cheech

I watched a debate over the weekend...CSpan fudged the broadcast on Sat night, then continued it on Sunday...and I fudged the VCR, put it on the wrong speed, and the tape cut off before it ended! I originally tuned in to see Mr Christopher Hitchens. By the end, I was a fan of Michael Ignatieff.
Hitchens and Ignatieff are normally arguing for positions perceived as leftist. Saturday, they were arguing FOR invading Iraq. Their reasons were: freedom of the 25 million Iraqis; the torture, murder, and support of terrorism by the Husseins (not al-Quedas terrorism, though. There is NO evidence linking al-Queda to Iraq); and lastly, the freeing of the Kurds (in the north) and shi'i Muslims (in the south) who Hussein's been trying to kill for so long. While Hitchens postured angrily, Ignatieff humbly and sincerely admitted the dangers of war with Iraq: thousands killed; perhaps attacks made on Israel; political isolation of the USA from the world; and perhaps the fueling of more terrorism in response.

BUT FORGET ALL THAT FOR NOW...um, if you can...cuz today I began reading Ignatieff's work on nationalism and ethnic fighting of the last decade. It's a book called Blood and Belonging and I BEG ALL OF YOU to read it...ow, my knees...um, I'm typing ON MY KNEES, people...I'm ON MY KNEES BEGGING YOU to read 2 short sections of this book, at least. The intro concisely explains the rise of nationalism in recent events. It's 14 pages long. There is also a section on Kurdistan. Its 32 pages long. I only knew a very little about the Kurds before. Let me tell you what I've learned today...

Let's say you were/are a Kurd. This is what your life is like: 1) Turkey is trying to either rob you of your culture and language or kill you, as a policy of state. 2) Syria is trying to kill you. 3) Iran is trying to kill you. 4) Iraq, i.e. Saddam Hussein is trying to kill you.

The area of Northern Iraq is Kurdistan...well, um, no, it isn't...but it is. See, the UN and US jets are protecting the Kurds. Saddam tried to kill them all. 3 million people. If Hussein had his way, they'd all be dead. This is why the no-fly zones exist, to prevent the massacre of the Kurds. I know we all thought they were only doing sinister dirty-US-military-type stuff (and indeed they have killed some Iraqi civilians by accident, I don't gloss over that) but they were preventing the slaughter of 3 million people as well. Please remember that; it is a fact. SOME good can come from US/UN action.
Now, Hussein doesn't want a Kurdish state...but neither does Syria, Turkey, or Iran. And, regardless of the war's outcome, we, as allies of Turkey, will not set up a formal Kurdistan...so it exists not on a map, but only as a cluster of 3 million people in the north of Iraq who knocked down the portraits of Saddam and put up "Welcome to Kurdistan" signs. They are severely impoverished. They have a parliament. Women can't vote, yet some have been elected to this parliament. But they are not a country, and at least one of the four countries hostile to them (most likely Turkey, since they and the US hold the cards) will make sure they are never a country.
There is not one type of ethnic Kurd. They have different languages, slight variances of culture, different paramilitary parties in Kurdistan, and the Kurds in Turkey, through subjugation by the Turks, usually can't speak Kurdish anymore, but rather use Turkish with English letters. They have had fighting amongst their own people based on slight ethnic differences, which has stalled their progress at times.

Um, and that's what I've learned so far. I have about 20 more pages to read of that chapter. Anyway, I put this out there as a glimmer of hope on this eve of war.
Yeah, this war will end up with a lot of dead Iraqis and US troops. Yeah, I suspect it'll inflame the mideast. Short of directly getting involved in creating a Palestinian state (anyone think THIS will happen??), the US will have a hard time calming nerves. Some serious nerve-agent crap could be used around Baghdad, or sent via missile to Israel...
...but it might also mean the increased freedom of 25 million folks, and a huge ray of hope for the Kurds (who, btw, might be mad as HELL at the USA for not helping them out in 1991 like Bush Sr. promised, but that's another story...). Three million people, downtrodden by four countries, might finally live in less fear of genocide. I sure hope so; it's pretty rare for a war to have some meaning.

ps If my library had this book, I assume one near you does, too. For anyone who cant find this book- email me, and I will copy/send these portions to you absolutely free.