Re-thinking it all

Re-thinking Iraq:

Before 'Bush Derangement Syndrome' there was 'Churchill Derangement Syndrome'.

Winston did not have the power often attributed to him but he is so high profile in the political maneuverings of the twentieth century that it's easier to blame him than look hard at what everyone else was doing.

From 'Churchill's Folly' I've learned that pressure from the Russians and French played a big part in the choice of boundaries for modern Iraq. The system of government was decided by Europeans who did not understand the religious make up of the territory and Winston was determined to reduce the cost of having a military presence in the middle east as quickly as possible.

But the fundamental problem with the way the middle east was set up after the first world war is that it was all based on monarchies which in fact means dictatorship - the polar opposite of democracy.





In 1921 the kings were crowned; Feisal in Iraq and Ibn Saud (who went on to conquer more territory to reign over) in Saudi Arabia and Abdullah in Transjordan with puppet parliaments that contained their relatives and friends.



Note: No king was chosen for "the Jewish settlement" although Feisal and Abdullah's father Hussein wanted to "extend the domains of his children into the main British mandate in Palestine". So Israel has the added distinction of not having had a monarch/dictator from the off, no wonder they're so feisty.

Bottom line, Winston wanted to sort out the middle east to the satisfaction of the first world war allies and withdraw British troops as quickly as possible to save money. Others at the 1921 Cairo Conference argued that removing the troops too quickly would leave the area and the monarchs themselves in a very difficult position.



Is it any surprise these monarchies did not allow freedom for all, still don't. You only have to look at Great Britain's still existing legislative body - the House of Lords - and her corrupt leasehold laws to see that monarchs and aristocrats will hold onto power as long as possible.



A monarchy/dictatorship is difficult to infiltrate for intelligence purposes as everyone with political power is either a relative or an intimate friend. Also, modern dictators have tended to be more ruthless than we can truly comprehend.

The way Sodhim Hussein controlled his country is well documented and ought to horrify every person with a spark of human kindness.












Christopher Hitchens calls pre-invasion Iraq "Saddam's ruined and tortured and collapsing Iraq" and explains in great detail here why he continues to write about "the permanent hell, and the permanent threat, of the Saddam regime."

"Surely the elementary lesson of the grim anniversary that will shortly be upon us is that American civilians are as near to the front line as American soldiers."

"Anyone with the smallest knowledge of Iraq knows that its society and infrastructure and institutions have been appallingly maimed and beggared by three decades of war and fascism."












Re-thinking our Military Intelligence:

Here is my, admittedly biassed, list of details about Iraq that we should have known, and as far as I can tell didn't know, before the start of the Iraq war:

- the role of Syria in hiding components and other material for Saddam relating to weapons of mass destruction

- that the inevitable resistance/insurgency would be strongly supported and funded by a wide range of terrorist groups, from Saddam and his family through to neighbouring countries that hoped to increase their territory and access to Iraq's resources when it ultimately collapsed.

- the clear, unequivocal links between Talibanism and Baathism.

- the existence and scope of the A.Q. Khan nuclear technology transfer network.

- the extent of UN corruption, espionage and incompetence which would have effected any "unannounced" visits to Iraqi cement factories, chemical plants, food-processing plants, military research centres, and so on.

- the link between 'Oil-for-Food' corruption and anti-invasion proponents like George Galloway



Sources:

Dr. Sanity, 'Bush Derangement Syndrome' link.
The Weekly Standard, A War to be Proud of, Christopher Hitchens, Sept 5 2005, link.
Churchill's Folly, How Winston Churchill Created Modern Iraq, Christopher Catherwood, 2004
Robin Cook, The Point of Departure, 2003
The Bomb in My Garden, Mahdi Obeidi & Kurt Pitzer, 2004
All postcards circa 1920