Issues Under Fire: Iraq War Parade… Really?

As purveyors of alternative media, often we find ourselves in the unenviable position of being the wet blanket, the spoiler or the turd in the punch bowl. We know it sucks, but in the long run we think it better you allow the crap float to the surface rather than letting people keep sipping the Kool-Aid.

This weekend in St Louis, returning veterans from the Iraq conflict were honored with a parade by thousands eager to show their support for what their military achieved on behalf of the American people. We on the other hand found it difficult to celebrate the outcome of a war that by most accounts should never have been fought in the first place. In our opinion, the best way to show support for the sacrifices made is to pay their medical bills, help them reintegrate back into civilian life, help them find a good job and promise not to ever send them on another fools errand.

Besides, in reality not only did America not win the Iraq war, some say its still being fought. With violent clashes between Sunni and Shiite playing out daily, the recent dust up over the US flying drones within Iraqi air space and the need to remain close to keep an eye on the Iranians, America may be gone in body, but we’re still there big time in spirit.

For all intent and purposes, America remains in Iraq and we’ll be there in a big way for sometime to come. As long as the United States has a hard on for Iran, one has to assume Iraq will be part of the equation. After all, now that we’ve unintentionally green-lighted the relationship between the Shiites of Iran and those of Iraq, when hostilities develop between Iran and the US, its a sure bet the Iraqis will roll with Iran. If not in body, you better know iraq be backing Iran is spirit!

It is American’s ignorance of foreign policy and globalization, while bumbling along with an ever shortening attention span that has us waving flags and celebrating “heroes” like children. We’re far too eager to move on to the next “big thing” before fully understanding what just happened in the last “big thing”. Believe it or not, war is a big thing. People die, countries are destroyed and futures and fortunes are forever changed. Generally for the worse. Rarely, does war bring anything but death and destruction, so how there can be any rational reason for celebration escapes us.

Americans have a lot to learn about the world and a short time to learn it in. If you turn American media off and your mind back on, you should be fine in no time.
BTW, here is a good read to get you started: ‘Strategic Vision,’ by Zbigniew Brzezinski

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