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January 28, 2003
Debate over the war?
Christopher Hitchens
This debate over war with Iraq may be academic after Hans Blix, the Chief UN weapons inspector, told the UN Security Council that Iraq has not accepted international demands that it disarm and Washington immediately said there was no sign Iraq wants to cooperate. Washington is going to war no matter what happens at the United Nations.
Then again, maybe its not academic as we are not at war yet. The article by Christopher Hitchens, 'Wake Up, Peaceniks!' has a more interesting angle than most as he maintains that the 'government and people of the United States are now at war with the forces of reaction.' The response by Steven Lukes, Sorry, Hitchens, this time it should be ‘no’ to war is critical of the way Hitchen's classifies the opponents of war as " ‘peaceniks’, ‘smart-ass critics and cynics’, who lack ‘self-criticism’, make ‘doom-laden predictions’ and exhibit ‘self-satisfied isolationism’. Our ‘past form’ is, apparently, one of opposing interventions in the Gulf, Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan."
Though I am against Australia's involvement in the US go it alone war I have no doubts that Saddam Hussein's regime is totalitarian, repressive and brutal. For an insight, see Torture stories.
It is pretty strong.
Posted by Gary Sauer-Thompson at January 28, 2003 11:33 PM
Comments
So do you think the Americans should go in alone, or what? Can you please clarify your position here, I'm a bit confused.
Posted by: Scott Wickstein at January 29, 2003 01:43 AM
Scott,
My position is similar to Richard Butler's, the former UN chief weapons inspector.
The US should act as part of the United Nations rather than go it alone.
By going it alone it is taking the law into its own hands and so its actions can be seen as an exampe of US imperialism.
Posted by: Gary Sauer-Thompson at January 29, 2003 07:15 AM