Iraq law may reinstate Saddam supporters

[sabra]

http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/myrtlebeachonline/15942976.htm

Iraq law may reinstate Saddam supporters
Associated Press

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A day after Saddam Hussein was sentenced to hang, the country's Shiite-dominated government declared a major concession to his Sunni Muslim backers that could see thousands of purged Baath Party members reinstated to their jobs.

The Supreme National Commission for de-Baathification has prepared a draft law with the amendments and will soon send it to parliament for ratification, the commission's executive director, Ali al-Lami told The Associated Press Monday.

[NOLADEM]

1. This is a good move....probably way too little, way too late, but good

De-Baathification was a HUGE mistake, because to have any government job you had to join the party. So, every bureaucrat, expert, mid-manager and so forth are ALL Baathists and ALL are currently not doing their jobs.

This was a HUGE source of the beginnings of the disintegration after the invasion. Firing the army was the other.

Not doing both of those things would have kept MILLIONS employed. Instead, the government lost all of its experience overnight and the army was fired, leaving tens of thousands of Iraqi military men penniless, looking for work and angry at the occupation forces.

[ECH1969]

2. Iraq Law May Reinstate Saddam Supporters

A day after Saddam Hussein was sentenced to hang, the country's Shiite-dominated government declared a major concession to his Sunni Muslim backers that could see thousands of purged Baath Party members reinstated to their jobs.

"We decided to make the announcement after the Saddam verdict so that the de-Baathification commission would not be accused of bias," al-Lami said.

Before the amendments were drawn up, the organization listed names of 10,302 senior Baath Party members who were to be fired, but the new proposed law includes only 1,500 names, al-Lami said.

http://www.forbes.com/entrepreneurs/feeds/ap/2006/11/06/ap3148875.html

[ItsTheMediaStupid]

3. Due to removal of Ba'ath party members, 50,000 teachers were fired

To be a teacher you had to join the Ba'ath party. Same thing with most civil servants, whether they were political or not.

It was so stooooooopid they did this. It paralyzed the country.

[flyingfysh]

4. this was perhaps the single most incompetent thing Bush did

Firing all the Baathist members created many thousands of people bitterly opposed to the US, and removed all the teachers and administrators who knew how to run things.

[ECH1969]

5. Bremer left Chalabi in control of de-Baathification

Bremer thought Chalabi was secular so he would be even handed.

baawhwhahahahahah