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Week in Review
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Welcome to Issue 2 of "Week in Review"... The week was filled with excitement. First, Antiwar.com finally got featured on Google News and second, our Alexa rating moved up to 1628 (there are only 1627 websites more popular than us)! To get the toolbar and help Antiwar.com, go here. For those readers who have not done so already, please go to our new "Join Us" form so that we can add you to our database. This database will allow us to keep you better updated on activism in your community and Antiwar.com news. Go here for the form. And don't forget, we can't let the War Party win...help keep Antiwar.com alive and Donate! Monday Iran was still in the hot seat, now admitting that it failed to report its uranium supply. Although the war in Iraq is over, the occupation has just begun, and with it "pockets of resistance" killing American soldiers. Remember that al-Qaeda/Saddam link..."Ha!" said former top al-Qaeda member. Jack Dean wondered if the misleading rhetoric about WMD is an impeachable offense, while Matt Barginer warned us that too much attention to the talk of missing WMD may backfire, and it also blurs our real reasons for opposing the war: Instead of lending undue significance to weapons possession, we must reiterate our original arguments against the war: it didn't serve our national interests, it was immoral, and it could have awful repercussions. Because as weeks become months with nothing to show for the last invasion, the warmongers are already humming a new tune: "You want WMDs? We'll give you WMDs. On to Tehran!" Tuesday Iran fought War Hawk rhetoric with its own, claiming that "pressure will backfire." Now accused of harboring al-Qaeda, Iran should be the focus of weeks to come. Elsewhere in the Middle East, Israel weakened the prospects for peace by attempting to assassinate a Hamas leader. What ever happened to arrest and trial by jury? An open letter to conservatives, written by Donald Devine, implored those on the Right to ignore the implicit calls for Empire, and return to the roots of conservatism: National Review could not comprehend the most important modern insight about government, made by modern conservatism's icon and Nobel laureate, F.A. Hayek. He recognized that the principle reason for the ultimate failure of national central planning was the inability of the government to process widely disbursed, localized and situation-specific information effectively in complex social settings. The magazine could not understand why that limitation would also apply to the U.S. trying to administer a world empire. Finally, there was a shocking development in Baghdad: "US Forced to Print Saddam Banknotes." Geesh, not only are we importing our own version of democracy, but Iraq now must deal with our central banking practices! Wednesday The prospect for peace has dimmed after a horrible suicide bombing in Israel. The Iranians pulled a quick one – they claimed that they knew Iraq had hid arms. They didn't stop there...then they invited an notorious Iraqi Shiite militant to their country. The neocons must have their britches in a bind! O. Ricardo Pimentel insisted that we pay little attention to the Hawks' fulminations about Iran. The persistent - and deadly - attacks on US troops in Iraq will continue, according to Sec. Rumsfeld (they did). Finally, Paul Krugman's views embodied the general sentiment of many of those who have opposed the war all along: I'll tell you what's outrageous. It's not the fact that people are criticizing the administration; it's the fact that nobody is being held accountable for misleading the nation into war. Thursday Gasp!! The President criticized the Israeli government and some members of Congress are upset. All this because some people question the efficacy of massive strikes against cars in highly populated areas: Israel's current policy towards Hamas. Now, Rumsfeld says...Wait! Stop right there! I am declaring "Rumsfeld says" or for that matter "Someone from the Bush administration says" a euphemism for "Here comes harmful sophistry and lies." Well, here comes harmful sophistry and lies: "Iran Actively Developing Nukes." Granted, Iran may just be doing this, but the administration may be better off not mentioning such things, for the statements will lose credibility. Finally, Robert Higgs asked us "What if we has permanent war?" So there you have it: the war on terrorism--the new permanent war--is a winner. The president loves it. The military brass loves it. The bigwigs at Boeing and Lockheed love it. Members of Congress love it. The public loves it. We all love it. Except,
perhaps, that odd citizen who wonders whether, all things considered,
having a permanent war is truly a good idea for the beleaguered
U.S. economy and for the liberties of the American people. Friday Surprise, surprise...the US gov't may be meddling in the domestic affairs of other nations...this time Iran. Those calling for the downfall of the Iranian govt, who Justin Raimondo likens to Leo Stauss, can't seem to get enough "entangling alliances" and military intervention. This military intervention was part of the "War on Terror;" the adminstration's attempt for justice. But Robert Higgs wonders if this justice is truly an eye for an eye: One might say, of course, as many do, that the two killing sprees [The WTC and Iraq] are not comparable, because the terrorists set out to kill the innocent, whereas the U.S. forces killed the innocent “by accident.” I greatly doubt, however, that this argument can hold water. When U.S. forces employ aerial and artillery bombardment with huge high-explosive bombs, large rockets, and shells, including cluster munitions, as their principal technique of waging war, especially in densely inhabited areas, they know with absolute certainly that many innocent persons will be killed. To proceed with such bombardment, therefore, is to choose to inflict those deaths. Who knows what's in store for the weekend...will they find WMD? Not according to the CIA. Will there be peace in Israel? Or, will another warning for terrorism in the homeland be false? We at Antiwar.com will try to keep you updated, but we can't do it without your support! ::Previous
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