The Long Faces On Iraqi Liberation Day

by John Hawkins | April 10, 2003 4:59 pm

The Long Faces On Iraqi Liberation Day: Not everyone was happy for the Iraqi people yesterday. In fact, there were more than a few people who seemed to be down right gloomy about what was perhaps the greatest moment since the Berlin Wall fell. Here’s a little sampling from the anti-war crowd around the blogosphere…

Bartcop[1] calls the marine putting a flag over the face of the Saddam statue, “Not their finest moment.” That’s the only mention.

— The Smirking Chimp[2] has multiple editorials that mention yesterday and then go on long despairing rants. Here’s an excerpt of one from Antonia Zerbisias[3] that gives you a good feeling for them…

“Even if you didn’t catch it live, CNN ensured you couldn’t miss it because they ran it and re-ran it all day long. (In fact, every time I pause to think as I type this, I turn to the TV and there it goes … again! … and again! … and again!)

Um, what about that new Osama bin Laden tape? Where exactly is Saddam? Bombs were still falling elsewhere. People were still being maimed and killed.

And what about winning the peace?”

Atrios’ Eschaton[4] didn’t mention it yesterday, but today he takes a shot[5] at the marine who put the flag over the statue of Saddam’s face and tries to find things to carp about in a piece called, “A Little Cold Water[6]“.

“Before the statue of Saddam was toppled, an American soldier rather inappropriately covered its head with an American flag – an act of conquerors not liberators.”

Oliver Willis[7] was probably the best of the bunch although he was a bit of a gloomy Gus in his post yesterday…

“We have seen this show before, and it didn’t end happily. There was much dancing and rejoicing in the streets of Afghanistan, as the Taliban had been defeated by American forces – so we “won”, right? Of course the problem is that much of the Taliban faded into Afghan society and Al Qaeda slipped across the border into our “ally”, Pakistan. Currently, American forces are still engaged in conflict in Afghanistan, the Karzai government is under fire daily, while outside of Kabul warlords are the defacto rulers of the land.

….I don’t think that any serious objector to the war believed that the Saddam regime was a good thing, but instead has severe misgivings about the American ability and track record in maintaining democracy in these nations.”

I guess Willis thinks that the Iraqis would have been better off with a dictator they knew rather than a Democracy they don’t…if this was anything other than an attempt at after the fact spin anyway.

Hesiod at Counterspin Central[8] didn’t directly mention it at all. This is as close as he came…

“I SAID TWO WEEKS: And I meant two weeks.

It will take another few days to clean up the pockets of resistance in Baghdad, and to bomb the Tikrit divisions and the Kirkuk defenders into submission.

Then, it’s all down hill for the United States from there.”

The Daily Kos[9] emphasized the looting and said…

“They’re happy today, because the Marines mean Saddam is gone. What happens when those same Marines have to give them orders directed from the new US governor of the province? Will they be happy then?

If this is liberation, why didn’t they fight, and why did they loot their own city? No cops, no soldiers, just a power vacuum. What bothers me is what will they do when we try to impose not just basic order, but a military government…”

There was so much to be happy about yesterday. The people of Baghdad were thrilled and they were greeting our troops as liberators. The heavy fighting we expected in Baghdad didn’t materialize. People all over the Middle-East even got to see the cheering crowds on Al Jazeera & Abu Dhabi TV.

Yet these anti-war blogs are either ignore or downplay it. Couldn’t they just be happy for all the Iraqis who were being freed from the grip of Saddam? Is it possible that they couldn’t enjoy the moment because they think Bush is going to get the credit for it? Worse yet, could it be that they’re unhappy about the liberation of 24 million + people just because their predictions about the war are being proven wrong? I think you all know the answer to those questions…

***Update***: At least one anti-war blogger was jazzed about yesterday’s events. Aziz Poonawalla[10] put yesterday into perspective and he noted exactly the same thing that I did in this post…

“The images we all saw on television worldwide yesterday will be in our world history books as one of the defining moments of the 21st century. Alongside those of 9-11, yin and yang. I was and still am opposed to war on Iraq – not the idea of war per se, but like Howard Dean, by the route to which we justified and pursued war. But winning the war was never in doubt and my heart is is full of satisfaction at seeing the statues of Saddam fall at last.

I am however quite disappointed by the attitude of many who oppose the war – who seem to have a grudging attitude towards the liberation. IRAQ IS FREE. Regardless of your politics, your principles, your attitudes – this must be the shared event that we all celebrate.”

Endnotes:
  1. Bartcop: http://bartcop.com/
  2. Smirking Chimp: http://www.smirkingchimp.com/
  3. Antonia Zerbisias: http://www.smirkingchimp.com/article.php?sid=10941&mode=nested&order=0
  4. Atrios’ Eschaton: http://atrios.blogspot.com/
  5. takes a shot: http://atrios.blogspot.com/2003_04_06_atrios_archive.html#200128107
  6. A Little Cold Water: http://www.nypress.com/static/billboard.cfm
  7. Oliver Willis: http://www.oliverwillis.com/
  8. Hesiod at Counterspin Central: http://counterspin.blogspot.com/
  9. Daily Kos: http://www.dailykos.com/
  10. Aziz Poonawalla: http://unmedia.blogspot.com/2003_04_10_unmedia_archive.html#200127618

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