The current war in Iraq was waged too hastily. It is true that Saddam Hussein has committed atrocities, such as gassing the Kurds (a minority people living in Iraq) with Serin 9. Hussein used state sponsored terrorism against Kuwait, to get Kuwaiti oil fields for economic gain. President Bush should have gotten United Nations approval before waging war in Iraq. Out of the 152 nations currently in the U. N. , only 30 support the United States and the question is asked why? Before the Iraq War, Hans Blix, the chief U. N. inspector, found evidence that Iraq was pulling out the Al Sammoud II missiles from Iraqi bases. Bush seems to be operating too many wars at once. The American forces are already in Afganistan and have yet to find Bin Laden. What’s next? Nuclear factories in Korea? The domino theory of foreign policy led to failures in the Bay of Pigs in Cuba, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand. The U.S. has spread itself too thin, trying to fight state sponsored terrorism around the globe; leaving itself open to terrorist attacks at home. A better plan would have been to put the problem before the United Nations and with world approval, create a lasting plan to knock out global terrorist threats. How will this war affect the U.S. foreign policy in the long run? Will the U.S. be seen as a peace loving nation or a nation that uses assassination of national leaders (as they plan to do with Hussein) as a tool of foreign policy? If the United States wanted to move against Hussein, it should have waited for more governments to join the coalition. The idea of a united world body to enforce world peace was first proposed by an American president, Woodrow Wilson, with the proposal of a League of Nations, the forerunner of the United Nations. It is ironic that another American president, George Bush, Jr., should turn his back on Wilson and the United Nations ideal to wage an unsupported international war. I agree with the great Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia when he stated in Congress, ” I weep for the country,” in opposition to the war at this time. World opinion and cooperation can be a powerful ally in foreign policy. How is the United States going to rebuild Iraq? What about the people of Iraq and their approval of a postwar government? What about the cost in human lives and American money? How stable is the postwar government in Iraq going to be? Vietnam’s government collapsed into Communist instability when the U.S. pulled out in 1975. The Pot regime stayed in power in Cambodia. Castro is still in power in Cuba. How far and to what end is this current Iraq War going to affect America’s foreign policy? When the United States really needs the United Nations to enforce world peace, is the U. N. support going to be there? The United Nations might waver in their support of the United States because the Iraq conflict and give a black eye to American foreign policy around the world. After the other foreign policy failures of the United States, America cannot afford another failure; it would damage American credibility ihe world community. The world is a global village, the U.S. can’t afford to isolate itself by waging war too quickly. If you agree with what I said write: Pres. George Bush, The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20500 or president@whitehouse.gov.
DaVinci Metcalf3/20/03