<font color=blue>'A demagogue pushing electoral buttons'</font>
Friday, May 09 @ 09:37:42 EDT
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By Khatoun Haidar, Daily Star
On board the USS Abraham Lincoln President US President George W. Bush announces combat operations in Iraq have ended. Compared to the 1991 Gulf War victory speech it is a lengthy address, so an eager and awed world awaits the future vision of the remaining superpower. The choice of the venue is aggressive and disappointing, the content is redundant and in many instances contradictory.
Following praise and self-gratification, the president mentions twice World War II and the battles of Normandy and Iwo Jima. By any stretch of imagination it is an erroneous overstatement to compare the strength of a Third World country worn out by years of sanctions to Nazi Germany or Imperial Japan.
To dare and compare the loss of life and sacrifice involved in each of these venues is beyond comprehension. The mentioning of freedom as the ideology behind the war comes at a time when US soldiers open fire on anti-American demonstrators, and whereas Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld limits the choice of Iraqis to US-acceptable forms of government.
But then maybe by this comparison the president aims to send a message to the world about post-war policies. World War II resulted in the remodeling of Japan and Europe and the redrawing of the map of the world by the USSR and the US. Today the US will decide alone the new world order.
This is in line with the remaining bulk of the address that dissipates previous diplomatic reasons for this war and situates “shock and awe” within the battle on terrorism, America’s revenge, and the rendering of its own type of justice: “The battle of Iraq is one victory in a war on terror that began on Sept. 11, 2001 … our actions have been focused and deliberate and proportionate to the offense. We have not forgotten the victims of Sept. 11 … Any person involved in committing or planning terrorist attacks against the American people becomes an enemy of this country, and a target of American justice.”
Needless to say that no credible argument or proof was given to link Iraq with Osama bin Laden; they are ideologically at odds, and no Iraqis were involved in the Sept. 11 attacks or in any direct act of violence against the US. It is not important. This address implicitly indicates that Muslims and in particular Arabs have been judged and condemned. They are the culprits and “war is what they got.”
The president never mentions the Kuwaitis or gives thanks to any Arab country for their help in this war. His disdain and condemnation is clear when he states: “And anyone in the world, including the Arab world, who works and sacrifices for freedom has a loyal friend in the USA.” In clearer words: We are ready to forgive even the Arabs if they sacrifice to prove their loyalty.
Absent from this address is international reconciliation and legality. The president mentions the coalition and thanks “the armed forces of the UK, Australia, and Poland.” When talking about the reconstruction of Iraq he goes at it alone, and seeks legality in “America’s tradition ú declared at our founding; affirmed in Franklin Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms; asserted in the Truman Doctrine and in Ronald Reagan’s challenge to an evil empire.” Bush gives Americans an almost divine right to rule the world as “American values and American interests lead in the same direction: We stand for human liberty.” He even goes further to warn “friend and foe alike, that our nation has a mission: We will answer threats to our security, and we will defend the peace.”
It seems that the president intends to dictate to the world right from wrong by drilling the idea of US supremacy. Shunning international meddling in Iraq is the reason why the president did not declare outright victory. The end of the war entails international law obligations such as releasing the prisoners, civil administration and troop withdrawal.
The arrogance of the address is a disservice to the US on the international level, but if viewed from the perspective of internal American politics, it is a step on the road to a second Bush term. The theatrics of a president landing a plane on an aircraft carrier to address the troops is unbeatable on the campaign trail. The speech works on nationalist feelings, includes cliches dear to the American heart, is filled with the righteousness of American values over all others, and maintains the fear of future attacks. Conclusion: Given the actual victory, Bush is the only trustworthy person capable of conducting this war to its successful end ú implicitly during his second term!
It is sad that the most powerful democracy is led by a demagogue who pushes electoral buttons without consideration for facts. The next time Americans elect a president they will be deciding their role in the world: a benevolent giant or a world-class bully.
Khatoun Haidar is a Lebanese journalist. She wrote this commentary for The Daily Star
Reprinted from The Lebanon Daily Star:
dailystar.com.lb |
