The last few months have seen heated debate on a question of great importance to the international community: should the United States invade Iraq and topple its evil, tyrannical regime? This question has perplexed even the most dutiful students and practitioners of politics. Some are convinced that Saddam Hussein is a terrorist; others that Iraq should be given the rights of a legitimate state; still others have no idea what the public wants to hear, and therefore call for more debate. Unfortunately, all these groups have not considered the real facts behind this issue.
First, we have clearly won the War on Terror. Terrorism is simply not the major threat these days. Forget that some 200 tourists were killed last week in Bali. Forget that there was an attack on US troops in Kuwait two weeks ago. Forget that the “chatter” has increased and that al-Qaeda delivers messages to the news media every day. These are not part of a larger pattern that signals the continued existence of al-Qaeda. The facts tell us that we’ve rebuilt Afghanistan and haven’t heard from Osama in a while. We’ve won. The War on Terror is over. There are no security threats to the United States but instead they loom for Iraq.
Second, invading Iraq will not have a big impact on the Middle East. Countries like Iran, Syria and Lebanon are all our good friends and will be happy to assist us in a war against their evil, despotic neighbor. The Middle East is a peaceful region, and it is unlikely that conflict would spread.
Third, the international community simply loves the idea of going to war. The leaders of France, Russia, China and Germany are even more excited than we are to invade. And the UN wants to help. If Britain would fall in line, we’d have the perfect coalition.
Finally, we have purely altruistic motives. It’s not like this is a political move because of an upcoming election, nor is it as if the administration is trying to divert attention from would-be problems. The economy is stronger than ever, all Americans are covered by health care, corporate executives are using their year-end bonuses for charity, and we’ve successfully finalized creation of a new cabinet department for homeland security. Life could not be better.
When we consider the facts, it’s clear that we should invade Iraq. Now is the best time because we have the perfect conditions for a quick, painless war. We should not miss our chance.
—GANESH N. SITARAMAN
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I, The Jury
