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cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tr> <td valign="top" width="64%">Letters</td> <td width="36%"> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tr> <td align="middle" height="51" valign="center"> <div align="right"> <script language="javascript"> function showDate(){ var monthArray=["Jan", "Feb", "Mar", "Apr", "May", "Jun", "Jul", "Aug", "Sep", "Oct", "Nov", "Dec"] var days=["Sunday", "Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday", "Saturday"] var d=new Date(); var month=d.getMonth() var day=d.getDate() var year=d.getYear() // document.write("Today is " + days[d.getDay()] + " ") document.write(monthArray[month]) document.write(" ") document.write(day) document.write(", ") if(d.getYear()<2000){document.write(year+1900)} if(d.getYear()>2000){document.write(year)} } </script> <script language="javascript">showDate()</script> </div></td></tr></table></td></tr></table> <table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tr> <td valign="top" width="65%"> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="406"> <tr> <td width="406"> Please write to us at <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/mailto:letters@atimes.com">letters@atimes.com</a> Lengthy letters run the risk of being cut. <hr> Re: Jason Leopold's <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/ED02Ak03.html " target="_blank">Rummy's flawed war plan</a>, Apr 2. I see that you have your own Peter Arnett contributing to your paper. I have been reading your website faithfully but I now think I will delete it from my list of Favorites as of today. If we would have had media like we have today we would have lost World War II. I am absolutely convinced of that. I consider many of the media to be equal to the enemy our gallant men are fighting in Iraq. Perhaps they are even more dangerous. Print this - if you dare. Ruth Lindemann Colorado Springs, Colorado (Apr 2, '03) Thank you for your excellent commentary. I am afraid to say any more. Anon (Apr 2, '03) Interesting article [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/ED02Ak05.html" target="_blank">Iraq vs Vietnam: Similarities and differences</a>, Apr 2]. We are not fighting for the "hearts and minds" of Iraqis. That notion is archaic bull that was shoveled by Richard Nixon, and there is no connection between his bull and America's current conduct. You must have missed the past 30 years of evolving Americans' view of themselves. No spokesmen in America have made that statement in regards to activity in Iraq, nor will they. We do not want Iraqis' hearts or minds. We believe their hearts and minds cannot be owned by a tyrant, nor do we wish to own them. We want them to be able to do with their hearts and minds as they as individuals choose - except for mass-murdering innocent persons. Although we do not want to own their hearts and minds, we do wish to liberate them to rationality. That is our wish, and it is only a wish. What we will do, and not in a wishful manner, is rid them of danger to the world, and show as ridiculous their scapegoating us for their own failures. We will do that, and you can take that to the intellectual bank. As to their hatred of us, it will soon be lessened. Anon (Apr 2, '03) S Lange, your letter [below] - and many others' expressing similar views so freely on our capitalistically created Internet - leaves a sour taste of suspicion in my mouth. Could you possibly be acquainted with one of Saddam [Hussein]'s secret cells located in your comfortable and beautiful state of Minnesota? If not, I, and so many loyal Americans, think it's time you and your ilk adopt a country (or return) that best suits your distorted sense of freedom. A Proud American (Apr 2, '03) I am an Indian who lives in Portland, Oregon. I am outraged by the bias that American TV channels like CNN, MSNBC and Fox News show in their coverage of the war with Iraq. My American friends are just and well-meaning people. Opinions about the war are almost equally divided between the for and against camps. Unfortunately, the American media are portraying a one-sided picture of American opinion. Even more surprising is the fact that the local channels in Oregon have been more fair and balanced in their war coverage than big corporate media like CNN. Congratulations to Asia Times Online for bringing balanced coverage and analysis of the events. Krishna Oregon (Apr 2, '03) This refers to Frank's disparaging comments about India's "unrealistic ambitions", its economy, media and the status of women in India [letter below]. He seems ignorant of the status of women in Indian society and politics in general and media in particular. It's about time for Frank to pay a visit to India. As a frequent visitor to China, I have noticed marked improvement in living standards over the last two decades. In fact, the Chinese Communist Party remains in power only because of the capitalist economic policies that it has pursued in the post-Mao period. [Also], Frank forgets that no woman has ever been allowed to occupy an important position in the Chinese government, apparently because of the havoc wreaked by Mao's wife, Madam Jiang Qing. As for his "hope [that the India-China] competition is not about the inheritance of their colonial master's dominance in the area", I find myself in complete agreement with him. I hope the Chinese government would give up its "unrealistic hegemonic ambitions" of restoring the boundaries of China's colonial masters in Asia - the Mongols and Manchus. Beijing should peacefully withdraw from Tibet, Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia because the days of empire-building are long over. China should not make outrageous claims to the territories of Tibetans, Taiwanese and Uighurs because these people, much like the Chinese, were colonized and subjugated by the alien Mongol and Manchu empires. After all, India has never laid claim to Burma, Malaya, or Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) because they were part of the British Indian Empire! M Malik (Apr 2, '03) Chiu [letter below] has brought up the subject of [what happened in] My Lai, Vietnam. He will not get a response from any anti-communist Vietnamese. Unlike the noble Iraqis currently fighting for their homeland, a minority of Vietnamese, mostly Catholics, fought with America against their own people. These same shameless Vietnamese live in America today, where they refuse to acknowledge the atrocities committed by Americans on Vietnamese soil. To acknowledge those atrocities is to conclude that Vietnam under communism will never be as bad as Vietnam under American military occupation. Instead, these Vietnamese will always bring up fictitious American motives of "freedom and democracy" to counteract the reality that Vietnam has many real challenges to face after the devastating American War, and that the communists are the only ones to face up to those challenges. Bao Dinh Nguyen (Apr 2, '03) Pepe Escobar wrote (<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/ED01Ak05.html" target="_blank">The Gaza or Grozny choice</a>, Apr 1) that to win the war the US and UK need either the "Gaza option or the Grozny option". He also said suicide bombing near Najaf is proof that the "Palestinization" of Iraq is in full swing. He referred to the repeated calls for jihad from Islamic scholars in al-Azhar in Cairo, the Grand Mufti of Syria and elsewhere. First, let me make note that "jihad" here obviously means physical battle, because [Palestinian leader Yasser] Arafat several years ago called for jihad to "free Jerusalem" and then later said it doesn't mean that when he saw he was taped. Just as in Gaza when Israeli tanks enter it is because of the persistent terrorist attacks aimed openly against Israeli civilian men, women and children by terrorists who find a welcome haven and moral support on Israel's doorsteps in Arafat's controlled areas, here the US and UK invaded Iraq because having a cruel dictatorship is one thing, as long as it doesn't impact dangerously on other countries. Iraq invaded Kuwait and Iran in the past, showing its desire for territory and power. And now there was intelligence that indicated Iraq was accumulating weapons of mass destruction and indeed Saddam [Hussein] used poison gas on his own countrymen and fired missiles at cities of a country not even fighting him in 1991. Liberty and the removal of a tyrant that tortured so many of his own people to death to a greater degree would be a bonus, but is not the main goal here. It's a problem, though, if Arab media run by their dictatorships blatantly ignore the other side of the story and always only see it as Muslim versus infidel. Ben New York (Apr 1, '03) I am writing about the article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/ED01Df01.html " target="_blank">Wrong turn seen in China's economic roadmap</a>, by Jayanthi Iyengar, Apr 1. In his article - I presume the author is a male based on Indian women's poor status - Jayanthi stated that "until now, the Chinese have won nothing but accolades for their economic performance". I would like to ask Jayanthi what he meant by "won"? Is there a competition going on between India and China? If so, I hope the competition is about improving people's life. I hope it is a competition about peace and prosperity. That it is about the equality of human beings. I hope the competition is not about the inheritance of their colonial master's dominance in the area. I hope it is not about the territory claims of some useless land. If you have been to China recently, you would find out that China's economic performance has improved people's life greatly. I hope Indian will try to catch up on that subject instead of other unrealistic ambitions. Frank Seattle, Washington (Apr 1, '03) Editor's note: Jayanthi Iyengar is a female journalist. I read with alarm your article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/ED01Ad01.html " target="_blank">Jackhammer breakthrough in Hong Kong</a> [Apr 1]. As a scientist I know that a series of small blows is eventually much more effective than a single hard knock. This is why golfers, for example, try to get the ball into that little hole with several strokes of their clubs rather one single hit. Anyway, enough about golf, I am concerned about the unity of Hong Kong. I am afraid that the repeated impact of this new jackhammer bit will have the cumulative effect of splitting Hong Kong suddenly into two parts, despite the "holding together effect" of the underground network described in the article. One part might float off into the South China Sea and the other part might stick to mainland China. This would be most inconvenient for residents, especially when they wanted to visit their friends, or go shopping. I recommend banning this dangerous new drill bit and using single, large impacts instead, possibly from explosives. The Americans might help Hong Kong out here, as they seem to be experts in delivering big bangs into the middle of cites without hurting anyone. I am sure they would have a few cruise missiles left over they could place under the direction of the Hong Kong Municipal Authority Department (MAD for short) to help the city maintain its infrastructure. Paul Stapleton Samoa (Apr 1, '03) Asia Times Online seems the brightest light remaining on this dark planet. It appalls me how anyone could decry a journalist like Pepe Escobar as offensively one-sided, as if there were no irony in the fact that the English-language media are dominated by a dubious trickle of official US press releases. The English-language press by and large contains only soft tokens of dissent at present (usually sentimentalism as opposed to Escobar's incisive analysis) as a counterpoint to a barrage of pseudo-patriotism, logic-chopping propaganda and desperate lying rhetoric like "the war is going extremely well" (as said by Prime Minister [John Howard] of Australia - really, John, that much better than just fine, despite disappointments and a prospect of stalemate for months?). Your critics on this letters page seem to lack any sense of perspective. There is another word that doesn't sit well next to democracy, besides "propaganda" and "censorship", and that's "hypocrisy", as in, "we can't tolerate other views now; we're seriously fighting for freedom". Simon Floth Uralla, Australia (Apr 1, '03) Thank you for supplying objective news about this war, as the news I receive in the US is obviously slanted and extremely biased. Anon (Apr 1, '03) Duong Thi Phuong Hang says he does not understand why the Vietnamese people support the Iraqis [letter below]. Well, I just read that American soldiers shot up a carload of Iraqi women and children, killing seven and wounding others. This brings back memories of My Lai in Vietnam, where American soldiers massacred over 500 women and children and some old men during the Vietnam War. Vietnamese people can very well understand the suffering the Iraqi people are going through. I hope some time in the future the world will bring those in the United States responsible for such actions to face trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Chiu Canada (Apr 1, '03) I like the use of the term of Palestinization in (<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html " target="_blank">The 'Palestinization' of Iraq</a>, Mar 27, by [Pepe] Escobar) and would like to promote it as the word that can unite different people, in different countries and different cultures. In general and in my view, this term perfectly describes many questionable methods that are used to globalize this world on many platforms. However, we should find this term not only in reference to the literal/brutal killings but also when analyzing a more subtle indoctrination of our minds by the corporate media in those supposedly very democratic/free countries. Only in this wide perspective people can understand better the common motives fueled by the extreme greed and arrogance that are substituting the empty space of egocentrism - without love and respect for others. Slawomir Poplawski Canada (Apr 1, '03) All citizens must simply join hands and march out to the tanks and demand that they get out of their (Iraqis') country. Worked for [Mahatma] Gandhi. Worked for Martin Luther King Jr. I bet on a large scale, it will work. Russ Conner Mesa, Arizona (Apr 1, '03) Let Saddam [Hussein] stay in Baghdad and be mayor of Baghdad, seal him off and start pumping his oil wells dry - that will bring him out. Anon (Apr 1, '03) Every war has its psychological side, which is a determining factor for the final result - like in sports. The collective inside in the situation develops slowly, but than there are marked turning points. In World War II, after the battle of Stalingrad, everyone, the soldiers and the civilians in Germany, knew that the war was lost. Still, Hitler could hold on for two years as a ruthless tyrant. In the Vietnam War, things were more complicated. In the early '60s, the Americans moved in to support a faltering government in the South. When this did not work out, the military and political leadership of the US decided to send more and more troops and extend bombing to ever new areas. Finally, the South Vietnamese government and army were more or less bystanders in a war of America vs Viet Cong and North Vietnamese. The Tet offensive marked the turning point. This was not a military victory by the Viet Cong, but it was a psychosocial one. And now in Iraq, psychologically the United States has already lost. Of course, they can occupy the whole country and they can destroy it. Saddam [Hussein] may be killed, or more likely he will disappear, like [Osama] bin Laden. If you lose the psychological battle, you have lost. BBB politics - [President George W] Bush Bombs enemies and Buys friends - will not do. Dr Walter Molt (Apr 1, '03) This site is one of the best sites I have found. Your coverage, besides being interesting, is also very well balanced and thoughtful. Sahar Ahmed (Apr 1, '03) I relished the freshness in the article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC29Ak02.html " target="_blank">The make-believe and the real war</a>, by your contributor B Raman posted March 29. No wonder that your readership must have increased with articles such as these, what with the integrity of your reporters and the quality of their reporting! Some time ago I wrote to say - I was persuaded - daily reading your paper together with my London Times and Guardian was de rigueur for me. But in the "fog of this war" (as embedded coalition reporters term it) I am moved to say the information I derive from and the qualitative standard of Asia Times Online stands unsurpassed. AP London, England (Mar 31, '03) On the chess board Saddam [Hussein] and his entourages and knights are losing. They lost their battleground from Day 1 [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC29Ak01.html" target="_blank">Could Saddam still win?</a>, Mar 29]. They are on the defensive now. Their forces don't compare to the coalition forces. Would it be possible for them to use toxic biological [weapons] or gas as a last resort to kill themselves and the coalition forces? The Iraq war is not like the Vietnam War. It is totally different. The Iraq war is like the Taliban war. We need to isolate the Iraqi people and Saddam's forces. Although they play dirty they still can't win. Those who are behind them still can't come or send troops, food, medicine to them. I still don't understand why Vietnam, one of the poorest nations in the world, eagerly supports Iraq and wants to send advisors and troops there. I think they must be out of their mind. Duong Thi Phuong Hang (Mar 31, '03) US According to Marc Erikson's logic, he'd have to argue that when Hitler fought until Berlin was flattened, then committed suicide in his bunker, he won [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC29Ak01.html" target="_blank">Could Saddam still win?</a>, Mar 29]. Erikson is merely constructing a kind of last-ditch rhetorical bunker of his own, from which he can argue that [President George W] Bush has somehow lost. As my students say - "Whatever." George J Leonard, PhD (Mar 31, '03) San Francisco, California [Marc] Erikson: Saddam's strategy? Time will prove you to be dismissed [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC29Ak01.html" target="_blank">Could Saddam still win?</a>, Mar 29]. Bryan Pritchett (Mar 31, '03) I am writing this with reference to the article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/EC29Ae03.html" target="_blank">'After Baghdad, Yangon'</a>, Mar 28. Ignorance is strength! Being ignorant is the strength for both the US and the Burmese regime. They use the same tactics. Gullible people molded by mass media are perfect for their oppressive, repressive and aggressive whims. Both regimes claim to know what is best for their enslaved people. Which would be the lesser evil? Maybe "slavery is freedom", as George Orwell puts it so elegantly. Anon (Mar 31, '03) Dear Paul [Belden], I was totally amazed at your article about Hamad who chose to escape to Jordan because of family persecution in Iraq, and then decided to return to Iraq to defend the very same regime that has destroyed his family [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC28Ak05.html" target="_blank">For whom the Iraqi bell tolls</a>, Mar 28]. Paul, would you do the same? This only confirms my belief that people of certain countries and cultures enjoy being starved, beaten and killed. In that way they can reach the true meaning of their religion. Hurt and pain are what they must thrive on. I prefer peace, no pain and no hurt, for me and for others. President [George W] Bush is wrong. He should let these people rot in their solitude, and not sacrifice innocent American lives and money. It was quite evident when we recently supplied food to the Iraqi people. The wrong people got it, and those who did get took the food and cheered Saddam [Hussein]. Sick. Anon (Mar 31, '03) I read your article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC28Ak05.html " target="_blank">For whom the Iraqi bell tolls</a>, Mar 28 ... I dare you to write an article about the people of Iraq who, unlike your "hero", are welcoming the freedom that will come to the Iraqi people.              James M Torpey (Mar 31, '03) USA Yet another academic space cadet waving [George] Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four in our faces. I've read Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four and fail to see the connection [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Korea/EC26Dg01.html" target="_blank">North Korea next? Not likely</a>, Mar 26]. It was not about war, it was about socialist tyranny, even though Orwell himself was a socialist. His [Jaewoo Choo's] point was that totalitarianism is totalitarianism wherever it is found and under whatever name it goes by. The United States is not a totalitarian regime and is unlikely to become one any time soon. Would that the same could be said of the ROK [Republic of Korea]! Notice, if you will, that one of President Roh [Moo-hyun]'s first moves involved mucking about with the free press in the ROK. Worse, the good professor leaves out the single most important concern in all this - Kim Jong-il's determination to produce fissile materials in secret. The DPRK [Democratic People's Republic of Korea] is producing U235 as this is being written! Reports that the reprocessing plant at Yongbyon remains inactive are, in all probability, false. So what do we have from the good professor? No possible solution in the offing other than Roh's promise of "solving the issue with dialogue". Has he or President Roh visited the KCNA [Korean Central News Agency] site and taken a look at what passes for dialogue with Kim Jong-il and the DPRK? What sort of dialogue are they here proposing? The stuff the DPRK puts out makes the kind of thing you hear in an East Texas beer joint sound intelligent! Kim Jong-il has a long history of supporting terrorist and guerrilla organizations. He is producing fissile materials. What do you suppose the US response to this is going to be? Is it fair to the people of the ROK to say otherwise? I don't think so! Don Granberry (Mar 31, '03) While I for one do not believe all US or British statements about North Korea, the North Koreans seem to be a fairly dangerous lot. Perhaps China or Russia could welcome this starved, militaristic, brainwashed people into their own living space ... never mind the United States, Russia and China armed these maniacs, if there is a war on your doorstep, you have contributed boys, enjoy. EJ (Mar 31, '03) The other articles, which predict disaster for the allies, seem to be soaked in wishful thinking. So far the allies have taken three-quarters of the country, with almost no casualties. Columns of Republican Guards launch themselves southward to attack the forces camped by the river; they never arrive. Where have they gone? If anyone can remember the infamous "highway of death" near Kuwait City, you may have an idea of how unwise it can be to line up conveniently on an open highway, and so the question of why they never arrive answers itself. So why ever would they do it? Perhaps they have decided that anything is better than getting pounded by B-52s day after day. So is the fact that the allies are camped along the river a sign that they have become bogged down in a quagmire? On the contrary. We have been worrying about them having to cut through the guard units ringing Baghdad, and now, prompted by unrelenting aerial attacks, the [Republican] Guard is coming out of its trenches on its own, only to face another kind of aerial attack. And the allies wait by the river for attacks that never come. Anon (Mar 31, '03) There was a time when the citizens of United States could proudly say that they had access to the various points of views on happenings of the world. The rest of the world envied them and tried to emulate them. Today, there are a handful of regimes which support the US government's position and the rest of the world including Third World countries have access to various shades of opinion as far as the war with Iraq is concerned. It is a pity that some US citizens are denied this right. They are even unable to see the position of US government on Iraq is opposed by almost the whole world. The are led to believe that this opposition is either because of some moral fault on part of the people of the world and lack of guts on part of Europe. What a sad turn the story of US has taken! Anon (Mar 31, '03) You have one of the best sites where one is able to read such divergent opinions. You will not be able to read such stuff in the Land of the Free. Some people have been falling off chairs laughing - it is high time you fell off that chair [because] that chair is too high for you. Here is one sample: "Their reasons to return to Iraq and kill Americans are as valid as killing firemen that come to your home to put out a fire while your family is inside" [letter below]. Well, when firemen set your home on fire and come acting like they are here to put out the fire, then those firemen deserve to be killed. These firemen had been putting out fires in Vietnam for 20 years, and Korea. These firemen have not yet left Japan or Germany where the fire was over 50 years back. And they have fire stations in every Arab country and the Indian Ocean and are now setting up fire stations in former Soviet countries. Another fire that has been burning in Palestine for more than 50 years. An entire generation has lived in refugee camps. How about stamping out that fire? - but then the way you douse fires, it is better you keep out of it. These firefighting nations are talking of lucrative contracts to rebuild Iraq - even the French regret that they may be left out of it. They are like vultures circling overhead ... waiting for a man to die. Anon (Mar 31, '03) If I was a young man 300 years back and had the foresight, I would have made sure the firefighters - those people bearing the white man's burden - were torched before they set foot in India. The only ones people like Anon fool are themselves [letter below]. Parvez I read with interest the article by [Pepe] Escobar. Of greater interest is the ignorance of many of the US readers' responses. Carol Martin is a case in point [letter below]. You obviously keep informed on the rest of the world by reading People magazine. The US not imperialist? How do you think it got the continental United States? [President George W] Bush got his war with the help of people like you who don't think but only echo what they are told and whose unquestioning minds accept what they hear on the evening news. Also I'm curious to find out how you came upon your inside information about daycare centers and hospitals containing weapons. Interesting that the UN weapons inspectors couldn't find them, our own intelligence agencies can't find them but you know where they are. Joe Salazar (Mar 31, '03) USA and proud of it, also use my brain and proud of it I have enjoyed reading your articles since I found your website. Most of them seem to be balanced and reasonable. Unfortunately, our US media are strictly government propaganda, forcing anyone interested in the truth to resort to the Internet. I find letters from irate American warmongers to be representative of the bigotry, racism, supremism, and intolerance so widespread in this country these days. For some reason - probably Madison Avenue propaganda - these Americans refuse to admit that the US has killed millions in its aggressive foreign wars over the last century - far more than Saddam Hussein could ever hope to match. That the US would purport to free Iraqis while its own populace faces the tyrannical inhumane regime of Bush et al is ludicrous. It is unlikely that there will ever again be free and honest elections in this country. Our media are just mouthpieces for the right-wing agenda - bleeding the citizenry dry while feeding corporate interests at the public trough. Perhaps they are planning to export homelessness and poverty, as those are so abundant in the US today - and predicted to worsen as the military-industrial complex grows and taxes are diverted to the top 1 percent. It is heartening to hear that Arabs are disillusioned with both their own impotent regimes and the US hegemony. Perhaps some day they will be able to liberate Americans from a tyrannical dictatorship - that seems to be the way we are heading. I will continue to read foreign reports as long as we are still permitted to do so - I doubt if that will continue for long as already al-Jazeera has been knocked off the Internet. S Lange Minnesota, USA (Mar 31, '03) I have been an avid reader of your site for some time now and find its entertainment value virtually unparalleled (although on occasion I feel compelled to look at the URL displayed in my browser to make sure I haven't been redirected to the World Socialist website or the al-Jazeera English-language page). Typically I find Pepe Escobar's exploits the most amusing, but this particular morning I nearly fell out of my chair laughing while reading the article titled <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC28Ak01.html " target="_blank">A coalition of weakness</a>, Mar 28. The passage that included the phrase "the moral equivalent of the United Nations" was priceless. Anyone who believes that the UN is "moral" views the world through the proverbial rose-colored glasses. The UN, in my opinion, is nothing more than a forum for those who would engage in intellectual masturbation. If the monsters that hijacked the four planes and murdered those 3,000 innocent people on September 11, 2001, had crashed into the UN building instead of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, perhaps the opinions against the US would be quite different than they are now. Then again, given their penchant towards vacillation and appeasement, perhaps they would just endlessly debate the issue as they do today. Additionally it would have also made for an interesting comparison if the writers of the article had listed the human-rights records of some of those countries most opposed to the US action in Iraq (China, Syria, Russia, et al) as they did with those included in the "coalition of the willing". However, that might not have been in the interest of advancing their argument. But I suppose they never intended for their analysis to be unbiased. MWB St Louis, Missouri (Mar 28, '03) I'm tired of people using worthless information to back the anti-coalition stance. In response to <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC28Ak01.html " target="_blank">A coalition of weakness </a>[Mar 28], I do not see how Erik [Leaver] and Sara [Johnson] can start with the premise that the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) represents some moral high ground that other countries can't live up to by reason of not being on the council. French-led inaction doesn't make the UNSC more or less moral than the coalition and its supporters. The UN only has a high moral image, much like the Vatican. That doesn't make it flawless. In my opinion, inaction translates to acceptance of Saddam [Hussein]'s regime, which has defied over 15 UNSC resolutions, each of which hearkens back to its predecessors, some of which call for serious consequences. Blocking coalition action would then mean supporting Saddam's regime. And the list of those who support inaction and thus Saddam's regime would also have a sad human-rights record and just as little transparency. Let's top the list of Saddam's supporters with China past and present; every Arab country; Russia past and present ([Joseph] Stalin, ethnic cleansing in Chechnya, recent slaughter at parliament). To boast that the three strongest and most stable democracies in the world make up the bulk of the coalition is nothing to be ashamed about. Please stop trying to make sense out of the argument for opposition to the coalition's strike by using worthless statistics. There is moral justification for both sides. One point in common, though, is that the coalition strike ends soon and another one, though not openly admitted but secretly thought, is that the coalition is successful. Greg Martin (Mar 28, '03) In your article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC28Ak01.html " target="_blank">A coalition of weakness </a> by Erik Leaver and Sara Johnson posted on your website [Mar 28], there is a factual error. Your correspondents state that only two countries, America and Israel, have a majority of their populations in support of the war. Several days ago a UK poll showed a majority supported the action to disarm Iraq, and end the Saddam [Hussein] regime. I am not aware of the results of polls in the rest of the 45 countries, other than Australia, though your article implies that they are all in opposition to the action in Iraq. It is a complicated situation, and you do not do your duty to your readership if your reporting is incorrect and unbalanced like this. Anon (Mar 28, '03) Your article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC28Ak05.html " target="_blank">For whom the Iraqi bell tolls</a>, Mar 28 is a perfect example of the brainwashing by the Islamic religion and the Arab media of some Iraqi people. Their reasons to return to Iraq and kill Americans are as valid as killing firemen that come to your home to put out a fire while your family is inside. Anon (Mar 28, '03) This is a reasonable good piece [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Korea/EC28Dg01.html " target="_blank">North Korea: Door to diplomacy still open</a>, Mar 28]. In fact, it is one of the more rational opinions expressed on this particular subject. Unfortunately, Phar Kim Beng has missed or left out two very important points that cannot be ignored in the context of a post-September 11, 2001, world. First and foremost, the DPRK [Democratic People's Republic of Korea] and Kim Jong-il are not seen as particularly reliable insofar as keeping to their agreements. Second, the DPRK has a very long history of working with enemies of the United States, most of whom have been either terrorist or guerrilla organizations. There is also some rather disturbing evidence, derived from the recent attack on a French oil tanker, that there are links between Pyongyang and al-Qaeda. Imagine then US concern when the DPRK under Kim Jong-il insists on producing fissile materials in secret. Much is made of the complex at Yongbyon, but the media tend to forget the uranium-enrichment program the DPRK has undertaken. This program is much easier to conceal from US surveillance assets. All this taken together suggests that a regime change in Pyongyang is a very attractive option to Washington. In this light, it makes the US action in Iraq puzzling, as it would seem that regime change in Pyongyang should have been the first goal in US efforts to eliminate the state support of terrorism. One can only assume that what has held the US back is the probable response of the PRC [People's Republic of China], Russia, Japan and the ROK [Republic of Korea]. This same circumstance also makes obvious the US demand that the solution be a regional solution, not a solution arrived at between Washington and Pyongyang alone. Don Granberry (Mar 28, '03) <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/EC26Df01.html " target="_blank">China, India weigh war costs</a>, Mar 26, was a very interesting analysis by Jayanthi Iyengar. Please keep it up! Piyush (Mar 28, '03) [Osama] bin Laden is evidently one of the greatest generals who has ever lived. With very few people and three hijacked planes he has literally destroyed Americans' constitutional rights, bankrupted many of our businesses, ruined our airlines and gave our "insane cowboy" a chance to ruin our reputation throughout the world. I do not doubt that the US has superior war machines and will be able to run over a country about the size of one of our states. Anon (Mar 28, '03) My attempts to understand Dubya's arguments fail when faced with his thinly disguised hypocrisy. Who can forget [National Security Advisor] Condoleezza Rice welcoming the attempted coup in democratic (but not pro-US) Venezuela? The list of brutal dictators supported by America - [Ferdinand] Marcos (Philippines), [Augusto] Pinochet (Chile), [Anastasio] Somosa (Nicaragua), Mobutu [Sese Seko] (Zaire/Congo), General Zia ul-Haq and [President General Pervez] Musharraf (Pakistan) - is much longer than those it has opposed. [President George W] Bush has moved the United States from the most loved and respected country in the world (under [president Bill] Clinton) to among its most hated. Sam Herbstein South Africa (Mar 28, '03) I just finished reading the article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC25Ak06.html" target="_blank">Free press and the face of war</a>, by Paul Belden. What a sad, sad thing it is to have to get the real news from sources other than corporate United States news outlets. I've been following the White House spin on CNN and MSNBC. It's surreal. There are a few journalists and reporters who at least try to present some balance; Christiane Amanpour comes to mind. But in the main, the coverage bears little resemblance to what I've read about and seen on foreign press websites. How did our descent into fascism happen so quickly? I'm desolate. Eileen Flanagan New York City (Mar 27, '03) Whatever Generals [Tommy] Franks or [Richard] Myers might claim about the performance of US troops in Iraq, the fact that the friction of war has brought the US thrusts to a grinding halt cannot be disputed. This is against an army against whom the US enjoys overwhelming superiority. Baghdad is not that close simply because the Iraqis are fighting well, but because the entire US plan was based on wishful thinking. Saddam may be a tyrant but there is no denying that the Americans have supported this tyrant while he was fighting a war against Iran in the period 1980-89. The fact that Saddam is unpopular is not sufficient to think that the Iraqis would welcome the Americans as liberators. Baghdad may not be close even once the Americans capture it, because in the final battle of the hearts and minds the US lost the war the day it attacked Afghanistan. Whatever Middle East leaders may assert, the common man in the Middle East celebrates every time he hears the news that a US 'copter is shot down or the Americans have suffered casualties. High-sounding intelligence estimates and technical jargon on any Western website cannot hide the fact that the war in Iraq is not going as planned. No war ever went as planned, but in their enormous arrogance the pedants in the Pentagon had somehow assumed that they would be able to plan everything like a business meeting in Manhattan. Baghdad is a symbol of a civilization, one which has a history. In capturing Baghdad, the Americans are hastening the final clash of civilizations. Already there are opinion polls in Pakistan as to which country would be the next US target after Iraq. The mere size of US deployment suggests that the US planners have lengthy visions of glory: perhaps Iran and Pakistan and perhaps Saudi Arabia. Grandiose plans like the "Final Solution" of the Muslim question. A H Amin (Mar 27, '03) Pepe, no offense [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html" target="_blank">The 'Palestinization of Iraq</a>, Mar 27], but your article neglects to mention Saddam's Wunderwaffen, which makes final victory absolutely certain. We know he's got the bunker, so can the Wunderwaffen be far behind? Criton M Zoakos (Mar 27, '03) Re the article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html" target="_blank">The 'Palestinization' of Iraq</a>, Mar 27, by Pepe Escobar: One thing has always been true and it will never change. People all over the world want to be free from "dictators". Iraq will be the same. The people of Iraq will decide if they wish to live under Saddam's tyranny. The one single truth that you will never understand is that religion taken too far just ends in the death of innocent people! If Iraq does not capitulate it will be destroyed! Anon (Mar 27, '03) I have just read the article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html" target="_blank">The 'Palestinization' of Iraq</a>, Mar 27, by Pepe Escobar. My question about all these fighters inside Baghdad is: What are they going to eat? It has been seemingly forgotten that people have to eat. Given the current disruption of transportation in Iraq and the disruption of imports, the country cannot hold out for very long. I am neither strongly for or against this war. But people are going to have to start to realize that many of these Middle Eastern countries live on food imports. Douglas Stayner (Mar 27, '03) It is interesting how in times of need, more than any other country, the US is looked to for aid and leadership in the world. When it acts, it is the great evil. When it fails to act, it is the great evil. With greatness, comes great responsibility. Your portrayal of the US and its politically bold act of attempting to bring a new life to new generations of Middle Easterners is recklessly dangerous. Too many who have moved from the region to the US and from other parts of Asia to the US have come here to find another way to exist with a better life for their families. The US is far from perfect, but it remains the best example of what is possible for the peaceful coexistence of multiple cultures and religions. In contrast, the region of the Middle East has (for the duration of my lifetime and most of the world's history) been fraught with tribal wars and strife that has had nothing to do with "infidel invaders", and much to do with a troubled region that knows only the ways of violence to resolve disputes and to lead people. It is ruled by a wealthy few who have drained the region of its resources for personal gain, and have given little in return to the populace. That is not the fault of the US or any other industrialized nation in the world that purchase the oil of the region. Anon (Mar 27, '03) As I read the article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html" target="_blank">The 'Palestinization' of Iraq</a>, Mar 27, by Pepe Escobar, and feeling your disapproval of the war, I was curious as to your answer to healing the Iraqi world instead of war. I like what you have written, but I do not see the correlation. I really would like to know what your strategy would be. Saddam [Hussein] reminds me of [Adolf] Hitler. I don't think he would hear, see or listen to anything that anyone would have to say. Cathey Lewis, US (Mar 27, '03) Pepe Escobar's article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html" target="_blank">The 'Palestinization' of Iraq</a>, Mar 27, reflects ignorance. How about reporting for a change, and informing people of the fact that the Iraqi leadership has murdered at least 300,000 of its own citizens? It is certain your reporters could provide a greater service to humanity, and most importantly, the Arab world, by detailing the deeds of the greatest threat to the Arab people - Saddam [Hussein] himself. If you have any integrity, you would strive to print the truth, and provide the option for your readers to see beyond the emotional rhetoric. What the Arab world truly needs, and wants, is freedom, and if the US is willing to establish that freedom from a brutal tyrant, your responsibility, as a member of the press, it to report that fact as such. Anon (Mar 27, '03) After reading your story about Filipinos protesting [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/EC27Ae02.html" target="_blank">Catholic Church rallies Filipinos against war</a>, Mar 27, by Marco Garrido], I wondered about the pathetic tendencies of your bias. Namely, referring to folks as leftists. You are reading words written by a Vietnam-era veteran. And as the stepson of a Mexican, I value my Spanish-speaking cousins! Filipinos are only too experienced with the US and its delusions of democracy. The lie of the US - revealed by the last presidential election - was wisely rejected by Filipinos. Their refusal to renew US base leases drew my support. Their rights as a sovereign people are not subject to US whims. I as an American feel that Filipino wishes are to be respected, and if "leftists" are Filipino, you should get over your bias, no? Tambien en Mexico, hoy muchos malo experiencias con los gringos. Conozco la realidad de los Estados Unidos y los falsos de las culturas aqui! Steve Sulkanen (Mar 27, '03) A response to A Quan's letter [below]: I'd be interested to know where you are from? Then, perhaps, you can give us all a few lessons on "democracy, responsibility and working for a peaceful and just world." Joseph L Barr Shanghai (Mar 27, '03) Since the current crisis in the Middle East started, I became a daily reader of Asia Times Online. I would like particularly to congratulate [Pepe] Escobar for his articles on Iraq. Maria Sydney, Australia (Mar 27, '03) In the article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html" target="_blank">The 'Palestinization' of Iraq</a>, Mar 27, by Pepe Escobar, the author states "especially because the real war, and not the US version, is being followed by the whole Arab world, in Arabic, through Arab satellite channels". Exactly why should we believe that the Arab satellite channels are any more accurate or unbiased than the US and European media? If Mr Escobar accepts what comes from these channels as unadulterated truth, can his judgment and reporting on other issues be trusted? TRT (Mar 27, '03) The article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html" target="_blank">The 'Palestinization' of Iraq</a>, Mar 27, by Pepe Escobar, is right on the money! There is a battle brewing, the Arab world vs the rest of the world. Only in the Arab world are there still kings, dictators and thugs running countries. Why is this? Obviously the Arab world likes this type of rule. One just needs to look at Arab countries where women are no more than possessions, and the birth rates are alarming. Yes, Arabs vs the rest! Or, Palestinians vs everyone else. It's time for the Palestinian liars and thugs to be eliminated. I call for another Crusade. This time we better finish the job! Anon (Mar 27, '03) I'm wondering which war Pepe Escobar [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html" target="_blank">The 'Palestinization' of Iraq</a>, Mar 27,] is watching? I'll ignore the fact that he is utterly incapable of writing a balanced article, since he is so clearly anti-American. The problem is that his reports make it seem that the US is losing this battle, and that the Pentagon is "humiliated" by every extra day of fighting. I would advise Mr Escobar to stick to the facts; the allies are making extraordinary advances in Iraq, and have leveled devastating defeats to Iraqi forces thus far. Your prognostications of gloom and doom for the allies only make you look uninformed. Harold Boston, Massachusetts (Mar 27, '03) Re Gary LaMoshi's article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC20Ak04.html" target="_blank">Now we're all ugly Americans</a>, Mar 20: It is unfortunate to me, as an American citizen, to see such widespread anti-Americanism on the rise throughout the world. I completely understand the sentiments behind it, though, and if I were living outside of this nation, I would hate America's arrogant and insensitive unilateralism even more than I hate it right now. I am not alone in America in expressing these sentiments. We may be perceived as a uniform community of ugly Americans, but we are not all united in the desire to see the US throw every value it proclaims to stand for down the drain in [President George W] Bush's personal war. American governments have long striven to pit a nation's people against their governments to weaken that nation and keep the US strong - exemplified of late in the governments of Bush's "Coalition of the Willing", whose people are in opposition to his war. The massive anti-war protests in traditionally conservative areas such as Chicago, and the pro-war rallies in notoriously liberal areas such as the [San Francisco] Bay Area, demonstrate the extent to which this war has divided the American people. Congratulations, Dubya, on dividing your own nation, as well. Jessica Yen California (Mar 27, '03) I find it amazing that anyone in the Arab world would back a brutal murderer like Saddam Hussein and want to keep him in power. He has burned babies alive, shredded people, sent his thugs to commit rape and murder of men, women and children. He shoots those who disagree with him and his own people are rising up in the city of Basra against him. He rules by fear and murder and the rest of the Arab countries want him to remain in power in Iraq? What kind of people are you? If the US was really an "imperialistic" nation and wanted to take over Iraq for oil, believe me, they would all be saluting the Stars and Stripes by now. We do not have to reduce our air strikes to mostly government targets. We would have bombed those daycare centers and hospitals in which Saddam and his boys have so cleverly hidden tanks and weapons and chemical agents. Wake up and take the blinders off! Carol Martin USA and proud of it!!! (Mar 27, '03) Pepe Escobar [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html" target="_blank">The 'Palestinization' of Iraq</a>, Mar 27] writes of "... an American tank in the streets of Baghdad juxtaposed with an American tank in the streets of Gaza". Israel does not use American tanks, their Merkavas are locally designed and manufactured. If Israel should come to blows with Egypt, though, you might see an American tank in Gaza, since Egypt's 400-plus American M1 Abrams tanks constitute the backbone of their armored forces. As far as images of American troops in Iraq are concerned, "... turn[ing] the Arab world into an ocean of fire", Escobar's fears are misplaced. Our troops are there precisely to avert such a scenario. If we do not not act, and those who repeatedly call for the massacre of our civilians are allowed to turn their dreams of nuclear destruction a reality, then you really will see a "sea of fire". It is, after all, no secret that the doctrine of nuclear deterrence entails the total destruction of major population centers in response to such an attack. This is the only scenario under which America would deliberately target Arab civilians en masse. Timothy Usher San Francisco, California (Mar 27, '03) In response to <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC27Ak05.html" target="_blank">The 'Palestinization' of Iraq</a>, by Pepe Escobar, Mar 27: That's an interesting article. Mr Escobar might have some points about the resistance the US forces will face, but when he calls a war that is one week old "protracted", he comes across as fairly unrealistic and his argument as unbalanced. When one side has taken most of a country in a week, that's "protracted"? It's possible it could become protracted, given the large looming task of taking Baghdad, but it's a little early to make that call. He mentions the numbers of various Iraqi fighting groups, but doesn't even mention that the majority of the population is Shi'ite who don't like the Sunni political leadership and that many will be glad to be rid of it, especially those who tried to rebel in 1991 and were killed. The Kurds are the same way. Yeah, there are some who will sacrifice themselves and others who will hide among the populace and attack, but neither he nor I know the level or duration of that resistance. We'll have to see. Charles Dean (Mar 27, '03) Re <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/EC27Df02.html" target="_blank">Pakistan fears US hammer blow</a>, Mar 27, by Muddassir Rizvi: This article brings to light a thus far little-remarked component of the US war in Iraq and Afghanistan. [President George W] Bush listed the candidates for attention in his "axis of evil" things-to-do list as Iraq, Iran and North Korea. Pakistan was not included. Pakistan walks a fine line. Its nuclear engineers have supposedly been involved in helping both Iraq and North Korea develop their respective nuclear industries, which means that, if nuclear proliferation is a key element, Pakistan must surely head the list. Add to that the support within certain sectors of Pakistan's security services for both the Taliban and al-Qaeda, and the effective Taliban control of some regions of Pakistan, and it is clear that Pakistan is crying out for attention. But Pakistan is also a key ally in the very same fight, having offered the assistance of these same security services, and having offered access to US operatives, and police and military and intelligence support in the capture of al-Qaedist fugitives. Pakistan's help has been both valuable and very appreciated. When you are under fire, you look to see who your friends are. Pakistan's support in this fight matters quite a lot. Ken Martin California (Mar 27, '03) I cannot thank you all enough for your great work of reporting and writing. I will never miss reading the columns of Pepe Escobar, who is the best I have ever read. One has to understand how dreadful most of our newspapers have been, not only now, but for years, at giving the actual news without governmental side effects thrown in. I see today that a news outlet like al-Jazeera, which only got started on the Internet [in English] two days ago, has been seriously hacked, and I at least could not get it. Is this an example of government interference? I suspect it is, and with this administration in place, no one can change my mind. Thanks again. Dilys Williams, Oregon (Mar 27, '03) Re the article <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC26Ak02.html " target="_blank">Kurds: Survival first, independence second</a>, Mar 26: Once again the US is making a strategic mistake by choosing the Kurds over Turkey. Turkey may go into Iraq after securing a secret agreement with Iran and Syria (both on the US hit list), since both will need Turkey's help to repel any US attack on their own countries. So Turkey has the greatest chance take Kirkuk and Mosul, which belong to Turkey anyway and where most of the people are Turkoman. Turkey has the greatest chance of rallying even Arab countries if the war goes against the US in Iraq. Anon (Mar 26, '03) I started reading Asia Times Online about two months ago, and all I can say is, well done: your coverage is balanced, thoughtful and analytically rigorous. I wish you every success. Milo Jones Belgium (Mar 26, '03) When a flag-waving American apologist like Gary LaMoshi [ <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC20Ak04.html " target="_blank">Now we're all ugly Americans</a>, Mar 20] starts to criticize the US, you know things in America must be pretty bad. Unfortunately, LaMoshi's "criticism" is disingenuous in that he tries to make a distinction between the policies of the Bush regime and some mythical "American values" based upon "democracy, responsibility and working for a peaceful and just world". What a joke. Like most brainwashed American "patriots", LaMoshi is deluding himself if he believes that his American empire has ever represented anything but domination, exploitation and death - masquerading as democracy and freedom. Whether that be historical American sins such as native American genocide and chattel slavery or more contemporary sins such as American imperialism's bloody wars around the world, from Vietnam to Iraq to Yugoslavia to Afghanistan, the US has always acted in its own ruthless national self-interest. It is about time that mainstream Americans like LaMoshi wake up and face the truth of why America is so hated around the world. A Quan (Mar 26, '03) I was shocked (nearly choked on my chips and beer) when I saw your lead commentary [<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20030402125015/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC26Ak01.html ]. " target="_blank">The Baghdad Goetterdaemmerung scenario</a>, Mar 26]. Come on guys, this has been going on since modern warfare began. What is happening is that the US and UK are testing their weapons of less destruction in Iraq. Keep up the good coverage though. Peter Nusa Canberra, Australia (Mar 26, '03) I have had enough of the bunk that the anti-Americans have put out. They are jealous of the success we have had in building a God-fearing and -loving nation, with liberty and justice for all, regardless of color or religion! Tooseeto Yoto (Mar 26, '03) Who is this guy Pepe Escobar? He's so anti-American! His articles are all one-sided. Just my two cents. 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