to stand by the President right or wrong - is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public'.

Our president and his cabinet lied to congress and we the people in order to justify an illegal war only they wanted.
They worked very hard to portray their cause as right and just. In war, truth is often the first casualty. We must demand an accounting of our president and his administrators.

That there are men in all countries who get their living by war, and by keeping up the quarrels of nations, is as shocking as it is true; but when those who are concerned in the government of a country, make it their study to sow discord, and cultivate prejudices between nations, it becomes the more unpardonable'.
Thomas Paine, "The Rights of Man", circa 1792

There are daily reports of our soldiers killing innocent civilians in Iraq, as well as deaths of our soldiers. We apparently are unprepared for a hostile occupation.
We do many things to enrage the people of Iraq and the Muslim world. For instance, when the Hussein sons were killed, we rejoiced. However, in interviews, even those tortured by these sons were appalled not that they were dead by that Americans killed them. Not put on public display as if a carnival show. This in the end may just be our undoing as even moderate Arab neighbors and those in Iraq who might otherwise tolerate our presence, will not accept such perceived vilification of their religious practices.

It would appear that our best recourse would be to disengage as quickly as possible. If possible, bring in troops from other countries to keep the 'peace' and bring ours home. Our current administration seems paralyzed and impotent to deal with the situation there.