January 15, 2003
"He Gassed His Own People"
Yes, he certainly did. Saddam's gassing of Kurds at Halabja in 1988 is presented today, by the Bush and Blair Administrations, as indicative of Saddam's tyrannical methods, and is the subject of a lenghty piece by the Los Angeles Times' Jeffrey Fleishman.
Odd that a crime of 15 years ago is seen as justification to commit crimes of incalculably greater magnitude today. But the charge is true nevertheless, as are the conclusions that Saddam was and is a brutal monster.
However, somehow, some way, Bush and Blair (and now Fleishman) always seem to neglect to mention that the gassing of the Kurds, as well as the rest of Saddam's crimes of the pre-Gulf War era, were fairly rabidly supported by the Reagan Administration. After Halabja, the U.S. in fact escalated the flow of military aid to Iraq.
If it "was" a crime now, it was a crime then. And if Bush and Blair want Saddam to be held accountable now for crimes he committed then (a reasonable proposition, to say the least), then those that enabled his crimes should (they're still alive, after all) be held accountable as well.
Fleishman also reports (as have others) that a new Gulf War will provoke yet another attack upon the Kurds, quoting a victim of the 1988 attack as saying that, "We expect it to happen again. We have nothing to save us. No gas masks. No chemicals suits. No medicines. We have only the experience of what happened the first time."
But Fleishman is unable to draw the obvious logical conclusion that, if the Bush and Blair Administrations, as they've often proclaimed to, really gave one-half of one fuck about the Iraqi Kurds (their indifference to the plight of the Turkish Kurds has been amply demonstrated), then they would not mount an invasion assured of provoking such an attack.
Posted by Eddie Tews at January 15, 2003 06:47 PM
Comments
fuck all these stupid ass crackers and rednecks, oil, oil, oil, oil, money, greed is what this is all about, from slavery to stealing nations to all anglo-saxons or crackers, hunkeys, rednecks have done it all. quit calling people niggers if yo stupid ass finds this offensive, hunkey!!!!
-- Posted by: fucc you cracker on March 28, 2003 05:38 PM
Hey, Yes, the Reagen Admins. support of Iraq despite the 1988 massacre is atrocious, but it definately does not warrant prosecution of those in teh Reagan admin. of the time. If this was true, then Canada's Chretien sould be prosecuted as well for Canada's financial aid of UNRWA which funds Palesitnian textbooks which espouse hatred of Jews, leading to incitement, and subsequently, terrorism. And Ariel Sharon shouldn't be charged criminally for his crimes of ommision (Sabra and Shatila) if those who are guilty of crimes of persecution, oppresion, and mass murder are not. As well, this administration should not be inhibited from acting morally and justifiably jsut because of past administration mistakes. Yes, this war would be hypocritical if it was the same US administration, but it's a different one. Iraq's leader is still acountable because he's still in power decades later (oh, don't you love dictatorships). If a bully on a schoolyard shows an initiative to become a better person, does the principle tell him to fuck off, go home, it won't make a difference? I don't think so. Different situation, similar principle. Put your words into context, and don't be a hypocrite. Whatever standards you hols the US to, hold to every other country. No country's perfect, of course, but that's far from the point. -- Posted by: Eric on April 23, 2003 12:36 PM
Worlds finest armed forces,representing this, the greatest country on earth,[not necessarily from the same quote].Fuck off Bush you fuckwit .WMDs,Afghanistan,Guantanemo Bay and now you tell us fucking Rumsfeld is doing a superb job.Fuck off Fuck off Fuck off.The wheels are coming off your war wagon and I hope you perish in the collision you cunt. -- Posted by: trevor kelso on May 11, 2004 02:21 PM