108 online
 
Most Popular Choices
Share on Facebook 100 Printer Friendly Page More Sharing
OpEdNews Op Eds    H3'ed 5/28/19

Ten Questions About the Gulf War Monument Planned for Washington

By       (Page 1 of 1 pages)   No comments

David Swanson
Follow Me on Twitter     Message David Swanson
Become a Fan
  (138 fans)

Yes, they're planning a monument to the Gulf War. I have some questions about the design.

--

  1. Really? Seriously? WTAF? Were there just not enough war monuments yet?
  2. There's no monument to the arming of Saddam Hussein during the Iran-Iraq War, without which there could have been no Gulf War, and no monument (yet) to the deadly sanctions and bombings that followed or to the 2003-begun war on Iraq, which couldn't have happened without the Gulf War. Why pick out the Gulf War segment of the endless war on Iraq to memorialize?
  3. The Gulf War resulted in the basing of U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia, which resulted in September 11, 2001. Will that accomplishment be part of what's glorified in this monument?
  4. Will some other accomplishment be noted? What will it be?
  5. Will the monument include any depictions of fictional infants taken out of imaginary incubators?
  6. How will the overwhelmingly Iraqi victims of the Gulf War be memorialized?
  7. The United States killed 30,000 retreating Iraqi soldiers. Will they perhaps be depicted mooning the U.S. Institute of "Peace" across the street?
  8. Will victims of Gulf War Syndrome be remembered with an eternal open burn pit?
  9. Gulf War veteran and terrorist (if that's not redundant) Timothy McVeigh blew up a government building in 1995 and claimed that the deaths that resulted were merely "collateral damage" because killing those people had not been his purpose. He learned that from Gulf War propaganda; will credit be given?
  10. Prior to the Gulf War, Iraq proposed to withdraw from Kuwait if Israel withdrew from the Palestinian territories. Iraq proposed a WMD-free Middle East, including itself and every other Middle Eastern nation. Many nations around the world encouraged pursuing those negotiations with Iraq. The United States preferred war. Was that a wise choice? What do we have to show for it beyond death, destruction, bitter animosity, illness, homeless veterans, environmental devastation, bigotry and racism run amok, eroded civil liberties, militarized police, a violent culture, and one more disgusting monument to mass-murder with which to edify our children?
Rate It | View Ratings

David Swanson Social Media Pages: Facebook page url on login Profile not filled in       Twitter page url on login Profile not filled in       Linkedin page url on login Profile not filled in       Instagram page url on login Profile not filled in

David Swanson is the author of "When the World Outlawed War," "War Is A Lie" and "Daybreak: Undoing the Imperial Presidency and Forming a More Perfect Union." He blogs at http://davidswanson.org and http://warisacrime.org and works for the online (more...)
 
Go To Commenting
The views expressed herein are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.
Follow Me on Twitter     Writers Guidelines

 
Contact AuthorContact Author Contact EditorContact Editor Author PageView Authors' Articles
Support OpEdNews

OpEdNews depends upon can't survive without your help.

If you value this article and the work of OpEdNews, please either Donate or Purchase a premium membership.

STAY IN THE KNOW
If you've enjoyed this, sign up for our daily or weekly newsletter to get lots of great progressive content.
Daily Weekly     OpEd News Newsletter
Name
Email
   (Opens new browser window)
 

Most Popular Articles by this Author:     (View All Most Popular Articles by this Author)

Obama's Open Forum Opens Possibilities

Public Forum Planned on Vermont Proposal to Arrest Bush and Cheney

The Question of a Ukraine Agreement Is Not a Question

Feith Dares Obama to Enforce the Law

Did Bush Sr. Kill Kennedy and Frame Nixon?

Can You Hold These 12 Guns? Don't Shoot Any Palestinians. Wink. Wink.

To View Comments or Join the Conversation:

Tell A Friend