http://www.christiansciencemonitor.com/2003/0401/p01s03-woiq.html So can we claim Iraq is committing an act is a crime under a treaty the United States and Iraq refused to sign without looking like hypocrites? The legal and moral picture is muddied by the fact that neither Iraq nor the US has ratified the 1977 First Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions, nor the 1999 Rome Statute setting up the International Criminal Court (ICC), which will try war crimes. These are the legal instruments governing most of the incidents alleged to have occurred so far during the war.
I'm becoming more disenfranchised by the day. Both by the administration and by the people who supposedly support my views. Any way you look at the conflict, legally, politically, morally, emotionally... both sides are producing illogical rhetoric without substance, targeted instead only to inflame the passions of those who might be sensitive to such appeals. Bush appeals to international law. But ignores his own dubious exercise of it and previous violations in the past by the US. Anti-American protestors glibly forget their own nations transgressions, demonize George Bush more than Saddam Hussein, and ignore any noble motive the US might have (I don't think we're doing this *totally* for selfish reasons). Right-wingers attempt to demonize protestors as anti-American, and try to play the "patriotism card." Even worse, they point to past military service and sacrifice. Such could obviously be used to justify any conflict. Debate the merits, and stay away from the non-sensical appeals to emotion. And of course, anti-war protestors advocate "peace at any cost" positions that are completely unrealistic in the world we live in. There are some who espouse genuine, well-thought positions... but they lack the flair that sells newspapers. And thus they're marginalized. I feel like hiding in a shell.
A little bit of commentary on the US complaining about Iraqi tactics Playing by Mogadishu Rules Because of America's power, its enemies will always resort to deception http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101030407/welliott.html
Commentary on Arab media. Buried in this is : there was no uprising in Basra as reported by the BBC last week. http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101030407/nmedia.html They prolly had them lined up for human shields or something like that from the other news reports I've read.
I am so sick and tired of hearing Iraqi's foreign minister spout off lie after lie. Unfortunately, the effect is to not know when he may be telling the truth. Even if Iraq succeeds at something in the field, they blow up the numbers and even those are lies. Every day...they shoot down our planes and helicopters and kill hundreds of our troops...which are nothing but lie after lie. They kill one troop and the foreign minister says they killed twenty troops. He just got done saying they thwarted some British landing in hostile territory by killing most of the British troops while the others fled for their lives. What a crock of sh*t!!! If we are winning this war, then we are certainly not winning the propaganda war. Arabs have one-sided information and...even then...it is propaganda based on lies. At least we get to hear both sides. Anyone notice how there is no foreign press besides Arabs at the Iraqi foreign minister meetings? They are basically brainwashed against us. Even the checkpoint killing, the foreign minister came out and said that the people who did this were racist . That is absurd!!! Then, some diplomat from Oman says, "It was a deliberate act in cold blood to avenge September 11. I hope Bush, Blair and their families are pleased". That is a f*cking lie if there ever was one. I cannot wait until this is over. I want to see that Iraqi foreign minister eat his own words and go to prison where he belongs. As if Iraq's government gave a damn about killing civilians like all those they have killed over the years in Iran, Kuwait, and their own land. Even now, they shoot their civilians if they don't fight or they shoot their siblings. This info coming from the civilians themselves. Iraq is full of crap and the sooner that regime dies...the better.
Saddam Hussein has killed close to 60,000 of its people per year. He's forcing people to fight for his side by taking their children and threatening to kill their families. That's all I need to hear.
