Airstrip One

Cheering Crowds

One of the most facile of the pro-war comments was that of the cheering crowds. You know, usually intelligent people going "people will hang their heads in shame when they see Iraqis cheering their liberators." I think that was from Julian Lewis MP.

It was a bad argument for the simple reason that our national interest had very little to do with whether the people of Iraq would turn up to a pro-goverment demonstration. The domestic hapiness of the Iraqis bears nothing on the security or prosperity of the United Kingdom.

Although this would also be the case with the present pro independence demonstrations, let's use the pro-war logic here. If the well being of the Iraqi people is to over-ride our national interest, then these demonstrations against infidel occupation should also worry us. Now that we have done what the Iraqis wanted (but not sufficiently to get it done) and got rid of the hated Baathists we must at once set up Sharia law and vacate the place. Kind of stupid I agree, but we're all interventionists now.

This is a stupid reason for carrying out any policy, but it is time to gloat.

After all the pro-warriors gloat at "proving you wrong" on things that we (or at least I) never said would happen - you know stiff Iraqi resistance and lack of cheering crowds. Now it's time to prove them wrong on things that they did predict, like the crowds (aimed at us) and the lack of usable weapons of mass destruction. Admittedly the right wing anti-interventionists were expecting the gratitude to last a bit longer, a week would have been nice, and to see at least a trace of mustard gas. However the privilege of the reactionary is that you can be proved right not by your predictions but simply by the failure of your opponents predictions.

So Pollard, Samizdata, Murray, all of you. You were wrong and we were right, and we didn't even see how. Na na na naaa na. Na na na naaa na.