A pacifist's call for war
In my youth I used to believe categorically that there was no reason that humans should take up weapons against other humans to solve their problems. Whether those conflicts were generated by disagreements over Philosophy, Religion, Land use, Water use or any other reasons. As I have gotten older I have come to believe that there are times in the life of Nations that certain leaders or regimes have become anathema to world peace.
See I was raised in the milieu of the Cold War. There was nothing more absurd to me as a youth than the decision by our leaders to create enough nuclear arms to obliterate the world several times over, or to arm small nationalistic groups in order to support the "western" or "communist" viewpoint. Decisions as to who to support were seemingly never made with the future in mind. Recent history has shown recent American Administrations supporting these groups ONLY because they resisted the "communist" threat. And even when these Administrations had the ability to see past this one attractive trait (to them at least) and see that some of these groups had no intention of allowing a democratic tradition into their cultures, support was still blindly sent in the hopes of destroying the great enemy.
So I grew up at the end of Vietnam, which most see with 20-20 hindsight as a massive waste of time. Watched the Iran - Iraq war. The Arab - Israeli wars. The list goes on and on. Conflict after conflict with two bullies supporting proxies in order to further their economic or political agenda. But even as young person in pre pubescence I saw the stupidity of wars like these. This shaped my viewpoint of war. I had no intention of personally going to war to kill Arabs over Oil, or Vietnamese over economic philosophy. I even "registered" for the selective service as a Conscientious Objector.
Times have changed however. Wars are still fought over seemingly ridiculous things such as religion, philosophy or land use. But the means of war have changed. Once we had two "super powers" who had their hand on the button. But these were generally rational men who knew that mutually assured destruction was the one thing that they could not do. Not so anymore. The dissolution of the Soviet Empire has released a Pandora’s box of terrors, both nuclear and biological. Unscrupulous scientists in need of money to feed their families sell their knowledge to the highest bidders.
So Mr. Peabody lets dial the wayback machine back to the present. Perhaps if you understand where I am coming from as I hope I have clearly elucidated above, you will see the strength of my convictions now. The case for war against a sovereign nation or individual leader can be made now more strongly that the Cold War is over. This is because the old veneer of "my guys vs. your guys" is over for the near future at least. Civilized nations and individuals on a global scale can examine national struggles not through the rose or gray lens of the old struggles but through clear eyes.
Simply put: Is a leader or Nation a threat against the world as a whole? That threat may be economic, it may be militaristic. And now a days it may be a terrorist threat.
One leader in this world today poses a threat on all three fronts. His name is Saddam Hussein. This man is a savage dressed in expensive suits. If you thought that Milosovic was (or is) guilty of crimes against humanity then.. as you say.. you ain't seen nothing yet baby!
Militaristic threat: By repeated blocking of attempts for civilized nations through out the world to determine if this man is developing "weapons of mass destruction" he has assured us that he is. As future essays will reveal I am no friend of the present Israeli government. But who in their right mind would want this man aiming his missiles capped with biological or nuclear warheads pointed at the most democratic and economically viable nation in the middle east. The Bush administration says that they have no direct links showing Saddam Hussein's paper or money trail to Al-Quaida. Balderdash. Any thinking person can see that if this person gives 10K to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers then he surely has been supporting this terrorist network for years.
Economic Threat: The turmoil in the Middle East is a multi headed serpent whose causes have been analyzed by greater minds than mine for many years. But again it does not take a great thinker to see that the entire Palestinian question is greatly stirred up by this man's support. As long as young men and women know that their families will be taken care of after they are gone, their fundamentalist view of their reward for killing the innocent civilians will be reinforced and strengthened. A stable world economy by it's very definition includes all parts of the world. As long as this man is in power, stirring up trouble, there will be no economic development in the region. The Bush administration says that they must solve the Palestinian issue before they can go after Saddam Hussein. I say if you want to begin down the road towards peace you remove your most insidious enemy.
Terrorist Threat: Although this would seem to be the strongest pillar in the argument it cannot be. This man has covered his tracks so well that no one seems to be able to link him conclusively to any terrorist organization. For me however there does not need to be a smoking gun. Coincidence, circumstantial evidence is all we have. For me it is all I need.
However the biggest reason for my support of the removal of Saddam Hussein is the Humanistic one. Magazines like the New Yorker, the Economist and others, News shows like 60 minutes, have been showing inconvertible proof that this man has used biological and chemical warfare upon the people of his own nation. This to me is the greatest crime of all. Killing innocent Kurds with various mixes of gasses and poisons. Using them as a laboratory to see just what works the best. The facts are there, and they are published. I call upon the world to condemn this man and his regime. Stop pussy footing around. Do you think for a moment that these hideous chemical attacks are done simply to teach the Kurds a lesson? This man is simply sharpening his sword to use against Americans, or Israeli’s or any other regime that he sees as standing in his way.
In my youth I used to believe categorically that there was no reason that humans should take up weapons against other humans to solve their problems. Whether those conflicts were generated by disagreements over Philosophy, Religion, Land use, Water use or any other reasons. As I have gotten older I have come to believe that there are times in the life of Nations that certain leaders or regimes have become anathema to world peace.
See I was raised in the milieu of the Cold War. There was nothing more absurd to me as a youth than the decision by our leaders to create enough nuclear arms to obliterate the world several times over, or to arm small nationalistic groups in order to support the "western" or "communist" viewpoint. Decisions as to who to support were seemingly never made with the future in mind. Recent history has shown recent American Administrations supporting these groups ONLY because they resisted the "communist" threat. And even when these Administrations had the ability to see past this one attractive trait (to them at least) and see that some of these groups had no intention of allowing a democratic tradition into their cultures, support was still blindly sent in the hopes of destroying the great enemy.
So I grew up at the end of Vietnam, which most see with 20-20 hindsight as a massive waste of time. Watched the Iran - Iraq war. The Arab - Israeli wars. The list goes on and on. Conflict after conflict with two bullies supporting proxies in order to further their economic or political agenda. But even as young person in pre pubescence I saw the stupidity of wars like these. This shaped my viewpoint of war. I had no intention of personally going to war to kill Arabs over Oil, or Vietnamese over economic philosophy. I even "registered" for the selective service as a Conscientious Objector.
Times have changed however. Wars are still fought over seemingly ridiculous things such as religion, philosophy or land use. But the means of war have changed. Once we had two "super powers" who had their hand on the button. But these were generally rational men who knew that mutually assured destruction was the one thing that they could not do. Not so anymore. The dissolution of the Soviet Empire has released a Pandora’s box of terrors, both nuclear and biological. Unscrupulous scientists in need of money to feed their families sell their knowledge to the highest bidders.
So Mr. Peabody lets dial the wayback machine back to the present. Perhaps if you understand where I am coming from as I hope I have clearly elucidated above, you will see the strength of my convictions now. The case for war against a sovereign nation or individual leader can be made now more strongly that the Cold War is over. This is because the old veneer of "my guys vs. your guys" is over for the near future at least. Civilized nations and individuals on a global scale can examine national struggles not through the rose or gray lens of the old struggles but through clear eyes.
Simply put: Is a leader or Nation a threat against the world as a whole? That threat may be economic, it may be militaristic. And now a days it may be a terrorist threat.
One leader in this world today poses a threat on all three fronts. His name is Saddam Hussein. This man is a savage dressed in expensive suits. If you thought that Milosovic was (or is) guilty of crimes against humanity then.. as you say.. you ain't seen nothing yet baby!
Militaristic threat: By repeated blocking of attempts for civilized nations through out the world to determine if this man is developing "weapons of mass destruction" he has assured us that he is. As future essays will reveal I am no friend of the present Israeli government. But who in their right mind would want this man aiming his missiles capped with biological or nuclear warheads pointed at the most democratic and economically viable nation in the middle east. The Bush administration says that they have no direct links showing Saddam Hussein's paper or money trail to Al-Quaida. Balderdash. Any thinking person can see that if this person gives 10K to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers then he surely has been supporting this terrorist network for years.
Economic Threat: The turmoil in the Middle East is a multi headed serpent whose causes have been analyzed by greater minds than mine for many years. But again it does not take a great thinker to see that the entire Palestinian question is greatly stirred up by this man's support. As long as young men and women know that their families will be taken care of after they are gone, their fundamentalist view of their reward for killing the innocent civilians will be reinforced and strengthened. A stable world economy by it's very definition includes all parts of the world. As long as this man is in power, stirring up trouble, there will be no economic development in the region. The Bush administration says that they must solve the Palestinian issue before they can go after Saddam Hussein. I say if you want to begin down the road towards peace you remove your most insidious enemy.
Terrorist Threat: Although this would seem to be the strongest pillar in the argument it cannot be. This man has covered his tracks so well that no one seems to be able to link him conclusively to any terrorist organization. For me however there does not need to be a smoking gun. Coincidence, circumstantial evidence is all we have. For me it is all I need.
However the biggest reason for my support of the removal of Saddam Hussein is the Humanistic one. Magazines like the New Yorker, the Economist and others, News shows like 60 minutes, have been showing inconvertible proof that this man has used biological and chemical warfare upon the people of his own nation. This to me is the greatest crime of all. Killing innocent Kurds with various mixes of gasses and poisons. Using them as a laboratory to see just what works the best. The facts are there, and they are published. I call upon the world to condemn this man and his regime. Stop pussy footing around. Do you think for a moment that these hideous chemical attacks are done simply to teach the Kurds a lesson? This man is simply sharpening his sword to use against Americans, or Israeli’s or any other regime that he sees as standing in his way.
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