“Just as no one predicted Sept. 11, 2001, no one predicted Aug. 2, 1990 — the date Saddam Hussein’s Iraqi troops invaded Kuwait,” she said. “But in both cases, a great nation set its sights on great causes, deploying our troops halfway around the world on a moment’s notice to defend liberty and thwart the forces of murder and mayhem.”
These were some of the words of National Security advisor Condoleeza Rice, in a speech the other day at Texas A & M University.
How ironic. Ms. Rice would have us believe that we deployed our troops “halfway around the world on a moment’s notice to defend liberty and thwart the forces of murder and mayhem.” This was (supposedly) because Saddam Hussein occupied Kuwait (and assuming that we didn’t do it for the oil and other interests we had and still have in the region). Yet now fast forward 12 years later, to Israel’s 35th year of illegal occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Not on a moment’s notice, but 35 years later, and we still haven’t deployed to thwart the Israeli forces of murder and mayhem.
At a time when the barbaric acts of Israeli aggression have reached an unprecedented level, when virtually every international (and Israeli) human rights organization has decried the abuses carried out by Israel, when Israel has continued to violate even more UN resolutions, break international law and the Geneva Conventions, in addition to snubbing the US and the rest of the world in its’ continued assault on Palestinian civilians, we still have not deployed our troops.
Instead of using our muscle, as the world’s only superpower, as ‘leaders of the free world’, and defenders of freedom, democracy, and what have you of great rhetoric, we ‘scorn’ as they continue to ignore us and continue their atrocious assault on a defenseless population. To add insult to injury for the Palestinians, our beloved administration and state department decide to give the Israelis a free hand, and let even another week of rampage and killing to continue, till Powell reaches the occupied ! territories.
If our administration was truly serious in its’ demand of Israel to “withdraw without delay” , a deadline would have been established. If it were serious, it would have responded to reporters truthfully in the questions regarding the possibility -that became a reality- of Israel’s noncompliance, and its’ consequences. If it were serious, it would’ve employed sanctions against Israel for violation of UN resolutions, as it did with Iraq. If it were serious, it would threaten Israel to hold back on the annual billions of dollars it receives in US taxpayers money.
Yet more importantly, if it were serious, we would’ve “deployed” to thwart this 35 year old occupation.
These lies perpetrated against the American people can go on no more, and it is high time we woke up.