tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31283257.post7226420627995268937..comments2024-03-21T17:15:35.252+01:00Comments on Michael Deibert, Writer: What to do in IraqMichael Deiberthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04810256309168860637noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31283257.post-29582076059800933292007-09-17T19:49:00.000+02:002007-09-17T19:49:00.000+02:00Provoking article. I'm naturally in favor of getti...Provoking article. I'm naturally in favor of getting out- AND then taking the same amount of money we would spend to stay in and redirecting it towards some kind of "Iraq Repair Mission." Now what that mission would be is the hard part- perhaps something creative that's never been done before- based in technology (wait this is beginning to sound like the framing Bush used to gain support for the war in Afghanistan- the "new kind of war")- but really, my 2 cents, since you're asking- take all that money and put it towards an information empowerment campaign that would provide every Iraqi with safe internet access and a route to voice their exact story and concerns from their exact on-the-ground perspective for the world to hear and for a giant team of social analysts to sort through. Then, with the sorted data in hand we can begin to speak/act more effectively to their actual needs. Is this idea too "magic realist"?evehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11373830995020916708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31283257.post-55236288343248648512007-09-17T13:35:00.000+02:002007-09-17T13:35:00.000+02:00Michael,This is such a thoughtful piece. I especi...Michael,<BR/>This is such a thoughtful piece. I especially like your courage in admitting that, as an armchair commentator, it's hard for you to assess what may be best to do. Many are those who bravely forge a strong opinion from the wilds of Washington or London and cling to it like a terrier to his bone! Still, my own view -- of the armchair variety, I admit -- is that enormous damage has been done to Iraq and the region and that there is no "solution" at this point. It is going to stay bad and quite likely get worse no matter if the U.S. stays or leaves. Our government has created a mess that will fester and spread and deepen and do much more evil to civilians, no matter what we do or don't do now. And all for imperial hubris.<BR/><BR/>I remember a French friend warning when the Bush administration was threatening to invade: "You don't break open a hornet's nest unless you have a plan of what to do with the hornets." Even this doesn't capture the enormous crime committed against the people of Iraq.Mira Kamdarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15068676901235698364noreply@blogger.com