Anthony's Web Site

Either the world is becoming a terrible place or the information age is simply letting us know what exactly happens in conflicts of nations.

I've never been very happy about Australia's involvement in the "War against Terrorism" I feel the Australian government lost it's mind in November last year.

Now having seen the progress in the war, I still have to ask the question about our involvement.

Now I want to make it clear that I support the efforts of Australian Service men and women serving in Iraq. They place their lives on the line doing the job they have trained for and deserve much respect.

I have my gripe with the Government that sent them their.

As I read yesterday's newspaper I see that US General Taguba investigated the abuse of Iraqi prisoners and when asked what the cause of the abuse was, he said

Failure of leadership, sir, from the brigade commander on down, lack of discipline, no training, whatsoever and no supervision

The problem appears to be incompetent officers not doing their job. As the reason for invading Iraq was to remove a horrible dictator, this is very hypocritical. At least the oil is still flowing.

In response a group apparently linked with al-Qeada has beheaded Nick Berg a US civilian in Iraq trying to get work rebuilding telecommunications. Despite his body being found on a bridge in Baghdad the day the video was apparently taken and the description of the video on a web site as revenge for "Satanic degradation" of Iraqi prisoners, George W. Bush still claims today that the beheading was nothing to do with the abuse of prisoners. I guess it must be getting obvious that the same intelligence that "found" weapons of mass destruction are still working on events in Iraq. How can they miss this.

Then today there are yet more photos that are so bad they will be locked up in the Pentagon. Some of the Senators that have viewed the photos describe it as so bad that "after a while you just turn away, you just can't take it anymore."

How bad are they?

What needs to happen is that the US needs to lose this "war" and grow up from the experience.

It is interesting to see that the German Defence minister is confident that German soldiers would refuse to carry out an order to abuse prisoners as has happened in Iraq they learnt this after defeat in World War II.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan was "horrified" by the execution and

condemns all killings of innocent civilians and all abuses of prisoners and other violations of international humanitarian law.

To further add to all of this Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has admitted that the mission in Iraq might fail. Who knows what failure will mean, a total collapse of society and structure in Iraq. You have to ask what is better George W. or Saddam.

On top of all of this the US government is still trying to maintain that it is quite acceptable to "kidnap" people and hold them in Guantanamo Bay without access to anyone on the outside, without any charge, for an indefinite time. How is this nation is the home of the free and the land of the brave. This is another Vietnam. The only way forward is for the "Coalition of the Willing" to hand control of the rebuilding of Iraq to the UN and accept the loss. Maybe then they can grow up.

Finally the US has to accept that is should also be subject to the same international law that other countries are and stop pretending that it is the global police and that it is somehow above the law.

The US can be as cruel as any other nation.

logged by Anthony at 9:57:22 PM Link