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PDF versionThe war in Iraq was an abject failure
by Mario T. García on Dec. 22, 2011
President Barack Obama and administration officials are hailing the so-called end to the war in Iraqi as some kind of success. Some are saying that the loss of about 4,500 American lives with more than 100,000 injured as well as the thousands more Iraqis killed and wounded was worth the price of the war commenced by President George W. Bush in 2003.
But, in my opinion, this senseless war was not worth a single American or Iraqi life.
It was a war based on lies and deceptions, a war with the intent by the Bush Administration (supported by some opportunistic Democrats) to assert U.S. military power to underscore the maintenance of the American empire, not only in the Middle East but throughout the world.
This empire consists of ensuring American access to markets and to natural resources such as oil in different parts of the world. U.S. military power in the form of hundreds of worldwide military bases is also part of this empire.
When I say it was a senseless war, I mean that it was senseless for almost all Americans except for the ruling elite -- the 1 percent -- who benefit from this empire. For this ruling class, such wars of intervention, including Afghanistan, make sense with respect to their bottom line.
But the war in Iraq can never be justified for those who died in it; those who came back maimed; those families torn apart as their loved ones left for war (and some never returned); and for the billions of dollars wasted that only has contributed to the country’s economic woes.
Instead of trying to somehow justify the Iraq war, President Obama should have used the removal of the last of U.S. combat troops to reflect on the tragedy of the war and to vow that, at least under his watch, no such unnecessary interventions would take place. In the end, only the majority of us can assure preventing such future wars by our protests and struggles against imperial adventures.
Have you heard Mr. Clinton
Have you heard Mr. Clinton call for an intervention in Iran, at the some time that in Bagdad dozens of civilians were being killed? I could not believe it... May our Lord Jesus, the King of Peace, save us from ourselves. And help all of us, Christians, to aid to heal this suffering world.
Have you heard of Libya?
Have you heard of Libya? Drone attacks in Pakistan?
more drones coming to the
more drones coming to the Mexican border, including those which see beyond the horizon . . .
Mexico, by the way, has the primary requisite for US invasion: petroleum reserves.
.."It was a war based on lies
.."It was a war based on lies and deceptions." Mario, you are very naive. I guess you think we are responsible for the attacks on the WTC.
I do agree that it was a disaster and a failure. Within 48 hours of our leaving civil war broke out. If anything, our presence was a stabalizing influence but now it will certainly result in widespread murder, rape and unthinkable brutality within these tribal groups.
Dear brother Andrew, In
Dear brother Andrew,
In a way, we were responsible for the attacks on the WTC. Recognized architects commented that anything over 60 stories was braggadocio. The WTC was dubbed the "Cathedral of Capitalism." It was this symbol of power and superiority that goaded individuals from Saudi Arabia to plot and carry out the attacks. The Bush administration conveniently relying on information that was poor at best, and ignoring the UN and Pope John Paul II, launched a pre-emptive and unjust war against Iraq. Our invasion and presence resulted in over 4,500 US service personnel dying and countless others wounded or maimed. This has resulted in widespread murder, rape, suicide and unthinkable suffering in the community of returning veterans. There were also the anywhere from 100,000 to 600,000 Iraqi casualties that resulted from our unwarranted presence and invasion of their country.
The "widespread murder, rape and unthinkable brutality within these tribal groups" that you mention was fueled by our illegal presence and invasion. Much credit for the current instability in the Iraqi "tribal groups" is ours. And so is all of the debt, to our veterans and to Iraq and the Middle East that resulted from the unjust war our nation allowed.
If it were possible, our nation should confess this mortal sin and begin to seek reconciliation and to make restitution.
Paz y Bien, Rolando, SFO.
Wow! We are seeing this
Wow! We are seeing this through totally different perspectives. I'm sorry but I don't buy into anything you said. It seems you have a real resentment and contempt for our Country, and I am sorry for that. I hope that can be changed some day because there is no place I would rather be than right here in the USA.
Blessings to you Roland
Andrew K.
Dear brother Andrew, I
Dear brother Andrew,
I have no resentment nor contempt for our country. I served honorably in the United States Marine Corps. There is no other place I would rather be than where God's will deploys me, be it my birthplace in Texas, my Franciscan learning places in Illinois, my Marine service stations in this country and in Vietnam, or my subsequent and current residence in the United States of America. I am sorry and apologize if this offends you. With Francis of Assisi, I kiss your feet and ask forgiveness.
Paz y Bien, Rolando, SFO.
How does seeing the nakedness
How does seeing the nakedness of the Empire mean resentment and contempt for our country? As Rolando stated, John Paul II pleaded with the Bush Administration not to go to war in Iraq. If the Pope had succeeded, would he be charged with contempt or hatred of the U.S.? The Emperor has no clothes--this was a war of naked ego on the part of Bush and Cheney.
May the Peace of Heart and Soul emanating from the Divine with us and in us show the way out of these condemnatory mindsets. May those war-mongers of recent past, even they, know this peace.
I don't recall John Paul II
I don't recall John Paul II pleading not to go to war with Iraq. I do remember him saying it would be a difficult war to win and advised against it. Keep in mind JPII was anti-Nazi in WWII and a freedom fighter. He stood with Ronald Reagan to bring down Polish Communism and the Iron Curtain. He was no stranger to war and undertood it's costs. Please don't try to re-write history. And if Rolando was trained as a US Marine, I am finding it very hard to accept his comments as genuine but I will give him the benefit of the doubt.
I wish you both God's grace.
Andrew K
So how long do we stay? 100
So how long do we stay? 100 years?
Saudis attacked the WTC, not
Saudis attacked the WTC, not Iraqis, in any way. No connection was ever found, and no WMD's were ever found, despite Baby Bush's moaning . . .
Yet the only one's permitted to fly after 9/11 were Saudi's getting out of town.
Not even Papa Bush could fly, yet the royal SAudi's, yes.
Why is that, Andy?
Twake a look at the Distinctly Catholic documentarian Michael Moore's Farhenheit 9/11 sometime, and weep for our W's wrong-doing.
"Mario, you are very naive."
"Mario, you are very naive." I see you do not give one iota of evidence to back up this assertion. Andrew, do you believe Sadaam Husein's cache of weapons of mass destruction were an imminent threat to the USA?
there was absolutely no
there was absolutely no "Sadaam Husein's cache of weapons of mass destruction" and W knew this BEFORE rushing to invade, so we might not know it as well . . .
I'm not sure I posted this
I'm not sure I posted this correctly, so here it is again:
"In the end, only the majority of us can assure preventing such future wars"
How true, brother Mario. We must remember that ours is a republic. We elect our leaders to represent us and to promote our national ideals: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Sadly, violence seems to be not our last resort as a nation, but our inevitable response to social, political and religious challenges. It is up to us, the citizens and voters, to elect representatives who are strong enough to listen to the words of the Prince of Peace, as Mahatma Ghandi, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King and Bishop Oscar Romero did.
"In the end, only the majority of us can assure preventing such future wars." We can do this only when we realize and acknowledge that there is no such thing as a "just war." There is just war. Our ancestors prayed for the day when "they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; one nation shall not raise the sword against another, nor shall they train for war again." (Micah 4:3) Jesus himself, just before his arrest, told his disciples, "Put your sword back into its sheath, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword." (Matthew 26:56); "Stop, no more of this!" (Luke 22:51)
Only when our president and elected leaders, along with our pope and all religious leaders, and the majority of us proclaim these words sincerely and act accordingly will our Father's will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with us.
Paz y Bien, Rolando, SFO.
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