March 19, A Day of American Shame

What was accomplished? Ten years ago today George W. Bush, Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney and Colin Powell started the war in Iraq after blatantly lying about Saddam Hussein having "weapons of mass destruction". Nearly 4500 Americans died by the time the war was declared over. Millions of Iraqis have been killed as a result of the war starting. Most died as a result of American arms, many died due to the sectarian violence the American occupation created. Thousands upon thousands of the Iraqi victims have been children.
American occupation of Iraq was a matter of the Cheney Cabal wanting to control the oil in the ground of Iraq. It has the second largest oil reserves in the world and Cheney and his stooges were salivating. The largest American embassy was built. Schools and hospitals were built and paid for by American taxpayers but never used. Billions after billions were spent every month to support the war. Paul Bremer lost approximately 8 billion dollars in cash sent to Iraq for expenses to work with local Iraq leaders. He also decided native Iraqi seeds should be replaced by American seeds courtesy of companies like Monsanto. Depleted uranium has left a trail of health problems wherever we used it. And we used it everywhere. The symptoms of radiation poisoning were among the signs found in local areas of Iraq where the weapons of DU were used. Childhood cancers and birth deformities skyrocketed in number wherever the DU was used.
We can't understand the cost to the Iraqi people unless we have family in Iraq. Dr. Dahlia Wasfi has family there. She saw the costs up close the two times she journeyed to Basra to visit family. She continues today speaking about the costs of this unnecessary and illegal war. This immoral war.
We can understand the costs to American troops who faced multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. PTSD, TBI, MST and horrible physical wounds are the costs. Poor care due to lack of funding is the cost. The military hides behind the acronyms. They don't like to say MST (aka Military sexual assault) is rape perpetrated against female and male troops by troops in their own branch of the military. The don't like to say post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) will cost this nation in multiple ways costing billions of dollars. They don't like to say traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the signature wound of the two wars and will affect the lives of young men and women for the rest of their lives.
At the time of the war's start millions marched in the streets around the world in protest. Once it started the bulk of the American peace movement seemed to wilt away in a depressive state. Only a mother, Cindy Sheehan, seemed to revive the movement temporarily. Young veterans like Kelly Daugherty and Garrett Reppenhagen saw the truth and organized to oppose the war. Old veterans like Bill Perry, Stan Goff and Dave Cline spoke out and organized opposition. The religious community failed to respond with few exceptions. Student movements were non-existent with few exceptions. The immorality of the war was seldom challenged by most Americans.
The mainstream media followed along like pet dogs to be the megaphones for the American occupation. They got in bed with the military by means of "embedding" themselves with units. But only units the military wanted them to be with. Their reports were boosterism and jingoism. Dhar Jamail was the true voice of the war. He reported on Fallujah and other atrocities of the war. He refused to  embed. Dhar and a few brave whistle blowers exposed the torture chambers of the American government. Water boarding was highly publicized but rapes and brutal physical assaults were hardly mentioned except by reporters such as Dhar. Water boarding was not new. I saw it used on a patrol in Vietnam against a female informant who balked in taking us to a suspect enemy hiding place.
Americans have been told our war is over in Iraq. Ask the Iraqi people if that's the case. We left behind a puppet government afraid to leave the security of well entrenched compounds. In the streets there's chaos with lack of security, lack of electricity, lack of potable water and an ever increased risk of danger to women. Sectarian violence and fanaticism by religious zealots makes it dangerous for any female to journey outside the home without male companionship and without her head covered.
The tragedy of our war in Iraq hits hard here in this nation but it hits much harder in Iraq. Iraqis can truthfully say they were better off under the boot of Saddam Hussein than under the alleged democracy we imported. A people that once loved the American people now look at us with suspicion and anger for what we brought them. And reports from criminals like Dick Cheney stating they'd "do it again" and admitting they wanted Iraqi oil can only make this nation seem criminal and immoral. This nation will never admit the war was illegal just as it never admitted the illegality of Vietnam.
March 19th should be a day of shame for Americans. Not a day to look back in triumph and satisfaction.