April 13 letters

There is an old joke about how to make a statue. All you do is start with a block of marble, and chip away anything which does not look like a statue. The joke is retold as 'how the US makes a democracy; start with an Arab or other 3rd world country, and blow away anything that does not look like a democracy. Q4ij

The Zionist-Anglo-American forces, which have been launching an all-out

war against Iraq, which has led to total collapse of order

and total destruction of the country, have no intention to restore

order and to save the Iraqi people's lives and their properties.

The only thing we have been hearing about, which those war mongers,

invaders and occupiers have on their minds, is the safety and security of

the Iraqi oil fields, as well as establishing the project of bringing

cheap (probably free) oil to the Zionist state of Israel. These

are in fact the real reasons behind the racist and criminal war on Iraq.

Anything else is NOT on the agendas of the mafia gangsters and war

criminals in Washington, London and Tel Aviv, who have engineered and

launched their murderous war on Iraq. International Law and Geneva

Conventions that call for protection of people's lives during war and

under occupation... forget it - who cares.

GW Bush and Tony Blair and their associates, who have carried out and

supported the present genocidal war on Iraq, must stand, sooner than

later, the international criminal court, as they have been committing

crimes against humanity in Iraq and elsewhere. And this is what the

American and British peoples, with the full support and blessing of the

international community, should demand and bravely stand for, instead of

supporting war criminals, mafia gangsters, blood and oil suckers, and

dollar worshippers, who do NOT care about anything else other than their

own agendas and the Zionists' agendas.

Read below.

Hilmi Salem, PhD

Dear Editor,

First, Thank you keeping this site on air.

All of us witnessed the war is over. Embassy buildings were looted yesterday after presidential palaces had been ransacked in the fallen city of Baghdad, but U.S. troops did not interfere with the civilian actions. Although the looting is being anxiously watched, U.S. officials have reportedly said that maintaining order is not the U.S. Army's responsibility, at least for the moment. This is what we saw, what we were expecting. At the very beginning, although some thought that Iraq could lead American occupation into a Pandora's box or conundrums, it didn't come out that way.

Contrary we saw the exact opposite. Again for the time being. This was the most humiliating point for Muslims all over the world and especially for the Arabs. I think there are something lies behind deeper than what we see on our TV screens. I can easily argue that these lootings, kissing of occupying soldiers hands, praising Bush with a stupid English, carrying US flags were pornographic scenes of this very pornographic war.

And my point is that; this very attitude has very strongholds, where it finds its feeding sources, in colonized past. I cant even imagine same scenes in Kurdish part of Turkey although Kurds in Turkey, in large terms, has suffered more than Kurds in Iraq. Those gross zealots has resisting point at all unfortunately. Afghanistan was the first stop of a global messianic occupation. But we haven't seen similar scenes in Afghanistan. There maybe several reasons and points to explore. But the very reason was the resistance culture which was inherited in Afghanistan's social background of imagination. This point can also be used to explain some features of why Arabs in regularly fashion betray Palestinians.

Now the war is over. This imperialistic war has ended while calendars pointing 1918. Yes, it is 1918.

It is the milestone date for Muslims and Western occupiers. Either they remember what happened 85 years ago, or they will face same humiliation again. This includes Turks and Kurds. At the end of the day, they we are only people of the world still called by others as "Muslim Nations"...

I would like to remind all of us... this is the FALL OF BAGHDAD... BAGHDAD...just check your memory, your Islamic, social, cultural and historical consciousness...see what did you lose by losing Baghdad..

Sincerely,

Araf 111

Have a good time, Mr. al Sahhaf!

Baghdad is conquered, G.W. Bush can make the victory sign, though the war is not yet over - a war which many people (not only in my land, Germany) regard as immoral, a war during which the American president, claiming to bring freedom, threw bombs on Abu-Dhabi-TV, Al-Jazeerah and Reuters, and thus clearly showed, what he really thinks about free journalism; Bush simply does not want, that his "enemies" have a voice to be heard in the world. But, if there was a battle of words, too, then it was the Iraq who won it! I miss the lively, flowery eloquence of the Minister of Information, Said al Sahhaf, his unforgettable, intrepid daily appearances in the middle of Baghdad.

The closer the US tanks came to the Hotel "Palestine", the more inspired and genial became his texts - simply great! Wherever you are now - don't let yourself be caught by the CIA, and live in peace, Mr. al Sahhaf! (Your talents should not lie fallow in exile - perhaps you could write a book?)

Petra Leonards

Freiburg, Germany

Many of us here see the re-born Hitler in our midst and are powerless to avert it. it is true that dissent is attacked as seen when anti-war protests are being attacked while pro-war rallies are applauded. it all reminds me of Germany in the thirties. i am fearful.

good luck,

craig dudley

Is Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf, the ex-Iraqi Information Minister with his "They are 100 miles away from Baghdad, see for yourselves" and other jewels really the biggest liar in town?

Remember the statue of Saddam Hussein, the one with the American Flag on its face, which "masses of Baghdad residents" came to tear down, in what Donald Rumsfeld called: "an iconic moment, equivalent to the fall of the Berlin Wall"?

Well, here is another picture of the event, from a different angle.

Source: http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article2842.htm

And don't forget to dig out your archives about the fall of the Berlin Wall. Quite a different event. I know it. I was there.

Jacques Mainguy, Calgary, Canada

Editor: Al-Sahaf reported what he was told. Neither he nor the armed forces of the small Third World country of Iraq could stop the invasion of the world's superpower.

Dear Editor,

I would like to inform you that I have been unable to view most of the articles today. It comes up with “The page cannot be found” sign…. Is there a problem with your site today OR has maybe someone has infiltrated your site to selectively stop some of your articles being viewed. I sincerely hope this problem will be temporary as it will be a big loss to many of your readers if they are having the same problem.

Thank you for the high standard of articles on your site – it has been an education to get the other side of the story rather than the biased commentaries on TV where Bush and his cronies over dramatize their false affection for the Iraqi people – I am a firm believer if they cared they would at the very least apologize for the grave error on their part at the damage and loss of lives of the Iraqi people.

Angela Jackson

Australia

Dear Angela,

Al-Jazeerah.info has been shut down at a critical time during the war. I'm trying to find another larger server. The possibility that Al-Jazeerah has been penetrated is very high. Try amazonepress.com and aljazeerah.us. Please try again and let me know which articles could not be accessed. Thank you.

There's still time for America to live up to its ideals.

By Jane Stillwater

There's still time for America to return to its democratic foundations. There's still time for Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.

There's even still time for George Bush to go on national TV and apologize to this nation and to the world: "I apologize for my betrayal of this high office and for the mis-management of this nation.

"I apologize for making my buddies into billionaires at the expense of American workers, union members, teachers, widows, veterans, truck drivers, police officers, firefighters and children.

"I apologize for callously sending our troops to Iraq, knowing full well there were no weapons of mass destruction and that Americans would be forced to support my dirty little "war" in order to protect their sons and daughters.

"I apologize for doing everything I possibly could to replace democracy in America with a system of secret police actually designed by consultants from the former KGB.

"I apologize for encouraging the pollution of America's rivers and for selling off its national treasures. I apologize for gutting America's judicial system and corrupting her courts. And I apologize to the American people for lying to them and for betraying their trust.

"To make amends, I shall cut our weapons budget from 65% of government spending down to what it should be -- 25%.

"I will also attempt to make amends by spending the resulting savings on single-payer healthcare, education, highways and other things close to the hearts of Americans. I will immediately propose a bill in Congress to give every public school in America one million dollars -- each. And I will bring our troops safely home NOW!" Thank you, George. It's about time you started acting like a statesman instead of a crook.

And there's still time for our elected representatives to act like statesmen too -- and not just pigs at the trough.

There's still time for us to deal with the dictators, terrorists and warlords of the world by offering their enslaved people education, medical care, food, vision and hope instead of weapons, weapons and more weapons.

* Do you honestly think that we are doing Israel a favor by giving them 8.5 million dollars A DAY to spend on weapons? To buy the paraphernalia to to turn their sons and daughters into blooded killers instead of being forced to find a peaceful solution?

* What if we had spent one billion dollars a day on pouring love and hope and food and medicine into Iraq instead of blowing its already-suffering citizens to bits?

* What are we teaching our children if we shoot them for protesting injustice?

And there's still time for us average citizens to live up to our ideals as well. There's still time for us to stop hating our neighbors. There's still time for us to stop telling the people around us, "Piss off, Moron," and start asking instead, "What can I do to help."

There's still time for me to throw out all that junk in my back closet, be kind to my children, ride my bike instead of driving, turn off the TV and enjoy the simple pleasures of America's bounty. There's still time for me to be a better person.

There's still time for all of us to do something important with our lives -- so that when we die, death will not find us unprepared.

The last few years have been hell for all of us. But there is still time for Americans to reclaim our freedoms, to live up to our ideals and to make the world a better place!

Kind regards, Jane Stillwater, Berkeley, CA

"Imagine a world where EVERY child is wanted, nurtured, protected and loved: World Peace in one generation!"

Links:

Bush's Brave New Wage World http://newswithviews.com/your_govt/your_government53.htm">Ruth
Sproull -- Bush's Brave New Wage World</A>
http://newswithviews.com/your_govt/your_government53.htm

"In the week after the second U.S. war began in Iraq, Bush unveiled his new corporate agenda for the American working class.... the regulations encourage corporations to blend 'part-time' low-wage hourly staff with a 'full-time' low-salaried caste who, if paid above the $22,100 line, would have to work as many long hours over 40 per week as the company wants, for no extra pay." The 40-hour workweek would become a thing of the past for "full-time" workers.

http://www.aljazeerah.info

Opinions expressed in various sections are the sole responsibility of their authors and they may not represent Al-Jazeerah's.