Human tools

Back in 2003, the human shields in Iraq - amateur comics all - made history by proving themselves to be some of the biggest boobs in the history of boobdom.

These western "peace" volunteers traveled to Iraq with the intention of protecting Iraqi schools and hospitals with their precious western hides. Sites like this were naturally to be the first targets of the Great Hegemonster's genocidal carpet bombing campaign. The presence of white people would cause the US to rethink its racist strategy, and maybe even call off the war.

The human shields were shocked - shocked! - when Saddam deployed them to "protect" anti-aircraft missiles and Republican Guard barracks. The disillusioned among them quit right there ("Saddam is trying to get us killed!"), but the tools among them did Saddam's work for him anyway.

When Saddam was overthrown, the Iraqi people drove them out of town on a rail, and the human shields were confused. The people, it seemed, really did hate Saddam.

Imagine that!

Their net effect on US strategy was zero, and their deaths (had any occurred) would have been pointless. (A point lost on people like Rachel Corrie, who bravely went mano-a-mano with an Israeli bulldozer, protecting "the rights" of Palestinians to dig bomb smuggling tunnels.)

But they are still heroes on the left. So much idealism! Standing up for the Iraqi people and their rights in the face of certain death!

Now an American soldier in Iraq wonders why they aren't lining up to protect Iraqi election sites, where the will of the Iraqi people will be expressed on January 30th.

Hey, now there's an idea!

But something tells me they won't go for it.

Protecting people's right to vote? What kind of death would that be?
- posted by total @ 1/22/2005 07:50:00 AM .