Bush's Iraq blueprint, lacking clarity

As US President George W. Bush outlines his blueprint for Iraq, the situation overseas, in war torn Iraq, seems unclear as statements made are similar to those made in recent propaganda campaigns, pushing the war in Iraq.

In his statement, he outlined 5 critical steps in an attempt to change the failing situation in Iraq, bringing 'freedom and democracy' to the sieged country; handing over authority to a sovereign Iraqi government on June 30, 2004. Increasing security in areas experiencing extreme crisis; Obtaining more International support, undergo restructuring efforts and finally, setup for elections.

Bush went on to say that there would not be a decrease of troops stationed in Iraq, however, the number could rise should there be a need for additional control in the country. The US President noted that violence in the region would continue to rise on the continuance of occupation.

The United States currently has approximately 138,000 troops stationed in Iraq at any given time.

This is the news that many of us wish we didn't have to hear. A country under occupational control and 24-hour chaos. With the level of troops probably about to increase, many wonder, including myself, how much longer the United States can keep it's troops in a country they are simply not welcome.

We are heading into the year 2005, and this is not the battle between Fascism, Communism and Capitalism by major world powers. The forces occupying the Iraqi people are also not, as many believe, seen as liberators. They are merely there to hold down the grasp the United States has on world economical domination.

The Bush administration constantly hides this illegal war as a war on terrorism, which it may very well become; a war on terrorism after the Iraqi people become so fed up with the seemingly irreversible situation they've found themselves in. No, Mr. Bush has created the perfect environment for terrorism. Rightfully so, the land we once knew as Saddam's Iraq is no longer under the control of one man. It's a place we might see become one of the world's leading providers of terrorist trainees.

When thinking of reasons why US President Bush decided to invade Iraq, many Americans will say it was because of a) Weapons of Mass Destruction, b) to rid the world of an evil man, Saddam Hussein or c) simply because of the oil. Many Canadians will simply go with the latter. Oil was the driving factor of invasion. Not because of so-called Weapons of Mass Destruction or other supposed threats posed by Saddam Hussein. Those alleged threats never existed, unless one will consider the mind of a president reality, ofcourse.

Nobody can tell what the future of Iraq holds and subsequently, the future of the whole middle east is virtually unknown, especially while heading into an uncertain US federal election.

Recent events uncover the actions by many US soldiers in prison installments, photographs of prisoner abuse and more innocent dead as a results of attacks from both sides; Iraqi militants and US military personnel. There are obviously cases of such abuse which cannot be reported by news agencies.

Making situations even more uncertain is the stand many of the United States' coalition partners are taking. The Dominican Republic pulled their troops out of the Iraq tour of duty last month, Spain has pulled out of it completely, Britain has less troops in the region that the Americans have security officers and the United States is coming under increasing International criticism from across the globe, including Canada.

What lacks clarity in this whole situation, in the hours following President Bush's announcement, is the utter lack of information he provides. Like a broken record time and again. When he's not paraphrasing previous speeches, he's contradicting himself in his utter lack of International apprehension.

Where does Canada stand on these issues? There's truly not much we can do with a man like George W. Bush in power to our south, but Canada can continue it's democratic and internationally accepted stand on the Geneva Convention, following the Canadian tradition of peacekeeping.

The pattern of repetitive mistakes will continue throughout the entire campaign in Iraq. The American government will, in all likelihood, follow history; the path of every war since World War II. This is the path of every war without support of, at very least, the majority of the International community.

Bush completed his speech with "May god bless this country."

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