Ding Dong the Witch is Dead
Not literally, of course, but not since the witch moaned, “I’m mellllllllllllltiiiinnnnnnng,” has the capture of evil looked so pathetic. Iraqis, with their fear of the dictator replaced by relief and joy, resembled nothing as much as the dragoons chanting “Hail Dorothy.”
Not literally, of course, but not since the witch moaned, “I’m mellllllllllllltiiiinnnnnnng,” has the capture of evil looked so pathetic. Iraqis, with their fear of the dictator replaced by relief and joy, resembled nothing as much as the dragoons chanting “Hail Dorothy.”
To find one man with multiple body-doubles in a hole in the ground in a partly-hostile country the size of California is an extraordinary accomplishment. It is testimony not only to the soldiers deployed in the raid, but also to the intelligence services and their sources, and to their commanders in the theater and their commanders in Washington.
It is the redemption of the American promise of liberation. While expressing gratitude to the United States, the members of the Iraq Governing Council were impressively clear as they stressed that building Iraq as a unified, democratic country is the responsibility of Iraqis–not Americans–and that Saddam’s trial will have to be a venue for justice and reconciliation, not retribution. This too is their responsibility, although we will surely stand next to them.
Saddam will, as the President said, “Face the justice he denied to millions.”
The capture of Saddam, however, is not the end of the war, as the President so carefully pointed out.
Iraq is a theater in the larger war on terrorists and the states that harbor and support them. In that vein, we note that the laudatory remarks came largely from our friends and coalition partners, and the Arab and Moslem world was largely silent–except for cheers from Kuwait and the usual nasty, anti-American grousing from the Palestinians.
Sheikh Yassin, the Hamas boss, denounced Saddam for failing to kill Americans or kill himself in a blaze of glory. After all, he said, Saddam encouraged others to die for anti-American glory. Back ‘atcha, Sheikh. Saddam was unwilling to die and reportedly even told his captors that he was “prepared to negotiate.” This fits the Palestinian pattern of rich, decadent old guys who indoctrinate young people with hate and hopelessness and then send them out to kill and be killed, carefully preserving themselves as “negotiating partners” for the gullible.
If the war isn’t over, at least maybe the shape of the battlefield is becoming clearer. Most of the Arab countries didn’t declare their enthusiasm for the capture, but neither did the vaunted “Arab street” rise in protest. At least some Arabs and Moslems are using the upheaval in the region to begin a serious assessment of their region and their religion (see www.memri.org for details). In the best case, they will watch and learn from Iraq and plan a future based on justice and legitimate rule, not on a desire to kill and be killed.
Saddam’s time is over.
Next, the Sheikh and Yasser Arafat.