Stability in Iraq, Iran, and elsewhere in
Middle East can easily be achieved through oppressive occupations,
puppet regimes and draconian rule. Hussein gassed the Kurds in Halabja –
with America’s implicit blessing – in the name of stability. Stability
is a nebulous term and a meaningless one when you forego human rights,
security, and international law. Is Iraq stable now? 50% of Iraqis have
no access to clean water and electricity levels are at or below pre-war
levels, despite lucrative contracts given to Bush buddies at Bechtel and
Halliburton – companies that have only contributed to the massive
unemployment by bringing in foreign workers. Less than half of the $18.4
billion allotted to the reconstruction of Iraq has been spent, and huge
portions of it have disappeared and cannot be accounted for.
The war in Iraq, in addition to American troops stationed in Saudi
Arabia, has invited unprecedented enmity on the United States and its
allies. Revelations of systematic abuse and torture only stoke the
flames of contempt and anti-American sentiment. In 2003, the number of
significant terrorist attacks was the highest it has been in over two
decades, according to State Department figures. Terrorists are being
created and recruited at terrifying rates and nobody, anywhere, is
safer. Statements by top al-Qaeda terrorists say that the war has given
them a “golden and unique opportunity" for the global jihad – is this
what Bush meant by calling himself a “uniter”? Even high-ranking
government official like U.S. Vice Admiral Jacoby, Direct of the DIA,
believe that “Our policies in the Middle East fuel Islamic resentment."
This illegal war and our global policies (as well as our domestic ones
under the Patriot Act) have radicalized formerly moderate Muslims and
have given ammunition to already deadly terrorist organizations.
Most dangerous, perhaps, is the precedent set for flagrantly
disregarding international law and opinion. Human rights, security, and
international law have all been brazenly breached by this war, and that
certainly does not equal stability.
Read Benjamin
Hackett's Response