IRAQ: Middle East Truth Watch

A: No, he wasn't mistaken--he was lying. To put it in plain Detroit English, President Bush is a lying sack of shit. I know it, you know it, every politician and media person in America knows it. So when Jennings or Brokaw or any of the other Talking Heads quotes the president without mentioning that the man is a liar and a fool, the media becomes complicit in the president's lie. Reality Check: We are in greater danger of being attacked by little green cabbage heads from Mars than we are of being attacked by Iraq.

Q: What is the main threat to the American people? What are WE worried about?

A: That’s a no-brainer: we are, by far, most worried about terrorist attacks on our own people in our own country.

Q: If we caught a group of conspirators acting in a way that would increase the likelihood of terrorist attacks on America, what should we do with that group?

A: Give them a fair trial and if they are found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, seriously consider capital punishment.

Q: If we attack Iraq, will that increase the likelihood of terrorist attacks on America?

A: Of course it will. Everybody in the world is in agreement on that point, so even if you don't object to an attack on Iraq on moral grounds, anyone who cares about saving our own lives must stop the moron in the Whitehouse. Put the sleazy little prick on trial for endangering the lives of everyone in America.

Q: Repeat: Is America in imminent danger of being nuked or otherwise attacked by Iraq?

A: Of course not. Not only does Iraq not have nuclear weapons, but Iraq has never attacked, or shown any inclination to attack, America, ever!

Q: Would bombing Iraq make terrorist attacks less likely or more likely?

A: More likely by far. It would infuriate every Arab, every Muslim and just about every non-American in the world. (see Half-A-Million March in Anti-War Rally in Italy)

Q: Then why are we, the American people, allowing the politicians of our democracy to conduct a ridiculous debate over an act that is certain to increase the likelihood of terrorist attacks on American soil? Why are we allowing our politicians to debate an action that will put us all in jeopardy? Politicians in a democracy are at least as accountable as private citizens, so why don’t we put them on trial immediately, beginning with President Bush? Why don’t we change the debate from Should we attack Iraq now or later to Should we impeach, indict and imprison politicians who endanger our lives?

BULLETINS LIVE FROM IRAQ

Barbara Nimri Aziz, noted author, anthropologist, radio show host and journalist went to Iraq in mid-February, 2003, a time when the threat of war hung over the country. Aziz's "Baghdad Bulletins" convey both the feeling of impending doom and the great beauty of the people and the country as they wait for America to "do whatever it wants."

go directly to "Baghdad Bulletins" by Barbara Nimri Aziz

Q: If Iraq has never attacked, or shown any inclination to attack, America…why did we attack Iraq in 1991?

A: America’s 1991 attack resists our memory because the pieces don’t seem to add up. Like:

o October 1989: Old George Bush called for closer U.S. ties to Iraq. Bush sealed the deal by secretly approving three billion dollars in unauthorized loans to Iraq.

o July 1990: Saddam Hussein met with April Glaspie, America’s Ambassador to Iraq and told her he’d like to invade Kuwait. She contacted her bosses in the U.S., they said it was cool; the administration did not get involved in Arab-Arab conflicts.

o August 1990: By the time Ms. Glaspie got back to the U.S. her bosses had changed their minds, so she changed hers. They all swore that nobody in the U.S. ever gave Saddam their blessing to invade Kuwait.

o Unbeknownst to Ms. Glaspie, slick Saddam had secretly taped their conversation. He sent a copy of the tape to the Mother of All Newspapers, the NY Times; the Times printed it for everyone in America to see. It must have been a remarkable tape because it seems to have induced amnesia in everyone who read it.

o September 1990: Our government reported that Iraqi soldiers were ripping babies out of incubators and smashing their heads against walls. That really got us riled. Old President Bush sent 125,000 American soldiers to Kuwait.

o Flash Forward to February 22, 1992 (about a year after the Gulf War ended): TV Guide featured a cover story titled "Fake News.” The heart of the article was a long sidebar that described in detail how the baby bashing and other atrocities that Old President Bush had used to whip America into a war frenzy had never happened. Those atrocities had been orchestrated by the public relations firm of Hill and Knowlton, headed by Craig Fuller, former chief of staff to George Bush. The “atrocities” were, in fact, movies with actors, scripts and rehearsals that allowed the President of the United States to make a mockery of our democracy and attack the people of Iraq—a people who had never hurt us in any way.

o November 1, 1990: Bush sends another 400,000 soldiers to the Gulf but he doesn’t mention it until after the election because he’s doing so poorly in the polls.

o November 8, 1990: Bush announces that he has sent another 400,000 soldiers to the Gulf. The Saudis made it clear that they did not want a permanent US military base in their country. US Secretary of Defense (at the time) Richard Cheney (now vice president), promised Saudi King Fahd that the troops would be removed after the war. They were not removed. The massacre of September 11 was largely the result of the US decision to leave behind bases in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states.

o November 10, 1990: Poll: 75% of the American people are against attacking Iraq even if the sanctions fail.

o December 1990: Bush argues that the proof of how dangerous the world considers Saddam Hussein is the number of countries that join “our coalition.” Bush forgets to mention that our “coalition” was bought. Immediately after the UN vote authorizing force

= The US “unblocked” a $140 million loan to China

= The US promised the Soviet Union $7 billion in aid

= The US promised to forgive most of Zaire's debt

= The US forgave a $7 billion loan to Egypt

= The US promise Syria that we wouldn’t interfere with Syria's actions in Lebanon

= The US promised Saudi Arabia $12 billion in arms sales…and so on

(from the Congressional Record, Jan. 16, 1991:H520)

PS: YOU paid for all that—in addition to the $50 billion for the war!

o Israeli Foreign Minister Levy says that Israel may attack Iraq. (US Air Force Chief of Staff Dugan was fired for saying that Israelis said “the best way to hurt Saddam was by targeting him, his family, his mistress…”)

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Chronology of 1990-91 Gulf War

Gulf War TV Guide Article

You HAVE to read this.