Should Iraqis be given the right of Self Determination?

[Junkdrawer]

Should Iraqis be able to determine which parties can and cannot participate in an election?

Should Iraqis be able to determine which companies from which countries reconstruct the damage inflicted by our “War of Liberation”?

Should Iraqis be able to determine which companies from which countries are contracted to repair and modernize their oil industry?

Should Iraqis be able to determine which countries they sell oil to and for what price?

Should Iraqis be able to determine what debts get paid and in what order?

Should Iraqis be able to decide if they do or do not want a permanent US military base on their soil?

These are the questions that will determine how long we stay as an occupation army. We say we invaded Iraq as a “last resort” to deal with Saddam Hussein and the threat he posed to our security – does that give us the right to answer these questions for the Iraqi people? Obviously our government, with it’s all-too-cozy relationship with large construction and oil companies will say the Iraqi people are too immature and primitive to decide these things for themselves. “Maybe someday, in a few years” they will say. I say if they were serious about achieving the above goals in a reasonable time frame the UN would be brought in and give a large say in the how and when of Iraqi independence. But somehow, I don’t think this administration relishes that thought.

BTW: I believe that you may deprive a people of these rights, but only for so long. And the longer you deprive a people of these rights, the more twisted and violent the eventual government will be and the more of an enemy you will create.

[Sterling]

1. Should Americans?

If it's good enough for us why not them?

[Jacobin]

2. If its not "given" to them, you can be sure they will TAKE it.

We are infidels. They are muslims.

They will not suffer us for long.

Bush is going DOWN

[Junkdrawer]

3. They don't seem to be "suffering us" too well so far...

I think the early line was that after we mop up a few Saddam loyalists, we could get on with our brand of nation building. A few days ago, NPR had a report and now there seems to be emerging more and more groups that believe that "liberation fighters" will eventually get us to leave and if certain ethnic groups don't participate in the liberation, they will have no voice in the eventual government.

[denverbill]

4. Well, yeah, you would sure think so.

The only case in the above I might say no to is the repair contracts. In that case, it depends who is paying.

If the US is paying the contractors, we should decide who does it. If Iraqi oil is paying for the work, Iraq should decide.

[xchrom]

5. of course

it's a civilization that's over 5,000 years old. with many, many capable people to step into leadership positions.
i wonder if america deserves self determination.

[Ardee]

6. Are nations sovereign?

In a declared ,formal war the defeated nation signs terms of surrender. These terms may involve loss of self determination for a period of time. My own opinion of this invasion of Iraq is that it is quite illegal and thus, as the invading force the United States can do what it damn well chooses, after all in for a penny in for a pound.

Yes the sarcasm should be quite evident. We are in Iraq contrary to international law, contrary to any common sense, we invaded that nation because we were lied to by our own government. We are going to get our asses kicked if we stay there for very much longer.

Iraq will become another Viet Nam, for that matter Afghanistan is going to become another Afghanistan ( wrt Russia). It should be rather evident that , aside from capturing the oil fields intact, we had no plan, no clue, no way of restoring the infrastructure we destroyed. As time passes our presence in Iraq and Afghanistan fuel the fires of nationalism and religious fervor as well.Especially as we have proven so inept at restoration of that which we destroyed, inept at policing the occupied territory, inept at preventing the daily death of american soldiers.

We amy possibly install some puppet government which will support our continued looting of the oil there, at least until the Iraqis and their supporters rise up and hang them........meanwhile our young men and women will continue to die for Cheney and Bush's buddies......

[JPace]

7. Democracies are earned.....

through a great deal of pain. The pain
of internal struggles over time, often
a very long time.

Iraqi's need to forge their own government
and the forging is not for us to determine.

We would have done them a greater service
to arm Saddams Iraqi enemies and let them
free the people. The process alone would
have given birth to leaders from within.

What a mess we have caused. American blood
shed in a very wasteful manner.

Shame on the bush regime!