These people you are talking about really
have suffered enough, that's the whole reasoningf behind the war. When it's over, you'll hear from the people of Iraq who've been mutilated, beaten, and have had family members gassed, and otherwise murdered at the hands of sadamm and his sons. Here's a recent story that has come out about Iraq and Saddam's henious crimes:
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THE ENEMY: Please read Ann Clwyd's
devastating piece in the Times of London today. Here's how it starts:
"There was a machine designed for shredding plastic. Men were dropped into it and we were again made to watch. Sometimes they went in head first and died quickly. Sometimes they went in feet first and died screaming. It was horrible. I saw 30 people die like this. Their remains would be placed in plastic bags and we were told they would be used as fish food ... on one occasion, I saw Qusay [President Saddam Hussein’s youngest son] personally supervise these murders."
What Clwyd says - clearly, unforgettably, indelibly - is something that some people think is unsophisticated or crude or manipulative. What she says is that the Saddam regime is evil. I'm aware of the argument that there are many evil regimes in the world and we aren't invading to destroy all of them. But there comes a point at which such arguments say less about the world and more about the people making them. Saddam's regime is certainly one of the vilest on earth. Its malevolence and brutality is documented beyond dispute. In a world in which morality matters, the leading theologians and moralists and politicians would not be bending over backwards to find arguments to leave this regime alone, to lend credence to its lies, and to appease its poisons. They would be casting about for reasons to end it. I think that is what has given Blair his strength these past few months. He knows he's right. So does Clwyd:
"I do not have a monopoly on wisdom or morality. But I know one thing. This evil, fascist regime must come to an end. With or without the help of the Security Council, and with or without the backing of the Labour Party in the House of Commons tonight."
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(thanks Andrew Sullivan)
Freedom isn't free, there's always a price to be paid.
