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Dec 15, 2003 Before there is a rush to judgment as to the beneficial aspects of Saddam Hussein’s capture, I would like to bring up a few points for the gentle reader to ponder. The United States has demonized Hussein over two decades, starting with the first President Bush’s purposeful mispronunciation of his first name to mean “shoeshine boy” in Arabic. We have created an accurate image of a monster that terrorized a nation for over 30 years, and we sold it to the American people and the world to justify his removal from power. Since April’s conquest of Iraq by coalition forces, the question of Hussein’s whereabouts was bandied about by Bush opponents, who felt as if the war wasn’t effectively prosecuted unless the former dictator was accounted for, alive or dead. Ridicule and revulsion at Bush’s actions were widespread and rampant, with little from the White House in way of response. Meanwhile, over 130 military personnel have died from the low-intensity conflict we now find ourselves engaged in Iraq. Anonymous tapes surfaced from time to time, supposedly of Saddam spurring his people to resist the coalition forces. Yet, in a coup to the Bush administration, amid allegations of collateral damage in Iraq and Afghanistan that included children, and accusations of war profiteering by Halliburton, Saddam Hussein was captured. The deposed despot of Iraq, the ousted dictator of Iraq, the “Bad Boy of Baghdad” was found cowering in an earthen hidey-hole. The man who the Bush administration would have us believe that he was still in control, clandestinely commanding insurgents to strike back at coalition forces, was found in a sub cellar with three-quarters of a million US dollars, several automatic weapons, and a taxi. Pictures of him, deftly aired amid applause and loud acclaim during Lt. General Sanchez’ press conference, portray a disheveled, despondent person being checked for lice and sporting a scraggly beard. I don’t know about you, but my common sense tells me that a man who couldn’t even shave probably wasn’t running much of a guerilla operation, wouldn’t you agree? A man who has $750,000 in cash couldn’t afford anything more than a hole-in-the-ground safe house? We were shown picture after picture of grandiose palaces, statues and paintings of him around the country, and a Baghdad press conference would have us believe that Hussein would tool around in an orange-and-white taxi? But wait, my eager readers—there’s more! Such a fierce fighter, that Saddam, would NEVER be captured alive, right? I mean, after all, over 600 soldiers of the 4th Infantry Division were detailed for Operation “Red Dawn”; to swoop down upon Hussein like the airborne soldiers in the 1984 Patrick Swayze movie to capture or kill the former dictator. Oh, he gave up without a struggle, General Sanchez? Like the coward he truly was, and not the demon that the Bush administration spun him into? Well, certainly, he should at least be able to tell us about his own WMD program, right? He should be able to lead Scott Ritter and the UN inspectors himself to where they’re hidden, shouldn’t he? And, Mr. Bremer, will that be before or after he’s tried for war crimes by an Iraqi tribunal? I don’t know, this is really all too much for me to ponder, and probably you too, gentle reader...wait, Atlanta is playing at Indianapolis! Mike Vick versus Peyton Manning? Now THAT’S a battle my media-whipped mind can handle… ------------ About the author: Chuck Tyler is a freelance writer and journalist based in South Bend, Indiana. His credits include coverage for the South Bend Tribune (www.SouthBendTribune.com) of a triple homicide trial and a town hall meeting of concerned citizens and local officials for the Herald-Palladium (www.HeraldPalladium.com) following 9/11. Email him at: tyler_1420@yahoo.com Comment on this column in the forum. ------------ |
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