Invitation to President Bush: Start with the Basics

If you provide an invalid premise in any argument, not matter how rational the argument sounds, you are doomed to receive an invalid conclusion. It's simple logic, and a concept that I learned here in the United States during my first year in college, years ago, with an enthusiastic teacher named Marsha. But today's reality seems much more irrational than philosophy 101.

It was in early 1999, when I met Dr. Mohamed Al-Douri, Iraq's representative to the United Nations. The ambassador had only been in his post for a few months. Just as I turned my tape recorder on and readied myself for the interview assignment, he uttered with conviction, "the US is desperate to find an excuse to unleash a war on Iraq."

It is not only Al-Douri, but millions throughout the world who are sensing that the prospects for a US war on the sanctions-hit Arab country is much more than your average war pretext, "restoring democracy and upholding freedom". True, now you have "saving the Iraqi people," another fabulous pretext to be added to the tons of lame justifications, "Iraq is a threat to its neighbors", "Saddam Hussein is a danger to humanity", etc.

Now, lets go back to our philosophy lesson. Need I even suggest that saving a nation can hardly actualize by starving its children? Need I reiterate that blocking medical supplies, which results in the deaths of hundreds of thousands will not free the Iraqis? Must I remind Mr. Bush that no provision within the basic principals of democracy dictates that overthrowing a government and imposing another through a lethal war, involving random air bombardment, ceaseless ground shelling and troop redeployment is in fact democratic? 

What frame of reference is Mr. Bush using to justify his Iraq war buildup? Neither the American constitution, international law or even common sense justify such a war that will likely harvest the lives of an untold number of victims.

Even if we subscribe to the idea that the first Gulf War had its legal and moral justifications, how can we approve of the sanctions that have turned the Iraqi capital, Baghdad into a city of mass funerals? And if we are  willing to turn a blind eye to past catastrophes, how can we now, as rational human beings accept that the best way to "contain Iraq", or halt the presumed danger of the Iraqi President is by, once again choosing the same path we walked on for ten years, which resulted in nothing but death and despair, of radicalizing not only an entire generation of Iraqis and Arabs, but an entire generation worldwide, even here in the United States?

It's rather perplexing that we still hear the question "why do they hate us so much?" asked time and again throughout the media and even on the street. Aren't Iraqi children precious too? Shouldn't their unnecessary deaths evoke anger, dare I say, even hatred of the policies that crippled an entire nation and deprived its children of the right to live in dignity... even to simply live?

But at least, according to my dear teacher Marsha, to validate an invalid argument, one must examine its false premise, or premises.

The American administration is indeed sensing a problem and is in fact realizing that Middle Eastern nations hold a very negative view of the United States. But instead of rectifying its deadly and unbalanced foreign policies in the Middle East by ending its war quest on Iraq or holding back on its never-ending military and political backing of the Israeli government in its war on the Palestinian people, it is resorting to bizarre and ridiculous means. However, the establishment of an American funded radio station in Jordan with the latest Britney Spears and Back Street Boys hits is hardly enough to blind most Jordanians to the  tragedy unfolding in Iraq, nor will the six million dollar propaganda campaign through Arab media deter Egyptians from protesting the US support of Israel and boycotting American products.

Strangely, we are told that a remedy to the Middle East's complicated problems requires complicated solutions. To a degree, such a claim is true. But why not begin by a quick philosophy 101 course. I am sure that Marsha would be delighted to teach our administration that you don't save a nation by killings its children.

Ramzy Baroud is the editor-in-chief of PalestineChronicle.com, and the editor of "Searching Jenin: Eyewitness Accounts of the Israeli Invasion 2002".