Reply #3: Critique

[Jack Rabbit]

I told Bush that today was a great day for the democratic world, for those fighting for freedom and justice, and for those who object to terror.

General Sharon, like Mr. Bush, is another leader whose commitment to democratic ideals is highly suspect. When he deals with Palestinians as equals rather than as people to be subjugated, I'll be more impressed with a remark like this coming from him.

As for those of us who object to terror, Sharon, like all supporters of Mr. Bush's invasion, misses the point; the invasion had nothing to do with terror. Saddam was not involved with the September 11 attacks and had no association with al Qaida. This invasion, if anything, strengthened the hand of Islamists in Iraq and exacerbated the problem of terrorism.

The entire world can breath a sigh of relief, because the dictator who ruined Iraq cannot interfere with its reconstruction and rehabilitation.

We shed no tears for Saddam. He cerainly did his part to ruin Iraq. However, the resistance to US occupation of Iraq rose in spite of him and will continue without him. He is part of Iraq's past and is irrelevant to her future.

Sharon, as to be expected, ignores the fact that Iraq is being reconstructed for the benefit of Halliburton and other US transnational corporations, not the Iraqi people. What he means by "rehabilitation" is beyond me and I rather not hazard a guess.

While Saddam's capture is a positive event and Saddam should pay for his past crimes, we should be careful not to make too much of this event. It will not solve the problems that the Iraqi people now face under colonial occupation. It will not bring democracy or even any kind of self-government to Iraq.

It certainly does not change the fact that the invasion was justified by a pack of lies and that its real purpose is to rob the Iraqi people of the benefits of their natural wealth. Saddam's capture in no way justifies the invasion or the present colonial occupation.

Saddam did his part to ruin Iraq. The task at hand is to prevent Bush from ruining it further.