If this (warning: not happy stuff. detailed descriptions of chemical warfare against the Kurds in Northern Iraq – view Reid and James) is true, what can we do? Do we let it continue until they decide their chemical weapons are compact and potent enough to travel undetected they attack us here? Do we finally make up our minds that we won’t stand for government-sponsored genocide, and then do something about it?
We waited several years to get into World War 2, and even then, it wasn’t to stop genocide. We did nothing about Stalin, Pol Pot, or the genocide that occured in the Balkans until it was too late to save thousands of lives. We’ve done nothing about Northern Iraq except try to enforce “no-fly” zones. We (what do I mean by we? do I mean the UN, the US, me?) haven’t forced inspections. We’ve dropped some bombs on some suspected facilities, but Hussein has basically done whatever he pleases for ten years backed by lots of oil money and with no supervision.
I’m not sure what the solution is. After reading the accounts in the article, I want to bomb him. But will whoever replaces him be any better? Should we worry about the replacement when he’s still in power? Do we destroy the infrastructure and leave him there like we did the last time, or will he just rebuild and therefore we’ve only postponed the inevitable?
I think we have to go in, with out without Arab support. If the countries surrounding Iraq and in the Arab world don’t see the problem, there’s nothing we can do to convince them past what has already been done. This truly is a matter of national security – and I don’t mean the price of gas. I can’t imagine what it would be like to see my wife and son die in front of me, bleeding from their eyes, choking to death as their bodies convulse and seep out on the ground. I pray it never happens here, and I think we have enough proof that Iraq wants us destroyed and has been experimenting on its own people to find the most effective way to accomplish it. I would like to think I’m a reasonable guy, and anihilating Saddam, his Armies, his infrastructure and his weapons seems the most logical thing to do. The risk is too great and the evidence too strong not to act.
Am I wrong? I would love to hear from anyone on the topic… It makes me wish my cheapy little host supported PHP or any other scripting language so I could add comments. I need feedback on this one. I’ll post responses that I think coherently agree or disagree (and if I get a ton, I’ll post representative ones).