3,000 march in Iraq

02.16.2003

In an article in the UK's Telegraph, Iraq's foreign minister (Naji Sabri) flatly rejects the French-German proposal for more time and UN peacekeepers (apparently, Iraq doesn't want to give peace a chance either). Also, Bulgaria comes out not only in support of Turkey, but also highlighting France's attempt to bully it into the "axis of weasels" camp. Here's a brief excerpt:

In the meantime, Bulgaria has vowed to resist French attempts to bully it into withdrawing support for America's plans to disarm Iraq. Last week the French ambassador to Sofia warned Bulgaria that its pro-American stance could jeopardise its efforts to join the European Union.

"Bulgaria has to consider carefully where its long-term interests lie," Jean Loup Kuhn-Delforge said last week. "When people live in Europe they should express solidarity and think European-style."

Solomon Pasi, Bulgaria's foreign minister, condemned the French as neo-appeasers. "We all remember the hesitancy of the Allies, who weren't sure whether to attack Hitler. They could have prevented so much," he said.

"We're in a situation where we have a moral imperative to act and act now."

Notice the French insistance on thinking "European-style" and the need for "solidarity." If France can't respect the right of others to dissent and try to persuade them w/ reasons -- rather than the insistence that all Europeans must be assimilated Borg-style into some European collective consciousness -- then why is France thwarting efforts to remove a totalitarian ideologue from power?

Also, for more evidence of the anti-semitism of much of the anti-war protests (at least its leadership), Vanessa (who's undecided on the war issue, which is fair) has an interesting note from a Chicago protest. Also, The New York Times has a though provoking article. Recent Iraqi refuges in Jordan are in favor of a war to remove Hussein from power (after all, he's the reason they're refuges). They dislike the US, but they seem to prefer us to him.

Finally, while thousands protest the war around the world, only 3,000 protested in Bagdhad (see the Telegraph article). Huh? You'd think more people would oppose a war against their own country. Interesting.

Posted by Miguel at 03:15 PM

Comments

There is an interesting thing about these numbers in general ... in Germany 500.000 turned out for the protest ... however in England, Italy and Spain it was a million ... and those are all countries where the government supports the U.S. on the issue. I think it may have something to do with protesting against the own government ... but that is just a guess.

Posted by: Melli at February 16, 2003 06:55 PM

We could quibble about number (and reports of the crowd's attendance is sketchy at best), but it's not important. Making a case based on numbers would be an ad populum logical fallacy (using the PSCI 105 lingo).

Nevertheless, it doesn't answer two crucial facts about protests: 1) their large anti-semitic contingent and 2) why are Iraqi ex-patriats (there's an estimated 500,000 of them in England alone) not marching in these protests?

I'll admit that I'm disgusted by much of the anti-war movement. And not just for the deep anti-semitism expressed by many at the rallies. But also by the shallowness of their content. Unfortunately, in our society, protesting for the hell of it is common. And most of it's based on empty slogans that don't carry much weight behind it. I admire Tony Blair and Colin Powell most of all. They've put forth reasoned arguments for their case; I'd like to see an actually logically constructed argument put forth by their opponents. Instead, all we get are stilt walkers, "make tea not war" signs, and rants about Zionist conspiracies.

The irony of the this is that the only four nations that really stand against the reast of Europe (Austria, Germany, Belgium, and France) are the four nations where anti-semitism has the longest history and the deepest roots.

Posted by: Miguel at February 16, 2003 09:08 PM