Friday, October 19, 2007
Another Grim Anniversary
As this Op-Ed from the 17 OCT Washington Post by 12 disgruntled former Army officers who served in Iraq reminds us, the fifth anniversary of the Congressional resolution allowing TeamBush free reign to start the Iraq War is once again upon us. Current opponents who voted for the now-infamous bill frequently maintain that the vote was just giving Bush leverage at the UN; the handful of congressional supporters who still have their jobs paint it as a clear congressional mandate tantamount to a declaration of war. A few, mostly presidential aspirants, try to split the difference.
Regardless, it has not been a good few years for the US of A. It has been so well detailed, both here and in so many other places, that I'll not digress.
But what's to do? Here's one option: Help the people who tried to help us and are now quite helpless.
Thousands of Iraqis welcomed the liberation of Iraq from the hands of Saddam Hussein, and many with needed skills came forward to help the American and British forces at the start of the occupation. Four years on, with conditions in Iraq being perilous for them and their families, they need out of the war zone. Having witnessed the tragedy first-hand, former USAID in Iraq employee Kirk Johnson started The List Project. The list is comprised of refugees who helped the US and are now facing hardship or death in today's fractured, violent Iraq.
According to NPR's Day to Day, despite administration promises to allow 5,000 Iraqi refugees into the US this year, only 1,600 have been processed. Johnson has seen former Iraqi colleagues killed and just wants some action. Maybe we can all help him out in whatever way we can. I'd like to think this issue transcends party affiliation or 'hawk and dove' camps.
As this Op-Ed from the 17 OCT Washington Post by 12 disgruntled former Army officers who served in Iraq reminds us, the fifth anniversary of the Congressional resolution allowing TeamBush free reign to start the Iraq War is once again upon us. Current opponents who voted for the now-infamous bill frequently maintain that the vote was just giving Bush leverage at the UN; the handful of congressional supporters who still have their jobs paint it as a clear congressional mandate tantamount to a declaration of war. A few, mostly presidential aspirants, try to split the difference.
Regardless, it has not been a good few years for the US of A. It has been so well detailed, both here and in so many other places, that I'll not digress.
But what's to do? Here's one option: Help the people who tried to help us and are now quite helpless.
Thousands of Iraqis welcomed the liberation of Iraq from the hands of Saddam Hussein, and many with needed skills came forward to help the American and British forces at the start of the occupation. Four years on, with conditions in Iraq being perilous for them and their families, they need out of the war zone. Having witnessed the tragedy first-hand, former USAID in Iraq employee Kirk Johnson started The List Project. The list is comprised of refugees who helped the US and are now facing hardship or death in today's fractured, violent Iraq.
According to NPR's Day to Day, despite administration promises to allow 5,000 Iraqi refugees into the US this year, only 1,600 have been processed. Johnson has seen former Iraqi colleagues killed and just wants some action. Maybe we can all help him out in whatever way we can. I'd like to think this issue transcends party affiliation or 'hawk and dove' camps.
Comments:
Post a Comment
