THE EDITOR, Sir:
The present situation in Iraq reminds me of Richard Wright (1908 -1960, a Black American writer) who stated in his book "White Man Listen" that "in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries the Europeans thrust themselves on the rest of humanity as if their gods had entrusted the earth into their keeping".
They colonised the entire American continent and all but eliminated the native peoples. Those that were left were herded onto desolate wastelands called "reservations" to spend the rest of eternity. In Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific Islands and the Caribbean they did more or less the same thing. They tried it in Africa as well but the continent was too large to carry out total genocide but they succeeded in enslaving most of the people, the last bastion being South Africa. They colonised India and South east Asia.
They attacked China but were beaten back by the vast numbers of Chinese but held on to Hong Kong and other lesser areas off mainland China. They came with superior military technology - the Bible and the musket, if one didn't get you the other would.
This brings me further to quote a passage from Jonathan Swift's book "Gulliver's Travels" (circa 1726- a political and social satire) when Gulliver went to the land of the Bromdignags (the giants) during which he boasted to the King of Bromdignag about the various wars and exploits of his people - the English , the slave trade and the plundering of other countries.
After the king had listened intently, he said, "I cannot help but conclude that the bulk of your natives are the most pernicious set of odious little vermin that nature ever suffered to walk on the face of the earth".
Are we therefore to conclude that history is repeating itself? That 400 years later, the white man, again, because of the possession of superior military technology shall trust themselves on the rest of humanity, to kill at will, impose their political systems, their religion and deny others the right to develop technology to defend themselves?
The white man has cluster bombs, cruise missiles, nuclear bombs, the mother of all bombs (MOAB) and an arsenal of chemical and biological weapons to unleash on the rest of humanity at their will.
The fact is if they do not intend to use them why bother make and store them?. History shows that up to now it is only the United States that has used weapons of mass destruction (atomic bombs) on others. This is even more appalling as they were used on the civilian population of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
They used chemical warfare in Vietnam that even their veterans are still suffering from 30 years later. How can the United States therefore be the world's protector from weapons of mass destruction?
I am no lover of Saddam with or without the CNN propaganda with which I am bombarded daily, but it seems to me that the murdering of the Iraqi people including Saddam's sons as well as Saddam himself (soon to be) with great rejoicing is not indicative of the values of which England and the United States of America boast. That is indeed barbarism of the worst kind reminiscent of the barbaric days of the Pirates and Mongols.
I am still pondering what it is that Saddam or his sons or the Iraqi people did to the people of the United States and Britain for them to be plundered and their lives laid to waste. Perhaps Mr. Bush and Mr. Blair can explain it to me. Perhaps it is just history repeating itself where the white man want's to maintain racial supremacy/superiority and any threat real or imaginary must be brutally and quickly eliminated.
I am etc.,
AL RICHARDS
alfonz112@cwjamaica.com
