Race War or Class War?

Although the troubles in Iraq have only drawn a cautious official response from Muslim countries, including the Arab League asking the U.S. not to invade Fallujah, a far deeper impact has been made on Muslim masses across the globe, where increasingly they are becoming motivated to take up arms in support of the Iraqi resistance.

One can't but ask why it is that only Muslim masses are becoming motivated to take up arms in support of the Iraqi resistance?

Once upon a time, masses from all corners -- including from the United States -- converged on Spain to take up arms against the Fascists.

Seventy years later, as the Iraqi Resistance makes an heroic stand against an invader every bit as vicious and brutal as its predecessor (even more barbaric, really: the Nazis never used radioactive munitions, though surely they would liked to have had them at their disposal), where is the new Abraham Lincoln Brigade?

Why are not Americans and Europeans taking up arms in support of the Iraqi resistance? Why is not an American Refusenik movement, along the lines of the Israeli movement refusing to take part in "the missions of occupation and repression", beginning to take seed in Iraq?

Granted, the ideologies of many people comprising the Iraqi Resistance doesn't exactly inspire the same romantic wanderlust as the Spanish Anarchists -- nor even of the NLF or the EZLN. And, granted, many of those that might be inclined to such an undertaking are predisposed to nonviolence.

So then, why aren't Europeans and North Americans by the tens of thousands descending upon Iraq to bear witness against, and hopefully discourage, the Empire's depredations?

Is Donald H. Rumsfeld going to give the order to bomb hospitals and residences knowing there is white skin in them? Yeah, probably. But will the grunts carry out such orders? Not as likely.

Update, 11/11/04: A Dispatch from Dahr Jamail points up another avenue:

He talks to me about his friend's family. "They are so poor, they live 21 people in a house with three bedrooms, and they are good people," he says, before going on to explain more about his dead friends' situation.

He was working as a translator for the military because he had to earn money for his family. Unfortunately, he was working with TITAN, a private security company. It was either starve to death, or work with the coalition.

He was on a military patrol in Baghdad when it came under attack near the Taji airbase and his friend was shot by the resistance.

If we can get money into the hands of Iraqi civilians, they won't be forced to work for the "Coalition"; and they won't, therefore, be gunned down by the Resistance.

Posted by Eddie Tews at November 10, 2004 07:58 PM