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After the horrific events of September 11 2001, and throughout
the battle in Afghanistan, the groundwork was being laid for
the invasion of Iraq. "Shock and awe" were the words used to
describe the display of power that the world was going to view
upon the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom. It was to be an
up-close, dramatic display of military strength and advanced
technology from within the arsenals of the American and
British military.
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But as a soldier preparing to take part in the invasion of
Iraq, the words "shock and awe" rang deep within my psyche.
Even as we prepared to depart, it seemed that these two great
superpowers were about to break the very rules that they
demanded others obey. Without the consent of the United
Nations, and ignoring the pleas of their own citizens, the US
and Britain invaded Iraq. "Shock and awe"? Yes, the words
correctly described the emotional impact I felt as we embarked
on an act not of justice, but of hypocrisy.
From the moment the first shot was fired in this so-called war
of liberation and freedom, hypocrisy reigned. After the
broadcasting of recorded images of captured and dead US
soldiers on Arab television, American and British leaders
vowed revenge while verbally assaulting the networks for
displaying such vivid images. Yet within hours of the deaths
of Saddam Hussein's sons, the US government released horrific
photographs of the two dead brothers for the entire world to
view. Again, a "do as we say and not as we do" scenario.
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As soldiers serving in Iraq, we have been told that our
purpose is to help the people of Iraq by providing them with
the necessary assistance militarily, as well as in
humanitarian efforts. Then tell me where the humanity is in
the recent account in Stars and Stripes (the newspaper of the
US military) of two young children brought to a US military
camp by their mother in search of medical care.
The two children had, unknowingly, been playing with explosive
ordnance they had found, and as a result they were severely
burned. The account tells how, after an hour-long wait, they -
two children - were denied care by two US military doctors. A
soldier described the incident as one of many "atrocities" on
the part of the US military he had witnessed.
Thankfully, I have not personally been a witness to atrocities
- unless, of course, you consider, as I do, that this war in
Iraq is the ultimate atrocity.
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So what is our purpose here? Was this invasion because of
weapons of mass destruction, as we have so often heard? If so,
where are they? Did we invade to dispose of a leader and his
regime because they were closely associated with Osama bin
Laden? If so, where is the proof?
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Or is it that our incursion is
about our own economic advantage? Iraq's oil can be
refined at the lowest cost of any in the world. This
looks like a modern-day crusade not to free an
oppressed people or to rid the world of a demonic
dictator relentless in his pursuit of conquest and
domination, but a crusade to control another nation's
natural resource. Oil - at least to me - seems to be
the reason for our presence.
There is only one truth, and it is that Americans are
dying. There are an estimated 10 to 14 attacks every
day on our servicemen and women in Iraq. As the body
count continues to grow, it would appear that there is
no immediate end in sight.
I once believed that I was serving
for a cause - "to uphold and defend the constitution
of the United States". |
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Now I no longer believe that; I
have lost my conviction, as well as my determination. I can no
longer justify my service on the basis of what I believe to be
half-truths and bold lies.
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With age comes wisdom, and at 36 years old I am no longer so
blindly led as to believe without question. From my arrival
last November at Fort Campbell, in Kentucky, talk of
deployment was heard, and as that talk turned to actual
preparation, my heart sank and my doubts grew. My doubts have
never faded; instead, it has been my resolve and my commitment
that have.
My time here is almost done, as well as that of many others
with whom I have served. We have all faced death in Iraq
without reason and without justification. How many more must
die? How many more tears must be shed before Americans awake
and demand the return of the men and women whose job it is to
protect them, rather than their leader's interest?
Tim Predmore is a US soldier on active duty
with the 101st Airborne Division, based near Mosul in northern
Iraq. A version of this article appeared in the Peoria Journal
Star, Illinois
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