Ali threw a party when he heard of the handover:
Another friend approached me. This one was not religious but he was one of the conspiracy theory believers. He put his hands on my shoulders and said smiling, “I must admit that I’m beginning to believe in what you’ve been telling us for months and I’m beginning to have faith in America. I never thought that they will hand us sovereignty in time. These people have shown that they keep their promises.”
As Bremer said, "A’ash Al-Iraq, A’ash Al-Iraq, A’ash Al-Iraq!"
(via Hud)
MORE TO GROK:
More thoughts on The Power of Scraps:
Historians will someday recognize June 28, 2004 as one of the most important days of our century. The United States, a nation of unopposable military might, invaded smaller, weaker Iraq and conquered it. We said we'd done it to rid the world of a murderous tyrant. Our detractors said we did it for oil, or for domestic political gain, or for any of a number of other contemptible reasons. We expunged the tyrant's government root and branch, then supervised Iraq's transition from the chaos of war back to a semblance of peace and order, despite many attempts to disrupt it. On June 28, we gave the Iraqi people freedom and autonomy, with a sincere promise of assistance should their embryonic republic encounter any difficulties it was still too young to handle.
We gave our blood and treasure to liberate Iraq from the villainy of Saddam Hussein. Then we gave our word that Iraq would be freed from our supervision as well. Then we stood by it. That is the significance of Paul Bremer's "scrap of paper."
(Via Bunker)
Posted by Sarah at June 30, 2004 08:30 AMIt wasn't worth it. Americans have plenty of unmet needs right here at home to take of before we worry about 'liberating' countries that pose us no harm.
It may be a nice thing to do but then so would have been spending all that money creating jobs for US citizens.
Posted by: dc at June 30, 2004 08:31 PMThanks for the link, Sarah.
DC, when I hear people rant about "unmet needs," my immediate reaction is to tell them, "So if you can see them, what are you standing around whining for? Go meet them!" After that usually comes the punch on the nose.
"Government is not reason, it is not eloquence -- it is force!" -- George Washington. Force is good for meeting very few "unmet needs" -- but one of them is deposing vicious murdering tyrants and setting their victims free. So let government do with its force what force is best suited for, and tend to your preferred "unmet needs" with your own blood and treasure.
Yikes, you have it exactly backwards.
This is our government. We pay taxes to our government for our common benefit. The government does not exist apart from the people; it does not exist to wreak havoc on tyrannies around the world. It exists to serve our needs.
If you want to expend your own blood and treasure fighting tyrannies around the world have at it. There are no gaurds at the border to keep you here. Just don't ask the rest of us to bail you out when you get a nosebleed.
Posted by: dc at July 1, 2004 03:13 AM