The Iraq War: An American made holocaust

By Mary MacElveen

August 22, 2007

As people are waking up to the grim news that 14 U.S. soldiers lost their lives in the hell hole known as Iraq, I suspect there are many who do feel that the Iraqis could be doing more to stop this blood letting.  But, that line of thinking is one of sheer hubris since this blood letting began when we illegally invaded that sovereign country back in 2003.  Yours truly including millions more around this globe tried to stop it, but we were not listened to by this arrogant government.

While the helicopter carrying these soldiers came down because the “aircraft experienced a mechanical problem and was not brought down by hostile fire” The fact still remains had we not invaded that country, this helicopter would not have crashed killing all aboard.

We must all mourn the loss of all human life as this crash increased the casualty rate to 3,721 members who died in Iraq since we launched ‘Shock and Awe’.  But it cannot even compare to the loss of life felt by the Iraqi people as it has been reported lately that their death count exceeded one million.

Robert Naiman writes, “Sadly, I had to report that it has been ignored by mainstream media, even the wire services. But this is hardly surprising.” Maybe, just maybe if our mainstream news were to report this figure on a daily basis, it would create a march on Washington, D.C. to stop this bloodletting.  Yes, we have had our marches, but they were mainly comprised of antiwar activists.  Maybe if these numbers were reported daily, it would have the same affect where ordinary citizens demanded action from their government as was the case with the failed immigration bill.

With the failed immigration bill, many responded because they were angry at illegal aliens invading our country.  I want all of these activists to think who are the illegal invaders of Iraq?  It is the government of the United States.

One million people dead would account for the population of a small city in this country.  I would suspect it would have a numbing affect on this city’s elected officials and even bring about some hostility towards those who killed its citizens.

We have all heard the mantra that we would stand down once the Iraqi people stood up and that is about as arrogant as it gets since we targeted the wrong people.

I want to make it abundantly clear that the Iraqi people namely its government had NOTHING to do with the attacks that befell us on September 11^th, 2001.  Yet we accept their casualty rate and call it collateral damage.  By calling it that, we lessen the value of their lives as opposed to ours.

While many of these deaths may have occurred due to the insurgents we are now fighting, we lit the fuse that created this holocaust.  Some will write me angry emails telling me not to even label this loss of life as such, but when you have an astounding number of lives lost; what would you call it?  Think of the emotional toll this has taken on the Iraqi people seeing one million of its citizens killed including the most innocent of us all, children.

The AP reported, “Bush acknowledged his frustration with Iraqi leaders' inability to bridge political divisions, but he said only the Iraqi people can decide whether to sideline the troubled prime minister.” What unmitigated hubris on his part since he lied us into this war.  Bush has some nerve expecting anything positive coming from Iraqi leaders considering the loss of life he caused.  Many were livid to see the Iraqi parliament take a vacation this summer.  My guess is that they learned from the best namely Bush and our congress.  See, they are learning something of our democracy.

I have said it before, but the Iraqi people have suffered a 9/11 event on a daily basis for over four years now.  Our 9/11 caused the deaths of roughly 3,000 people and we screamed our heads off.  That number cannot even begin to compare to one million people dying at our hands.  We lit the fuse and we wonder why they (Iraq’s leaders) are not doing more?

As I listen to candidates running for president on both sides of the political aisle speak of Iraq as a campaign issue, I want to smack most of them as I try and comprehend that one million people are now dead.  What hubris on their part as well.  These one million people murdered at our hands are NOT JUST ANOTHER CAMPAIGN issue.  Many of them only speak of our casualty rate, but what many of them are failing to do is to speak to this number.  That is inhuman if you ask me.  It shows absolutely no compassion towards the Iraqi people.  Besides murdering one million people, we have displaced four million more.  Yes, Rudy, there will be a blowback due to our arrogance.  Guess who the next wave of people who will come to abhor American arrogance will be?  This is what Ron Paul was trying to relay and the media slapped him down.  How pathetic if you ask me.

Since the inception of ‘Shock and Awe’, I have been writing of this bloody war and have seen the most horrific photos of its victims including our own.  I would love it if our mainstream media were to show these pictures to their viewing audience.  But, they are cowards or they think that Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Anna Nicole Smith are more important that one million lost lives.

While I have cautioned my readers in the past before viewing these horrific photos, I will not give that warning again as one views both American casualties and Iraqi causalities.  It is about time that all of us grow up and take a hard look at what this government did in our name.  Do you see the picture of that soldier whose face was completely blown off?  Do you see that Iraqi baby who is suffering deliberate starvation, coming from the denial of water and denial of sanitation? If you are pro-life and have supported pro-life candidates, you are hypocritical at best and heinous at worst if you continue to support this war.

The part that gets me is that none of these candidates and President Bush will even discuss our use of depleted uranium which is the deadly gift that keeps on giving.  Iraqi mothers have been scared out of their minds to deliver babies who have been affected by this deadly agent.  Their babies unlike ours are born with the most gruesome birth defects due to DU.  Even the offspring of our soldiers have suffered these same birth defects, yet Washington, D.C. remains mute to this topic.

Now that I have your attention, here are some of the most heinous pictures of innocent Iraqi children who have suffered from our use of DU. This is not collateral damage, but real live babies born with intestines growing out of their bodies, a cleft palate and some images that I cannot even begin to describe just how gruesome they are.  I want all of you to look at them and you tell me if we have even the right to demand anything from the Iraqi people.

This government has even used another deadly agent known as white phosphorus which burns the flesh off of its victim’s right down to the bone.  It was done in Falujjah.  In both cases it is we that had weapons of mass destruction.

Since President Bush is almost a footnote in the annals of American history, I would ask of my readers that they copy the images of these horrific photos and send them to every single presidential candidate who arrogantly speaks of what should be done with Iraq.  Ask these presidential candidates; haven’t we done enough harm already to them?  Haven’t we harmed our soldiers enough already?  Is that $592 American embassy in Baghdad really worth protecting with the blood and treasure of American lives?  In fact, what hubris of this government in even building that monstrosity considering the harm we have done in that country.  Our state department officials do not deserve the creature comforts of home considering the death and destruction we brought to bear upon the Iraqi people.  Then again, most Americans cannot even afford such creature comforts when our government has spent billions upon billions fighting this damn war and disregarding our domestic agenda.

Ask yourselves who among these presidential candidates have often voted for war appropriations along the way and that reaffirms their support of this war.  Supporting our troops means bringing them home to not only end their continued suffering, but the suffering of the Iraqi people.  Some candidates and even Bush have said if we abandon Iraq, the terrorists will follow us home.  Let me remind Bush and these presidential candidates that our borders have not been secured for a long time.  These terrorists may be in our country right now, so that argument gets tossed out the window.  Does our continued presence in that country further exacerbate possible terrorist attacks?

The Iraq War is not just another campaign issue but one that concerns the loss of one million Iraqi lives.  Quite frankly, I cannot give a hoot who is leading in the polls on both sides of the political aisle since some of them blessed this carnage with their votes in the senate.  They are the ones that have to answer to the American people and yes the Iraqi people.  They are the ones who should be going to sleep seeing these images flash in front of their eyes and have nightmares.  Then again, their nightmares cannot even compare to the nightmarish hell we have put the Iraqi people through as well as our soldiers who have died in this unjust war.  They are the ones who should be made to suffer.  Make them pay for it.

In sheer hubris, columnist, Stuart Rothenberg wrote a column, ‘It’s time for them to go’ meaning the lower tier candidates as the media has labeled them. In this one particular column he writes, “In other words, it's time for them - Ron Paul, Tom Tancredo, Duncan Hunter, Dennis Kucinich and Mike Gravel - to go. Go to Iowa. Go to New Hampshire. Go somewhere. But get them off the stage with the credible candidates.” What nerve of him to even write that?  These candidates have brought to these debates salient points that the media, pundits and party leaders are failing to bring up.  Gravel even pointed out in the MSNBC debate how could his fellow Democrats even promise new programs when we are basically flat broke.  I think that the American people have the right to fully understand that.  Don’t you?

Unlike his fellow Democrats, Gravel at least had the courage and stamina to go up against a powerful president in Richard Nixon and single-handedly ended the draft saving countless lives.  Please tell me what bravery the top-tier Democratic candidates have shown during this Bush administration?  They have shown none. I would call Gravel far more credible because his record proves it.

Before I go, just how can any of you support a candidate that voted for this war in the first place having seen the horrific photos that I have embedded within this piece?  Have you no heart, no compassion and no soul?  Is their candidacy that important to you?  The Iraq War is an American made holocaust and the sooner you get that into your head, the better we all shall be.