Bernie went on to voice his concerns about the cost in lives, in money, and in stoking the fires of terrorism all which have sadly come to fruition. We lost thousands of American soldiers.
The invasion and occupation led to the deaths, impoverishment and displacement of millions of people in Iraq and the region.
Further, the U.S. military industrial complex spent trillions and continues to spend billions in borrowed money on military "solutions" that have created more terrorism and reduced U.S. standing and security in the world.
For most Americans the disaster of Iraq is old news but just the other day Oct. 30, 2019 for the people seated in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Courtroom 18 (the day the Nationals won the World Series) it was as if every American death in Iraq, every wound, every corrupt corporate betrayal happened only yesterday.
These people were in the courtroom for a pre-trial hearing on the defendants' motions to dismiss the anti-terrorism case, Atchley v. AstraZeneca.
On one side of the courtroom were about two dozen wounded veterans and family members of soldiers and civilians killed in Iraq (there are more than 1,200 plaintiffs from nearly every state, as well as Puerto Rico).
Some of the plaintiffs were visibly scarred.
From the back of the courtroom I watched the plaintiffs strain to listen as the attorneys battled in legalese.
I visualized these plaintiffs when they were serving in Iraq: ambushed, suffering in the heat, killed and wounded by terrorists allegedly funded by Big Pharma corruption.
In marked contrast, on the other side of the courtroom, far from the battles in Iraq, sat about 100 sleek attorneys from the most prestigious law firms in the country, defending their Big Pharma clients.
As the hearing on the defendants' motions progressed, Big Pharma argued, among other things, that they could not be held legally responsible for the dead and wounded Americans even if Big Pharma did bribe Iraqi officials and knew or should have known the bribes were financing the terrorists. In other words, even if Big Pharma did aid and abet the terrorists who killed and wounded the plaintiffs, the court has no jurisdiction to hear the case.
Big Pharma smugly claims that even if the plaintiffs prove their case it is a "non-justiciable political question" under the Constitution of the United States and the plaintiffs will simply have to suffer the consequences while Big Pharma reaps the profits.
The hearing concluded and Judge Leon will eventually issue his orders on the motions. I believe the plaintiffs' case will survive the defendants' motions to dismiss but I cannot be certain. This is complex litigation involving some of the best attorneys in the U.S., who are defending some of the richest and most powerful corporations in the world David is fighting Goliath.
I support the plaintiff soldiers. I believe they are entitled to whatever justice this anti-terrorist suit can provide.
But such "justice" can never make up for the dead and wounded and I cannot help but think that if Bernie Sanders' reasoning against the invasion and occupation had prevailed, the people of the U.S., Iraq, and the world would be in a much better place.
For this and many other reasons I will vote for Bernie Sanders. We need his wisdom and courage in the White House.
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