Here's a question I've heard recently:
“Why bother marching in London on April 12th? After all, the war's nearly over now, innit? It's a walkover from now on and there's been hardly any civilian casualties. And what there have been have probably been the Iraqis killing their own people as normal.”
Is the war nearly over? I don't think so. Even if the USK's forces take control of Baghdad completely this week, the war won't be over. In fact, it may be just starting. Just as the mujaheddin fought the Soviet invasion, so new ranks of mujaheddin are being being recruited now, both from within Iraq and from neighbouring countries. We may see the spectacle of an installed US garrison having to wage war against a population it has “liberated”, much in the same way the German invaders had to fight those misguided fools in the French Resistance.
We need to get the troops out now. Bring them home, every last one. Before more come home in bodybags. And before they kill more innocent civilians.
As for the lack of civilian casualties – do not trust anything you see on the mainstream media. Just today, BBC correspondent John Simpson was bombed by US forces whilst part of a convoy. Thankfully, he's still alive but it's more a matter of luck than the “smartness” of US bombs. Of course, we know about this attack because it'd be very difficult to hush-up the death of such a noted Western reporter, which is how we also know about the other reporters lost in the battle so far. But Iraqi civilian casualties – how do we know the real picture going on there?
This is what Roland Huguenin, one of six International Red Cross workers in the Iraqi capital, said:
“There has been an incredible number of casualties with very, very serious wounds in the region of Hilla. We saw that a truck was delivering dozens of totally dismembered dead bodies of women and children. It was an awful sight. It was really very difficult to believe this was happening.”
I'm sure the living relatives of these poor souls will be elated at their liberation. After all, it makes it all worthwhile if you're blown apart by USK munitions rather than starved to death by US sanctions or killed by your own insane leader.
The attacks on two Baghdad markets showed how inaccurate the “smart” bombs are. And yet, the USK's propaganda corps has just been hinting that this was the Iraqis blowing up their own people. In a cutting rebuke, Independent reporter Robert Fisk rubbished these claims, pointing out that many bits of shrapnel had been found from the attacks, more than one with current Western munitions markings.
But every day the propaganda on the TV news becomes more extreme. Now Hussein is being portrayed as a Loki-like trickster, skipping from dune to dune, employing doubles and wily subterfuge. One report on the BBC claimed that Hussein's recent walkabout was clearly a double and that he was probably dead. Thirty seconds later, a BBC reporter on the scene says, “This was definitely Hussein.” Get your stories right, BBC!
Hussein's dead… no, he's alive. We've captured Umm Quasr! We promise! Yes… we believe you, even thought you've reported its capture nine times so far.
All of this fury, all of these bombs directed by the greatest superpower in the world against a tiny country, hobbled by sanctions and a crumbling regime that was maybe losing even more support until the US bombed Iraqis back towards Hussein.
Here's some relevant facts and figures from Jackson Thoreau about the great world menace of Iraq:
Military spending, worldwide: $900 billion.
Percentage of worldwide military spending by U.S.: 50.
Percentage of worldwide military spending by Iraq: 0.0015.
Yes… what a terrible force for evil they must be with that military budget. And before anyone invokes 9/11 – remember, there were no Iraqis whatsoever involved in that attack. Although I'm guessing that if Al Quaeda were recruiting now, it'd be a different story entirely.
Of course, the US will leave Iraq the great gift of democracy. Along with tonnnes of depleted uranium and cluster bombs. Recently, the Diana Foundation came out strongly against the use of cluster bombs:
“It's appalling that, despite the well-documented problems with cluster weapons, the US and UK are dropping them on Iraq,” Andrew Purkis, chief executive of the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund said in a statement.
“We urge people to join our campaign to put pressure on governments to take responsibility for the clear up of these indiscriminate weapons of war. Until then, cluster bombs must not be used.”
Of course, we must patriotically dismiss this renegade organisation because we all know Princess Diana was an extreme lefty who loved Saddam. Anyone who criticises the USK's bloody crusade is labelled with that so she can't be any different.
This war against Iraq is an illegal, barbaric, totally unjustified US imperialist adventure. The US seeks to bolster both its world domination and its oil reserves with one bloody example. It has nothing to do with fighting terrorism or rogue states since the US itself is the biggest exporter and supporter of both of these.
I'm not writing this rant to convert pro-war thinkers: if you've swallowed the lies of the mainstream media without question you're either too lazy or too stupid for me to reach.
I'm trying to reach the people who feel beaten down, who feel isolated and powerless in the face of the extraordinary pro-war media barrage. I've said it before but we are in the position that the majority of Germans were in when the Nazi party was on the rise.
We can stand by, idly, while a great evil is being done in our names – who knows what our silence will then lead to? Will the US feel emboldened and attack Iran? Syria?
Or we can protest, march, speak, sing, write, do everything we can to stop this war. Just talking about it makes a difference, just putting forward an alternative point of view when you meet yet another moron who's just regurgitating Sun headlines.
The most positive statement you can make is by joining me and the millions of other people who'll be marching worldwide in Adelaide (13.04), Athens, Auckland, Berlin, Brussels, Copenhagen, Cyprus, Dubrovnik, Halmstad, London, Los Angeles, Managua, Manilla, Mexico City, Oslo, Osijek, Peurto Rico, Poznan, Pula, Rijeka, Rome, Rotterdam, San Francisco, Sao Paulo, Seoul, Shannon, Split, Stockholm, Victoria (13.04), Vukovar, Warsaw, Washington, Zadar, Zagreb this Saturday, 12th April.
The more people that march, the more the message is sent to the US and UK governments that not only do we want this war stopped, we do not want any future crusades either.
The world is what we choose to make it!
love and kisses,
Jyoti