Thursday, February 23, 2006

Blogging Iraq

I think we are in big trouble in Iraq. I try not to let these stories get to me. I try to think it will all work out. I wish we had a “command Z” all the way back to invasion of Iraq. I remember the way I felt when that happened, afraid for us, afraid for them, afraid for the world. A world that most of us don’t understand. Religious zealots that have fought against each other for centuries, to the death, blowing themselves up in the name of Allah and the promise of 75 virgins. Trying to explain it all to my son was confusing and embarrassing. We had gone into a country and bomb the shit out of them on the premise of ‘weapons of mass destruction’ when I was sure there were other countries with WMD’s and we were not invading. I do admire our military, taking on this terrible task but I become crazy when I hear interviews where they talking about being there to protect America’s freedom. That war has nothing to do with our freedoms; those wonderful young people are losing their lives – for what? And believe me; I know many of you will not agree with me on this. I debate this with my family in Texas all the time.

Going through the photos of today I just see death and carnage in Iraq the last couple of days. Reading MSNBC's Blogging Iraq about another journalist - Atwar Bahjat, and her camera crew were killed doing their job. Seeing her bloody, lifeless body. WHY? The golden dome in Iraq, one of Iraq's holiest shrines was blown up, and then Sunni mosques were blown up by Shiite militia. The Iranian president is blaming US for the dome bombing. And Iraq is becoming more dangerous in an all-out civil war. Angry, young, hopeless, men will keep this unrest going, probably forever, just as it always has been. This is not our war. But as D and I were telling our son the other night when he suggested we just pack up and leave – we can’t just leave. We can not go into a country, dismantled the government, blow it to smithereens, and leave them to fend for themselves. And that is the catch right now. What to do. I do a lot of nail-biting.

5 comments:

m@®©o said...

ciao
i have finally found an interesting blog with some brains in it! i will visit again!

kelly barton art + design said...

omg...i couldn't agree more. my best friend is a staunch rep. and a huge fan of 'w'. i have lost most respect for him. he has taken
to being the king of spin. we have got to figure out a strong solution to the war. it is out of
control.

Anonymous said...

I am English and am in total agreement with your viewpoint on the Iraq war. It was started on a false premise i.e.the threat of WMD and now there is continuing carnage. An attempt to change government by powers from outside the country concerned is fraught with problems.The loss of life of Iraqis and foreign troops is blood on the hands of Blair and Bush.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for such a thoughful post about Iraq, in such very human terms.

We'll keep fighting against this war -- and hoping for the day when we can pull out, responsibly, under leadership that realizes the human cost of this as keenly as you do.

We have apparently long since abandoned our WMD rationale. Just as we have more recently abandoned all pretense of rebuilding.

It's just a bloody mess.

CRISTOSOVA said...

I find this a powerful and brave post. It reflects my own thoughts and my own uncertainty of what to do (although I am not American, so it is very different for me). I would like to second jh, your words are very, very human.