- Good news for Americans. As Arnaud de Borchgrave tells us , the dead Osama, safely
ensconced at his "secret base in Pakistan," has decided not to
attack the American "mainland" again, instead he will concentrate
on hitting "U.S. interests in the Middle East and European governments
that support the United States in Iraq." So pack up the duct tape
and plastic sheeting, break out the champagne, and celebrate-that is so
long as you are not a "U.S. interest" in Europe or Iraq. The
Ministry of Homeland Security can retire its absurd color-coded terror
meter. In fact, the Ministry can roll back its massive and expensive bureaucracy
now that Osama has declared America proper is no longer a target. Machinegun
toting soldiers are no longer necessary at America's airports. No longer
will mothers be forced to sip baby's milk at flight checkpoints.
-
- Examining Osama's December 16 communique, de Borchgrave
tells us al-Qaeda will concentrate its devious and-as Bush would have it,
"dark vision" -on the "Western world's oil supply,"
that is to say Saudi Arabia. "Take jihad (holy war) to stop (the Americans)
getting hold of (the oil). Concentrate your operations on the oil, in particular
in Iraq and the Gulf," said Osama, or somebody we are told sounds
an awful lot like Osama.
-
- No big shakes for America, since we get most of our oil
from Canada, Venezuela, and Mexico, although the largest single share still
comes from Saudi Arabia. But even if Osama took out every oil well in Saudi
Arabia, a little reshuffling and OPEC arm twisting would make up the difference
and the impact would be minimal on security moms as they tool around suburbia
in their SUVs and minivans.
-
- Arnaud de Borchgrave tells us Osama is a news junkie.
He's a couch potato mesmerized by "local and international media,
CNN, FOX, BBC, al-Jazeera and other Arab satellite channels." Osama
heard Donald Rumsfeld tell Fox News he had not anticipated the strength
of the Iraqi insurgency "because no one has a perfect view of the
future." The elusive Evil One "also watched CNN as Gen. Lance
Smith, deputy chief of the U.S. Central Command, concede that a bold, innovative
insurgency in Iraqis becoming more effective against U.S. supply lines,
and explosive attacks have slowed military operations."
-
- In fact, as de Borchgrave would have it, the corporate
media is Osama's best friend. "As someone prone to exaggeration, bin
Laden cannot believe the number of U.S. killed so far in Iraq is 1,300.
He assumes it is several times that number. He has also read that 5,500
U.S. military have deserted to Canada rather than serve in Iraq; that the
Army National Guard is short of 5,500 citizen-soldiers; that lawsuits have
been filed by those whose duty period has been involuntarily extended;
and that soldiers have refused to go on dangerous missions without proper
equipment." In short, Osama has concluded that the best place to fight
the Great Satan is in Iraq. Of course, this is hardly coincidental.
-
- In addition to agitating against the royals in Saudi
Arabia and Musharraf in Pakistan, Osama will "assist the insurgency
in Iraq by encouraging more jihadis to volunteer for suicide duty."
From now on, when you hear about a suicide bombing in Iraq, rest assured
Osama is behind it. In fact, as the latest "purported" Osama
tape asserts, the Iraqi resistance "must listen to [Abu Musab al-Zarqawi]
and obey him for what is good." In the short term, the resistance
must "boycott" Iraq's election, as Osama demands. "This
constitution is infidel and therefore everyone who participates in this
election will be considered infidels."
-
- As if on cue, the Army of Ansar al-Sunnah-pegged not
only as an al-Qaeda affiliate but also connected to Iran's venal mullahs-called
for a boycott of the U.S. arranged election. "We call on faithful
Muslims not to participate in this infidel practice which aims to enact
the infidel laws of the crusaders and replace our great religion with secularism,"
read a statement signed by Ansar al-Sunnah and the Islamic Army in Iraq
and Army
of the Mujahideen, thus neatly categorizing a considerable swath of
the Iraqi resistance as Osama tools and toadies. Practically every other
"insurgent" group resisting the occupation in Iraq-as the corporate
media tells us on a daily basis-is Ba'athist thugs and Saddam fawners.
-
- If you watch Fox News-as Osama does from his hut in Pakistan
or cave in Afghanistan-you'd think the Iraqi resistance is comprised solely
of Islamic fanatics and al-Zarqawi butchers. In fact, there are dozens
or resistance groups in Iraq: the Iraqi National Islamic Resistance, the
National Front for the Liberation of Iraq, the Iraqi Resistance Islamic
Front, the Hamzah Faction, the White Banners, al-Haqq Army, the Assadullah
Brigades, and many others, including thousands of "freelancers"
who carry out attacks against U.S. occupation forces (see An Inventory
of Iraqi Resistance
Groups:
-
- As if to gift wrap the current spin on the Iraqi resistance,
Bush "has taken the unusual step of responding to one of Osama bin
Laden's taunting tape recordings," according to the Sydney Morning
Herald.( http://fairuse.1accesshost.com/news2/smh39.html ) "His vision
of the world is where people don't participate in democracy," Bush
said from the helicopter hangar on his Texas ranch. "His vision of
the world is one in which there is no freedom of expression, freedom of
religion and/or freedom of conscience. And that vision stands in stark
contrast to the vision of, by far, the vast majority of Iraqis So the stakes
are clear in this upcoming election It's the difference between the ability
for individuals to express themselves and the willingness of an individual
to try and impose his dark vision on the world, on the people of Iraq and
elsewhere. And it's very important that these elections proceed."
-
- Note the emphasis. Resistance to the occupation is nothing
more than the "dark vision" of Osama bin Laden. In the weeks
ahead, after Bush is once again coronated, the al-Qaeda angle on the Iraqi
resistance will become the de facto explanation offered by the Bushcons
and the Bush Ministry of Disinformation. Syria and Iran, as well, will
be blamed for killing U.S. troops, Iraqi national guards, and officials
of the imposed Allawi (and the subsequent "elected") government.
For the Bushcons, Iraq will become the focus of the "war on terrorism,"
especially now that the dead Osama has told us he is no longer interested
in plowing airliners into office buildings or exploding dirty bombs in
America's heartland.
-
- Naturally, it will not work. No matter what Bush and
the Pentagon do, the Iraqi resistance will ultimately be victorious-it
is a historical inevitability. The lessons are numerous: in Vietnam the
Viet Minh won decisively against France and the United States, in Algeria
the NLF defeated France, in Western Sahara the Saharan Liberation Army
evicted Spain, and in South Africa the African National Congress defeated
the racist apartheid regime. Other wars of national liberation, principally
in Latin America, have failed-in Argentina, Uruguay, Guatemala, Peru, and
elsewhere-but only after well-established military dictatorships committed
horrendous atrocities against guerillas and civilians (for instance, the
El Mozote massacre in El Salvador). In Iraq, since the fall of Saddam Hussein,
there is no well-established military dictatorship, thus any attempt at
so-called counterinsurgency will fail, the current and on-going spate of
atrocities-most notably in Fallujah-notwithstanding.
-
- No amount of spin or demonization of the resistance will
change this. Bush may talk about Osama's "dark vision," but simplistically
characterizing the resistance as al-Qaeda dupes will do absolutely nothing
to stop the ultimate victory of the resistance. In fact, the resistance
- and millions of Iraqis -could not care less what Bush and the Likudites
in Washington have to say about them or their determination to get out
from under a brutal and oppressive military occupation. Most of them realize
Bush's staged election in January will be a colossal failure and the resistance
will continue. Sooner or later America will be obliged to leave Iraq.
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