IRAQ 6-13-2003

13, June 2003                                    IRAQ

It is disturbing that a significant number of Indo-Americans have succumbed to the barrage of false propaganda emanating from the White House, aided and abetted by a silent Congress and a compliant press. If there still remains a small vestige of support, convinced that our Administration had altruistic reasons for its invasion of Iraq, I am sure the same people can be persuaded to believe that consuming large amounts ''gulab jaman' lowers cholesterol!

The mendacity of the Bush Administration knows no bounds. The claim that Iraq imposed an immediate threat to the US with its large stockpile of WMD turns out, not surprisingly, to be pure fiction. The attempt to establish a connection to al Qaeda also proved to be false - a crude attempt to exploit the raw emotions of 9/11.

Thousands of Iraqi civilians and many of our brave soldiers have died. Much of the Iraqi infrastructure has been destroyed. An increasing number of Iraqis are venting their anger at our troops whose lives are in jeopardy. The Bush Administration dismisses these increasingly violent incidents as 'pockets' of suspected al Qaeda terrorists. 75 billion of taxpayers money has been squandered. Iraqgate has turned out to be far more serious than all preceeding ''gates'. Bush and his junior partner, Tony Blair, are guilty of the most horrific war crimes. Congress must conduct a vigorous investigation and initiate impeachment proceedings if it can be proved that Bush deliberately misled the American people.

A recent PTI release reported that the Pentagon, the merchants of death, is now anxious to sell large quantities of military hardware to India and thus persuade it to become a strategic partner with the US. India should resist such pressures. At a time when many countries are increasingly dismayed at the unilateral actions of the US in unleashing its firepower and economic might to impose its will whosesoever it chooses, India must remain independent. Even more disturbing is the willingness of India to purchase Israel's Phalcon Airborne Warning Control Systems aircraft. India must resist conducting any trade with Israel, a country, which has occupied huge swaths of Palestinian land, built large numbers of illegal settlements (in violation of UN sanctions) and committed unspeakable atrocities against the Palestinian people.