What To Do About Iraq
By Rod Rees
11/27/05 "
ICH" -- -- With the recent polls showing strong support for getting out of Iraq the Bush administration is once again changing
its song-and-dance routine, this time to make it appear that they, too, want out. Of course, we in the anti-war movement can't
trust the Administration's latest stance any more than in the past, and now is not the time for complacency on our part. Instead,
it's time to make our demands about Iraq even more explicit, more pointed, and more forceful. It's not just a matter of "getting
out," although that's Number 1 on the Christmas Wish List. There are several other things the U.S. must also do for a humane
and conscientious resolution to the horrors of our war against Iraq. My list of the necessary steps for reparation in Iraq
and movement toward reconciliation with the Muslim world include the following.
A: First, of course, get out of Iraq
NOW. Which means immediately. Not soon, not next year, not a "drawdown of troops," but today and totally. No U.S. military
personnel, not one, will remain in Iraq. No U.S. military advisors. No U.S. peace-keeping troops. No CIA. Nobody. Just get
out. There is no other way to show the Muslim world that our invasion of Iraq was a horrible mistake and that we as a nation
totally and unconditionally repudiate it.
B: No military bases in Iraq. This means Zero Military Presence in Iraq now
and in perpetuity. Not so much as one broken-down Humvee or a case of MREs will remain. Our military bases in the Middle East
are a constant reminder to the Muslim world of our imperialist agenda.
C: No U.S. corporations in Iraq. No Halliburton.
No Bechtel. No MacDonalds. No Exxon-Mobil. Not even a shadow or a hint of U.S. corporate exploitation.
D: Hands off
Iraq oil. It ain't ours. Leave it alone. Period. End of story.
E: Rescind all contracts, laws, and agreements imposed
on Iraq by Paul Bremer or any other U.S. government entity. This means to give total control of Iraq and its destiny back
to the Iraqis.
F: Prosecute fully any violation of the Geneva Treaty. Straight up the chain of command as far as it
goes. No exceptions. No limits. Are you listening, Mr. Rumsfeld?
G: Release all enemy combatants. Including those held
in Iraq, Guantanamo, or any secret detainee base anywhere in the world.
H: Pay for UN peace-keeping in Iraq. Whatever
it costs.
I: Pay for the total cost of rebuilding Iraq. Pay for every ruined building. Pay for very bit of destroyed
or damaged infrastructure. Pay for every dead goat, every damaged out-house, every maimed and orphaned child, every Iraqi
who was crushed to death in a bombed-out apartment building, every mother whose legs were blown off by a car bomb. Pay until
it hurts. Pay until no one ever again will elect a president with visions of world domination dancing like sugar plums in
his head. And after we've done everything humanly possible to rebuild Iraq, realize that the real damage can never, ever be
repaired.
J: Apologize. Uh, this means you George W. Get on TV, without a script, and say you're sorry. Tell the world
you were dead wrong to invade Iraq. Tell the truth, for once, about why you did it. Only the truth, the whole truth, and nothing
but the truth can regain the trust of the Muslim world. Get down on your knees if that's what it takes. Apologize like the
end of Terrorism depends on your apology...because it does.
If, and only if, the above steps are taken can we hope
for a reconciliation with the Muslim world and an end to Terrorism. Anything less and we're doomed to the perpetual state
of war that Bush & Cheney hope & pray for.
Rod Rees
chayote@gilanet.com
Source:
Information Clearing House
