Edward Herman on U.S. Aggression Against Iraq I could hardly bear to read listmember Ed Herman's thorough, profound and penetrating summary of where it's at with Iraq. I know all this, and still this is a benchmark piece. Here are some quotes from it: Despite the hidden agenda and illegalities of the inspections system, and Iraq's foot-dragging and deceptions, the system did oversee the destruction of an estimated 90-95 percent of Iraq's WMD stocks, and most of its WMD capacity. Iraq was essentially disarmed, according to Scott Ritter and Hans Von Sponeck, who were active participants in the inspection process. But this did not satisfy the United States and Britain, and couldn't do so because of their illegal aim of regime change… The apologists underrate the costs of war. There will be modest U.S. casualties, but enormous Iraqi casualties as the U.S. carries out its standard policy of intense bombing prior to invasion-occupation. There will be huge costs in a destroyed Iraq and heavy costs in the conduct of the war. “Collateral Damage: The Health and Environmental Costs of War on Iraq,” put out by the Medical Association for Prevention of War in November 2002, estimates half a million deaths assuming only conventional warfare, costs exceeding $200 billion, and immeasurable adverse secondary effects on health and welfare. There will also probably be intensified terrorist responses to the attack on Iraq. This and the feedback effects of war on the U.S. society will push it further toward an authoritarian state. This is a plus for the Bush administration as it will, like 9/11 and the war on terror in general, help it cover over its anti-public interest agenda.
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