Cross posted at http://www.peaceisactive.com
The Senate is debating the War in Iraq on CSPAN2.
It is a difficult debate because the situation in Iraq is so confusing.
The debate gets more difficult when Senators say things that are either not true or a real reach.
On November 7th, I was not voting to pull out of Iraq even though I have opposed this war from the beginning. I was voting for Democrats so there would be some oversight and accountability of this war and this administration. I wish the Democrats would stop telling me what I voted for when they are wrong in their assumptions. I am happy that the new democratic congress is at least investigating things and discussing important issues such as the war and the corruption that surrounds it.
I also don't like how the Democrats say that we did not enter the War in Iraq to referee a civil war. What? That is exactly what we did. We invaded a country and made decisions that shifted power and jobs from one group to the other. The civil war in Iraq is largely a result of our invasion and our failure to secure the peace.
As far as the misinformation being spread by the republicans, I don't know where to start.
First, we have to realize what happened during the first few elections in Iraq. These elections are always held up by Republicans as proof of our progress. We knew that a democratic Iraq would shift power from the Sunnis to the Shiites because the Shiites make up over 60% of the country. We thought we could get the Shiites to elect moderate leaders, but that was another one of our mistakes. Instead, the Shiite religious leaders used their mosques to tell the shiites that they had to vote - as if it was ordered by the prophet himself. So a lot of religious Shiites voted and elected a group of religious Shiites who are very close to Iran while the Sunnis did not vote in large numbers because they knew they did not have enough people to win. Elections are good, but there is far more to the story of the Iraq elections than just purple fingers.
I also don't like how the Republicans always say that the "terrorists" will attack us here if we don't attack them over there. Really? The ill will caused by the War in Iraq has only increased the threat. Even with the debacle in Iraq, there have been no attacks on American soil since Al-Qaeda (who at the time had nothing to do with Iraq) attacked us on 9/11. Also, we are fighting Sunni insurgents and Shiite militias in Iraq who all want to control Iraq. These are not the same people as Al-Qaeda. If we leave, they won't follow us - they will continue their fight to control Iraq.
If the Republican argument is true that we will be attacked here if we don't attack them over their, then our focus should be on the tribal regions of Pakistan. Al Qaeda has a safe haven there from which they are free to train and plan for attacks. So if the Republicans are worried about being attacked, they should realize that the War in Iraq is distrating us from the real threat.
We, as citizens, should realize that republicans are distracting us from the real issue by consistently playing the fear card. As long as we are afraid of people from the Middle East, the Republicans will be able to continue their goal of privatizing the Middle East through military force.
I want a democratic Middle East with legitimate governments, fair markets, and healthy environments. I think the Bush Administration wants a Middle East with weak governments and free markets so the oil of the Middle East can be privatized and taken with huge profits going to people who support this administration. They couldn't make the argument that they wanted to win the war on terror by privatizing the Middle East so they tried to make up stories about how we needed to be very afraid and use our military force as soon as possible.
I think we can win the war against violent jihadis without military force. Before the debacle in Iraq, very few people supported the goals of radical Islam. In fact, the United States was one of the biggest supporters of the violent Jihadis as we gave them weapons and support in the past. Maybe we should try a strategy of not funding terrorists before we try a strategy of invading other countries based on lies.
For people who think the United States does not support terrorists, look at the history of the Jihadi movement in Afghanistan and also look at possible Saudi and American support for terrorist movements in Iran who have been stepping up their attacks recently.
Republicans should stop using our troops as political shields. I support the troops by opposing a corrupt administration who sends them into harms way for goals that are full of lies and corruption.
Bush always says he knows history will prove him right. The problem is that just because the Middle East will one day have legitimate governments, fair markets, and healthy environments does not mean that war and violence are the way to get there. In fact, by sending Iraq into chaos and promting most of Iraq's educated class to leave (over 2 million have left), Bush has probably set back the goal of a peaceful Middle East by a few decades.
There are so many things we can do to encourage peace and stability in the Middle East. Bush and Cheney play the fear card and promote the military option because their goal is to control the resources of the region by directing how the changes in the Middle East will happen. Tens of thousands of people have already died due to their arrogance and many more have been scarred for life both physically and mentally.
One thing we can do is support the Democratic Congress to continue doing their research and oversight. Let us know what the Bush Administration is doing. Show us how they lied and manipulated intelligence. Bring up more options such as energy independence, cultural exchanges, peace projects, etc... that have been ignored by this administration.
What we can do, as citizens, is be more active and engaged. We are responsible for the actions of our leaders. We also can do more to connect with people in the Middle East. Also, if we truly want the Middle East to follow our lead, then we should double our efforts to set a positive example of legitimate governments, fair markets, and healthy environments in this country.