Responsibility
| By Concerned Citizen - Dec 28th, 2007 at 4:19 am EST |
The façade surrounding any resemblance of an honest and articulate argument which suggests that our military is engaged in liberation and not occupation quickly crumbles upon reflection of the fact that an estimated 70 percent of the Iraqi population wants American troops to withdraw from their homeland within the immediate future. When the great majority of a nation occupied by a foreign power denounces their presence, the citizens of that foreign power have a moral obligation to pressure their government to honor the credos upon which their nation was founded - namely liberty and the right of self-determination.
If we are to claim to have even a vague notion of an allegiance to the ideals of democracy and the equality of all men, this should and must be our charge. These principles were espoused as "universal truths" by our forefathers. Is the Middle East not within your universe?
An equally important question we must ask is: "Why do they fight?" Western powers have been entwined with the politics of the Middle East for centuries. It has not been until relatively recently, however, that the balance of power has been so grossly tipped in the favor of the Westerners. I urge you to read your history. The situation in Iraq is not a freak phenomenon that arose after Sept. 11.
The British encountered the volatile nature of an embattled Iraq (or at least the artificially created boundaries that the UK established) after the first World War. The British military described a major Iraqi insurgency that used guerilla warfare and was backed by an indignant population of Shia, Sunnis, and Kurds. British occupation of Mesopotamia was intended to secure their oil interests in the region. These same interests lead to a coup d'état orchestrated by the CIA and British intelligence agencies in Iran in 1953 because of the actions of the democratically-elected Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh, who supported the nationalization of his country's oil industry.
The American- and British-led sanctions of Iraq caused the estimated deaths of half a million children in the '90s, starving the populace and reinforcing both terrorist recruitment efforts and Saddam's power. Saddam himself was a monster of our own making. When he horrendously murdered his own people with chemical weapon, he had already been a top CIA informant for decades and remained a strategic ally and trade partner, until he bit the hand that fed him with his invasion of Kuwait and threatened the security of our monopoly on Saudi Arabia's natural resources. And now impoverishment, desperation, and anger towards a marauding nation and its compliant citizens have met head-on with terrifying results.
Our foreign policies have been creating resentment and hatred around the world for the last half century. We have created a situation in which the possibility of democracy can not take root. We force a harsh dichotomy for the people of these nations, where they must choose between corrupt dictators and religious fundamentalists.
But what have you done? While you have been looking the other way, your country has soaked itself in oil and arrogance, and we are inching closer and closer to the flame of self-annihilation. Your friends and family members are being crucified upon the cross of energy dependence. This is not to mention the environmental degradation of your planet being caused by this same unchecked greed and ignorance. It is not enough to read of the atrocities of war and discuss it with your friends. Have you been so consumed with apathy that after four years of injustice you have yet to write a letter to your elected leaders?
Have you been too comfortable in your ivory tower to stand up for what is right? The Middle East is on the brink of a regional war that can devastate the world economy, families, and lives. What have you done to prevent this besides shake your head in disgust? Are you proud of your inaction? You hope for a leader, yet refuse to lead. What will you tell your grandchildren when they ask what you did to help end the "Petroleum Wars" at the turn of the century?
What are you going to do?P
If we are to claim to have even a vague notion of an allegiance to the ideals of democracy and the equality of all men, this should and must be our charge. These principles were espoused as "universal truths" by our forefathers. Is the Middle East not within your universe?
An equally important question we must ask is: "Why do they fight?" Western powers have been entwined with the politics of the Middle East for centuries. It has not been until relatively recently, however, that the balance of power has been so grossly tipped in the favor of the Westerners. I urge you to read your history. The situation in Iraq is not a freak phenomenon that arose after Sept. 11.
The British encountered the volatile nature of an embattled Iraq (or at least the artificially created boundaries that the UK established) after the first World War. The British military described a major Iraqi insurgency that used guerilla warfare and was backed by an indignant population of Shia, Sunnis, and Kurds. British occupation of Mesopotamia was intended to secure their oil interests in the region. These same interests lead to a coup d'état orchestrated by the CIA and British intelligence agencies in Iran in 1953 because of the actions of the democratically-elected Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh, who supported the nationalization of his country's oil industry.
The American- and British-led sanctions of Iraq caused the estimated deaths of half a million children in the '90s, starving the populace and reinforcing both terrorist recruitment efforts and Saddam's power. Saddam himself was a monster of our own making. When he horrendously murdered his own people with chemical weapon, he had already been a top CIA informant for decades and remained a strategic ally and trade partner, until he bit the hand that fed him with his invasion of Kuwait and threatened the security of our monopoly on Saudi Arabia's natural resources. And now impoverishment, desperation, and anger towards a marauding nation and its compliant citizens have met head-on with terrifying results.
Our foreign policies have been creating resentment and hatred around the world for the last half century. We have created a situation in which the possibility of democracy can not take root. We force a harsh dichotomy for the people of these nations, where they must choose between corrupt dictators and religious fundamentalists.
But what have you done? While you have been looking the other way, your country has soaked itself in oil and arrogance, and we are inching closer and closer to the flame of self-annihilation. Your friends and family members are being crucified upon the cross of energy dependence. This is not to mention the environmental degradation of your planet being caused by this same unchecked greed and ignorance. It is not enough to read of the atrocities of war and discuss it with your friends. Have you been so consumed with apathy that after four years of injustice you have yet to write a letter to your elected leaders?
Have you been too comfortable in your ivory tower to stand up for what is right? The Middle East is on the brink of a regional war that can devastate the world economy, families, and lives. What have you done to prevent this besides shake your head in disgust? Are you proud of your inaction? You hope for a leader, yet refuse to lead. What will you tell your grandchildren when they ask what you did to help end the "Petroleum Wars" at the turn of the century?
What are you going to do?P
!
Comments are closed for this post.
Where, oh where, do you get the stones to lecture others about their (as you see it) ivory tower inactivity, when there's absolutely nothing to indicate that you've done anything at all?