Still focused on Iraq

I won't suddenly lose interest in what's happening in Iraq. I'm not like my corporate mainstream media employer or anyone else that decides it's no longer in vogue to care what's happening over there. In fact, I'll continue to care for years to come. I feel, it's my human duty and my obligation as an American to care and to seek truthful information. If I had the means to occasionally visit for a clearer and more detailed perspective, I would.

I hope that the author of Turning Tables is at liberty and is willing to openly share his views of the war in Iraq when he returns home. I hope that he chooses to help correct ignorant notions running rampant in this country. I see that he asks questions, obviously wants to have a fair assessment of what's happening over there and why. He's obviously not an ignorant fool. He's young (24), but his mind isn't like the minds of many his age that haven't seen what he's seen, nor survived what he's survived.

Why a young adult American, just barely out of high school and not even old enough to drink booze or gamble, decides to join the military cannot be easily summed up with one simple explanation. Everyone has his/her reason for joining. Like the Ithica, New York soldier told a reporter for his local paper shortly after he'd returned from Afghanistan - he always wanted to handle guns and shoot them.

A lot of people join for other reasons than what that guy explained as his. For a long time, the military has been used as a way out of a hard life, for advantages more accessable to military vets and enlisted personnel. In the 80's, I used to hear people say, "We've been enjoying peace and it's doubtful that anyone wants to mess with us. For one thing, we've got all these nukes." That was the same story I'd heard from a recruiter I knew.

We have actually been at war for a very long time. If you count soldiers of fortune that work for a nice profit from companies serving corporations to stir up conflict in countries with corporate interests, the ever-profitable (for the CIA and some other intel agencies) war on drugs that involves U.S. citizens of military and intel capacity in places like Colombia, and in Haiti... Just add 'em up and seriously ask how much the mainstream corporate media ignores and fails to report.

I feel that we U.S. citizens need to campaign for truth... Truth from lawmakers and media sources, and to persist in doing everything possible to insure that no American above the age of 17 is ignorant of the truth. It's about the only thing that will eventually set us free from certain patterns that have turned this country into one big Bulls Eye target.

We will never reduce, or end terrorist attacks on Americans by attacking other countries. We will never establish peace by taking over those countries, then privatizing their industries, especially when US corporations import workers, thereby denying citizens of those countries opportunities to work after a U.S. war campaign put them out of jobs. It'll never happen.

I hear otherwise from Americans that refuse to stop to think, "What if our country was invaded the same way, our people (including children) killed, and soldiers of that invading country searching each home the way Iraqi homes are searched, with each of us forced into bondage and bags placed over our heads? What if the invading force then decided to rebuild our country their way, using their corporations, importing their workers to rebuild, and establishing a puppet regime government of their choice, one that served their interests, not ours? What if they had hit our country with economic sanctions that killed over 500, 000 of our children, punished any of their own people that attempted to offer humanitarian aid, even medicine? Would we not (at least) resent them for it? How many of us would fight back, attacking their soldiers, using makeshift bombs?

I've read news stories where returning soldiers have made quite candid remarks, like a young Texas man returning home described how so many Iraqi people were cheering them after they first invaded, but how the peoples' attitudes have changed, that they look upon our soldiers with hatred, or anger, with distrust and fear. Any American that's tapped into alternative news sources knows why Iraqis have had a change of heart since the cruel dictator that the CIA propped up and empowered (Saddam) is no longer in power.

I don't know who is behind the orders to have our soldiers pull off searches in the middle of the night, where they sneak into private homes while families are sleeping, taking the families by surprise. I sure know that I'd be thoroughly pissed and feel violated if that happened to me. As I recall, in the words of journalist Borzou Daragahi in his most recent Letter from Baghdad, he's been frisked so many times that he feels like a sexual assault victim.

It's bad enough that our troops are over there, worse that they're in a position where they must protect themselves and each other. What is happening and what's obviously been required of the troops, from invading Iraqi homes, pointing guns in the faces of peaceful civilians, shooting at mobile vehicles filled withfamilies with young children where little tykes die and survivors are horrified and heartsick (like anyone would be), arresting a teenager for doing typically adolescent things like making fun of the troops, somebody somewhere is making matters worse for the troops. Attacking journalists (including photographers) and invading their homes (as is what happened to Salem Pax's family) is just making matters worse.

Add that to arresting or attacking peacefully protesting Iraqi activists complaining about their economic woes, because the U.S. corporations refuse to hire them to rebuild their own country and unemployment there is over 50% since the invasion. (see this story for details.) Everything about this mess is wrong. I see no evidence that Iraqi people are any better off than they were before. I'm trying like hell to be fair. Really, I am. If there was evidence that sincere efforts were made to show Iraqi people what a real democracy, civil rights and freedom is like, as we Americans have struggled for over 200 years to perfect, then I'd point out the positives. Unfortunately, mostly for Iraqi people, there's no genuine evidence to convince me that the Bush Cartel (including their corporate pals and Bremmer) are serious about the so-called freedom they insist they've used our troops to establish over there. I know, these words really chap the hell out of some fellow American asses. But those that defend this war have yet to provide an iron-clad argument to prove otherwise. Their constant references to "You should listen to Rush Limbaugh" merely proves just how ignorant and stupid these people are. I read transcripts of Rush Limbaugh's partisan and pro-war propaganda. I see where Rush is making a total ass of himself, but that his bewildered fans fail to see this because they lack enough common sense to seek as many diverse sources as possible and they haven't got minds of their own to think for themselves and question anything that doesn't quite add up to what Rush, Bush and the other liars are saying.

I've also been wondering something I've wondered many times. Shouldn't we raise the minimum age for military enlistment in America? I am getting the impression (so far) that most of the troops violating the rights and dignity of Iraqi people are quite young.