November 16, 2006
The Three Heads Of The Iraq Monster
My friends, I write to you tonight regarding a dire situation in a land far away. We have been embroiled in a battle in Iraq for nearly three years. The American people grow weary of our continued involvement. Iraqis grow thirsty for a sip of the American Dream.
I would like to present my view of the situation in Iraq, and what I believe must be done to achieve Victory. I will do this over the course of several articles, in which I will discuss the three heads of the Iraq monster.
Many do not realize it, but the situation in Iraq is a three headed monster. Each head is a problem to be solved before the beast may be tamed. Every head must be dealt with. If we do not deal with all of them, we are doomed to defeat, for each head separately has the power to destroy our progress towards Victory.
The heads must be dealt with in a particular order. If we deal the heads in the incorrect order, we will only strengthen the beast. If we strengthen the beast, he will become exponentially more difficult to assuage.
As goes the order in which the heads must be dealt with, so goes the relative difficulty of dealing with each of them. The first head is the easiest to deal with, while the last is the most difficult.
The first head of the beast of the situation in Iraq is opposition force.
Opposition force is defined as any fighting force which presents risk of physical harm to us, our representatives, or our allies.
During our initial military conflict in Iraq, the armies of Saddam Hussein opposed us. Saddam's armies were of little consequence, for our forces are much stronger.
After the fall of Baghdad, a new type of enemy fighter emerged; the insurgent. The insurgent is crafty and determined. He is to be feared, as he is without honor. He will hide amongst docile non-combatants, waiting to attack until maximum infliction of damage can be achieved. If he is not detected, he cannot be neutralized. If he cannot be neutralized, the effects of his attack will demoralize our forces and the Iraqi people. You cannot kill what you cannot see.
The second head of the beast of the situation in Iraq is poverty.
Poverty is defined as the state of having little or no money, goods, or means of support. Simply, it's the state of being poor.
Poverty is rampant in Iraq. According to the CIA's Word Factbook in 2005, Iraq had an estimted GDP of $94.1 billion (purchasing power parity with U.S.A.). Assuming a population of 26.7 million, there are $3,524 worth of goods and services produced annually for each man, woman, and child.
For comparison, in 2005, Kuwait had a GDP of $47.3 billion, and a population of 2.4 million. That's $19,708 worth of production for each member of Kuwait's population.
The U.S.A. had a GDP of $12.31 trillion, and a population of 298.4 million. That's $41,253 of annual production for each person in America.
Idle hands are the devil's playground. If the amount of production represents how busy a people are, Iraqis are 17.8% as busy as Kuwaitis, and 8.5% as busy as Americans.
The third head of the beast of the situation in Iraq is Islam.
The religion of Islam is incompatible with the form of government that was to be installed in Iraq; a Democratic Republic.
Islam teaches that man cannot be ruled by man, only by Allah. Because of this, Islam seeks to install its structure of government in lieu of the secular one. Under Islam, only chosen men, so-called experts, can make decisions or judgments which govern Islam's followers. Muslims believe these special men are granted the wisdom necessary to rule by Allah. The idea of a secular man selected to rule over them is detestable, as the man has been selected by other men, not by Allah. Because of this, Islam is fundamentally incompatible with the concept of a Democratic Republic.
More views of the situation in Iraq...
Posted by Richard at November 16, 2006 9:03 PM
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