[Newspoetry] Expand the War on War Crimes

[D.D. Delaney]

Here is what Phyllis Bennis of the Institute for Policy Studies, in an extensive and exhaustive paper called "Understanding the U.S.-Iraq Crisis," says about the legality of what has become the present war:

"Without UN authority, and since there is no legitimate claim of self-defense, any U.S. strike on Iraq would violate international law. It would constitute the crime of aggression, one of the most serious war crimes. Anyone with command responsibility for such an illegal war could be held accountable in a U.S. or international court." And, in another section: "Under international law, political and military leaders are accountable for their commands, and individual soldiers may also be charged with war crimes if they carry out such illegal orders."

The difficulty or improbability of prosecuting such crimes is not an issue in terms of making up one's mind about the whole dismal affair. I agree with supporting our troops by bringing them home. But that's improbable at this point as well. Therefore, I pity them. But support them? I'm afraid not. Sure, they're in a bad spot, but they signed up to kill and now they're being asked to do it--illegally. It's on them personally, just as the consequences of my choice to be a marginal semi-intellectual wordsmith is on me. 

I also feel manipulated by Bush & Co. to support the war and the troops just because I'm against the war, and therefore, now that it's underway, I'm feeling under pressure to retreat to the next best possible scenario, which is a short war and a victory for his vision of transforming the region into an American satellite show-case. What other choice is there? To hope it goes badly, that chaos erupts, that thousands of people, including our own favored troops, get killed, and that it ends in a stupid nuclear blow-up? Of course not! Bush has us all by the balls. And why? Because he cheats! He cheated in Florida, he cheated at the U.N., and, for all we know, he cheated us all over 9-11.

So I end my rant with the rational conclusion that there never will be peace in this world, which is not the same as saying there is no peace. I'm off to my meditation couch. Aum.

D.D. Delaney

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