Have you read through Michael Totten’s reporting in Iraqi Kurdistan? Visit his site and check out his posts from the middle of February through the middle of March. This one was particularly difficult for me. Those last two pictures are heart-rending.
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Comments (6)
Great links, Barry. I may have to steal them. While the war is being bungled (understatement of the year) Saddam was evil. No question
Are you into Soundtrack of Our Lives by any chance? What is their sound like?
I think I’m into them. I tried ‘em out a couple years ago and thought they were OK. I just started listening to Behind the Music again recently and I believe I’m a fan. :) It’s worth a preview, for sure.
Of course Saddam was evil. Unfortunately, the US invasion has not put a stop to such heartbreaking stories of torture rooms, death squads, and genocide. Bush’s illegal invasion, sold on a pack of lies, has replaced a secular dictator who persecuted his enemies with Islamic theocracy aligned with Iran and civil war, plus the continued stories of torture rooms, death squads, and genocide.
Saying, “…but Saddam was evil–look at these pictures,” to justify the invasion, as the author of the linked page is doing, is disingenuous or naive. Removing Saddam from power is not enough to justify all that has happened in the past 3 years. It doesn’t cut it.
I could be wrong, but I don’t necessarily remember Totten directly justifying the invasion with his reporting. I just remember seeing some interesting pictures and reading some interesting stories about a region I really know nothing of. But I could also simply not be seeing what I don’t want to see.
There are some war supporters (Christopher Hitchens for one) who supported the war specifically to support the Kurds. Certainly this is a minority opinion, but those that believed this were pretty open about it from the beginning.
Reading through the comments on that page, including his own, as well as his other blog entries makes it clear that he and most of his audience are Iraqi War cheerleaders who still believe that the fight is bringing liberal democracy to Iraq and will lead to the same in Iran and elsewhere in the region if our army presses on. Make of that what you will. I think it’s a dangerous perspective that’s already done more harm than good.
I’m not going to fault Totten on who happens to visit his site and comment. I’m also not going to get down on him too much for risking time, money, and life for a trip into Iraqi Kurdistan in order to complete some independent journalistic work. You’re certainly entitled to your opinion, and he may very well color his writing with a bit of “ra ra” (unfortunately I don’t have time right now to go back and reread), but I tend to have at least a little respect for the guy.
Keep in mind, I was never really for this war and I think the administration has botched the shit out of it. But I am very appreciative of what Totten did; some of the pictures hit me pretty hard independent of the current war activity in Iraq. Even as the stories from the region weigh me down, the Kurds in Iraq always give me a little hope - even if it’s just the “I wish the other mideasterners were like those guys” kind of hope.
(Also, note that most of the recent blog entries are not written by Totten. I haven’t read these entries.)