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Politics : Stop the War! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: James Calladine who wrote (16804)	5/6/2003 9:24:19 PM
From: Raymond Duray	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 21614

IRAQ: Unanswered Questions "(W)hen the real history of this war is revisited after a few decades, it will be seen as one of the most brilliant public deceptions in the history and one of the most devastating in its ramifications to global security." republicons.org Unanswered Iraq Questions: The Media isn't Asking by: The Jordan Times 5/5/2003 by Mazin Qumsiyeh The toppling of the despised regime of Saddam Hussein is presented in the American media precisely as it was intended to be by the spin masters at the Pentagon. Yet, anyone with access to the Internet can find so many holes in this Swiss cheese that it leaves a paltry meal indeed. Even without too much researching, any US citizen with an inquiring mind is immediately puzzled by the chain of events and the questions they leave behind. Here are some basic questions that seem at odds with the line of the Bush administration. Donald Rumsfeld stated on the first day after the initiation of the attack on Iraq that there were some discussions with leaders of the Republican Guards and “we would hear more about that later”. Was the halt in the advance into Baghdad part of these negotiations and not really related to the minimal disruptions of the supply lines? Why was the airport the first important asset handed over in Baghdad with little resistance? Who was loaded on the cargo planes at Baghdad airport during the three days when much publicity was given to daring raids into Baghdad and attacks on journalists and conflicts on strategy? What was the real purpose of the surprise entrance of American troops into the heart of Baghdad and quick retreat into the airport area? Does anyone believe that an expeditionary unit would be sent into the middle of a defended city just for psychological pressure? Why did the Iraqis leave bridges standing unscathed (a basic feature of any rational defence near rivers is blowing up the bridges)? And earlier on, what was this business of a Russian diplomatic convoy being “mistakenly” attacked and then, instead of proceeding to Syria, doubling back to the war zone of Iraq? Basically why was there such stiff resistance in the south, while apparently the resistance in Baghdad (where all the forces were concentrated) was nonexistent? The concerted attack on the offices of Abu Dhabi TV, Al Jazeera and the Palestine Hotel (killing several journalists) raises even more questions. What was that about? And why did the attack on Baghdad's electric power plant held off until just before these “operations”? Why was all of this done as planes were landing and taking off from the Baghdad airport, which was essentially off-limits even to embedded reporters in those crucial three days? One must ask why looting did not really happen at the ministries of oil and the interior (key ministries with records on natural resources) while it was rampant at all other civil ministries (water, environment, health, education etc.). Why were the American troops instructed to guard certain “assets” while watching the ransacking of a national museum containing thousands of artefacts dating from the dawn of human civilisation? Even after this museum was ransacked and the world cried in anguish, US troops were not given instructions to protect Iraq's national library (equivalent to our library of Congress, but with far older manuscripts). Why didn't any US leading journalist investigate the background and dealings of Rumsfeld's henchmen: Chalabi, Khalilzad and even Feith, Perle and Wolfowitz? As the fog of war and propaganda begin to dissipate, isn't it time for some real journalism? Or are we becoming a mirror of Nazi Germany in the 1930s, when the media acquiesced to a slowly fading democracy while the people of Germany were drawn into fascism and dictatorship (using the same language of “threats to the homeland”). And talking about that, one should look carefully at the so-called Patriot II programme? In the meantime, Exxon/Mobil, BP/Shell, Haliburton and others are set to reap billions per year and the cabal around Bush will be comfortably employed by the think-tanks in Washington DC that have originally loaned them to our government. Their books of triumph will be peddled by the same media. But when the real history of this war is revisited after a few decades, it will be seen as one of the most brilliant public deceptions in the history and one of the most devastating in its ramifications to global security. This war in contravention of the UN Charter devastated Iraq's infrastructure and traumatised its people. But Iraq is now “open for business”. The US public is lulled with endless talk of a war on terrorism while tax breaks to the rich are enacted. Needed social and healthcare funds are drained to line the pockets of oil and military corporate executives. Meanwhile, many more Americans and Iraqis lose their jobs, leaving them few options. Thousands more US soldiers and Marines (most from disadvantaged minorities) will come back to be added to the tens of thousands of already disabled by the Gulf War syndrome and effects of depleted uranium. Iraq's health effects will be far more long lasting. The US budget deficits will continue to grow and so will our national debt, and we are only at the beginning (Syria is rumoured to be next). Was Osama Ben Laden more successful than he ever imagined? Osama who?