[Texgreen] Iraq: this sounds true to me

[Roger Baker]

This is a repost from the energyresources list. -- Roger

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The entire problem was the intention of the occupation of Iraq.  If  
you read
Greg Palast's last book, he explained there were two plans for the  
invasion
of Iraq.  The first, designed in part by Colin Powell, was a quick  
overthrow
of Hussein and a replacement by someone more friendly to the US  
government.
The second plan involved the complete privatation of Iraq.  The first
appointee to oversee the occupation, General Garner, had planned on  
having
elections within 90 days.  He was fired before he even got started.  The
next appointee, Paul Bremer III, oversaw the give away of the Iraqi
country.  The Iraqi's had what was left of their country after a  
decade of
sanctions and bombing and a "shock and awe" campaign stolen away from  
them.
Over $8 biilion disappeared from the Iraqi treasury during Bremers  
reign. It
is a testament to the kindness of human nature that the violence  
there is
not an outright butchery of US troops there, given what we have done to
their country so far.

Maybe Iran did set it up as a trap or maybe they merely took  
advantage of
the mess created by the US.  The government in Iran has a lot in  
common with
the government here.  They are trying to impose religious doctrine on  
top of
education.

The way out of this situation is diplomacy.  Real diploamcy that
recognizes the humanness of everyone in the region.  And first, the  
US needs
to pressure Israel into ending its brutal oppression of the
Palestinians. Until that thorn is removed, it seems impossible
that there can be peace in the region.  If the US government  
maintains its
current policies, there is little hope.

Immediate withdrawal probably isn't the wisest option, but it is  
better than
holding the present course.  As I said, the best option is genuine
diplomacy.  First, settle Israel and Palestine because that should be
relatively easy.  Then, restore the country of Iraq to the Iraqi people.
Nationalize everything. Hold elections.  Pay them back the $8 billion  
that
was stolen from them.  If the majority of people have jobs, water, food,
electricity, etc, the violence should fade away to a manageable  
level.  Then
the US can withdraw.

This is like Vietnam.  There, too, the US government supported an  
oppressive
puppet government that lacked popular support.  Because the US did  
not do
anything to implement justice and democracy in Vietnam, the US lost.   
The
same thing is happening in Iraq.  It is a quagmire.  The US military  
has no
winnable objective.  The only way to win is to restore control of the  
Iraqi
economy to the Iraqis, but doing that is counter to globalization...


Christopher Burrell
Escondido, CA