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The
War in Iraq
So
easily and automatically we think of war as the height of patriotic
endeavors. This is understandable. Our soldiers are very dear to us. They
are our children, our brothers and sisters. They are us. Our concern for
them is more than patriotic, it is familial.
In
America, this is especially true. While every nation claims national pride
that emotionally contends with reason or moral justice, ours is something
special. We created this nation and its ideals. It reflects who we are
not so much as a fatherland that shapes us, but as the creation of our
highest ideals. Our vote continues to shape it. Ours is a nation whose
moral base is very different from empires of the past. Americans are not
conquerors at heart. We believe more humanity than exploitation.
The
best of us believe that patriotism means doing the right thing in the
name of America. When it comes to saying "my country, right or wrong,"
we naturally choke on the words, knowing well that they blaspheme against
the heart and soul of America. We don't want America to be wrong. We want
to believe that freedom and justice and democracy will always produce
what is right.
This
is why war provokes such controversy. American nationalists condemn all
dissent as unpatriotic, a threat to the morale of our troops. American
idealists, who insist that war be waged only for the right reasons, and
in a way that reflects certain standards, know in their hearts that they
are defending the very soul of Americanism.
World
War II gave us a war that had to be fought, and the whole nation united
on its behalf. We knew we were fighting an aggressive threat to all humanity.
No war was ever fought for a better cause, and we are proud of what we
did. As victors, we did not enslave or even punished the vanquished. We
instilled in them, in no small part by our generosity and virtue, the
desire for democracy. And it worked. Our enemies not only became our friends,
they embraced the same ideals.
The
morality of later wars was never so clear-cut. Some were brought about
by conflict of ideologies. Some were motivated by the "national interests"
of corporations. Others to prevent genocide. Having faith in America and
its leaders, our soldiers willingly put themselves into harm's way and
often paid severely. It's up to us to make sure that their sacrifices
are never in vain or for an unjust cause.
This
is why, for many of us, the War in Iraq is troubling.
After
9/11, we held the perpetrators of that crime responsible, along with those
who harbored and encouraged their ideology. We had the support of the
world on our side, and not just for our loss of lives. Reasonable people
understand that America represents a lot of what is best in human nature,
while the dark obsessions of Al Qaeda represents the very worst. Allies
rallied to our cause as we routed the Taliban, and attacked supporters
of worldwide terrorism. Our cause was unashamedly just and a cause for
pride.
But
then, before the job in Afghanistan was finished, after we had taken such
great strides in achieving a moral goal with universal implications, we
turned our attention to Iraq and left the job half done.
Why
did we do this?
Our
leaders, along with the media whose job it is to keep citizens informed,
knew that Saddam Hussein had no connection to Al Qaeda. We also knew that
we were diverting troops from the War on Terrorism. Our intelligence people
knew that Iraq posed no threat to the United States, and that Iraqi weapons
of mass destruction were more insinuation that fact.
We
also knew that the Iraqi culture is very different from ours, and like
many people in the Middle East, Iraqis mistrust and even loathe western
influence. Glancing at the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, we knew how war
was waged in that area of the world, purposely killing innocent people.
Yet
we took the risk of invading them. Why?
In
the 1990s, Neo-conservatives formulated a plan that they thought would
ease the volatility of the Middle East. This was not a plan for empire-building.
Not in the strict sense. It was a recognition of America's dependency
on Middle Eastern oil, and the constant threat of Arab nations trying
to destroy Israel. A foothold of American power in that location might
just be the answer.
Saddam
Hussein provided an obvious target, an insane dictator with a history
of belligerence and using chemical weapons. His defiance of United Nations
resolutions opened the door for the United States to flex its muscles,
gain a strong military presence, fashion a democracy friendly to our interests,
and bring peace to people who had long suffered from tyranny. In the long
run, it might dissuade terrorism. Even though Iraq had nothing to do with
Al Qaeda, a strong, stable Iraq, enjoying all the fruits of western democracy,
would show Moslem fundamentalists the errors of their ways.
It
was a grandiose plan filled with good intentions. But it was wrong.
Close
European allies, fighting by our side in Afghanistan, with over a century
of experience dealing with the Middle East, told us it was wrong. They
refused to support us in what we called a "preemptive" attack.
The United Nations refused as well, even though we used their resolutions
as part of the reason to attack. UN inspectors looking for weapons of
mass destruction asked for more time, while our own top leaders knew that
intelligence supporting WMDs was weak or nonexistent.
Despite
all the warnings, the Bush administration was committed to their plan.
Media Neo-cons accused our staunchest allies of betrayal for telling us
the truth and not following us into war. One was so vindictive he even
called for a boycott of French exports!
Convinced
of the righteousness of their cause, despite all the warnings (even from
Colin Powell, our Secretary-of-State) and a ripe opportunity to finish
off Al Qaeda, the Bush administration directed out military in Iraq. Our
excuse? We had to attack them before they attacked us. The reason was
blatantly absurd, but appealed just enough to our sense of nationalism
that it led to war.
Perhaps
this, more than anything, illustrates the danger of extremism, and how
leaders twist patriotism for the support of very unpatriotic actions.
We lost the moral imperative of this war. The result?
- Tens
of thousands of people dead (perhaps over a hundred thousand), including
innocent citizens, American and Iraqi soldiers, journalists, workers,
and peace-keepers.
- A
noticeable rise in terrorist acts against Americans in Iraq, which has
killed over 2,500 Americans (mostly our dedicated soldiers) and maimed
tens of thousands more.
- By
pointing to Iraq as a sure sign of western imperialism, organizations
like Al Qaeda can claim philosophical legitimacy for terrorism.
- Tension between us and our allies, who feel they can no longer trust us our judgment and leadership.
Most
Americans recognize the unconscionable folly of this war. Coupled with
domestic debacles (such as efforts to dismantle Social Security in the
name of saving it) the Bush administration will never be trusted by the
majority of the American people again.
What do we do now?
Once again, the nation is divided. Some
insist we have to stay the course. Others call for systematic redeployment.
Which course is correct? Who really knows for sure?
At
Seeds, we do not call for immediate withdrawal from Iraq. Neither
do we call for staying the course. We recognize that, as Americans, we
are responsible for the actions of our elected leaders. We are responsible
to fix the chaos that American interference created in Iraq. As Colin
Powell warned the president, "you break it, you own it." The
blood of the Iraqi people, and the American soldiers we sent there, is
on our hands. It was up to us to stop this war from happening. Instead,
the majority of us sat back and watched.
We
have to try to fix things in Iraq. It is no longer a matter of how do
we use this country for our own purposes. That attitude works as much
against us as anything else.
We
must find a way to securely place the fate of the Iraqi people in their
own hands, and then leave without accolades. Completely. Staking no control
of their oil or strategic location. We should withdraw from Saudi Arabia,
where the people do not want us, and fanatics like Osama bin Ladin view
themselves as religious freedom fighters trying to get us out.
We
next should devise a foreign policy based on our domestic policy. That
is, we should fix up our own domestic problems, and then show the world
the full benefits of a functional, moral democracy. If we do that, they
will be inspired to emulate it without moral reservation, and freedom
will spread across all the nations without costing American lives.
