It's been a year since the statue of Saddam Hussein fell in the center of Baghdad. As we watch news of fighting in the streets in a number of major cities in Iraq, those of us who are old enough to remember notice images that resemble those from another unpopular war based on government lies and deceptions: Vietnam and the infamous Tet Offensive of 1968: soldiers fighting street by street, house by house, innocent civilians — women and children — caught in the crossfire; it's all too familiar.

(And like what's going on today in Iraq, TET was a massive failure in US intelligence; we greatly underestimated the strength, resolve, and numbers of the Viet Cong guerrilllas who overtook so much of the south during that short uprising. Ho-hum... will we ever learn?)

A few things to ponder on this, the 1st Anniversary of the MISSION ACCOMPLISHED by George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and their cabal of oil-hungry Neo-cons:

DICK CHENEY, PRE-INVASION: "Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction. There is no doubt he is amassing them to use against our friends, against our allies, and against us. And there is no doubt that his aggressive regional ambitions will lead him into future confrontations with his neighbors..."

"Another argument holds that opposing Saddam Hussein would cause even greater troubles in that part of the world, and interfere with the larger war against terror."

"I believe the opposite is true. Regime change in Iraq would bring about a number of benefits to the region. When the gravest of threats are eliminated, the freedom-loving peoples of the region will have a chance to promote the values that can bring lasting peace.

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Former Counterterrorism Adviser Richard Clarke: "By invading Iraq, George W. Bush has greatly undermined the war on terrorism."
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DICK CHENEY, PRE-INVASION: "As for the reaction of the Arab street, Middle East expert Professor Fouad Ajami predicts that after liberation, the streets in Basra and Baghdad are "sure to erupt in joy in the same way the throngs in Kabul greeted the Americans." Extremists in the region would have to rethink their strategy of Jihad."

"With our help, a liberated Iraq can be a great nation once again. Iraq is rich in natural resources and human talent, and has unlimited potential for a peaceful, prosperous future. Our goal would be an Iraq that has territorial integrity, a government that is democratic and pluralistic, a nation where the human rights of every ethnic and religious group are recognized and protected."

And now for something completely different, a taste of reality — unfettered by righteous colonial delusions and dreams of easy oil.

NYTIMES: Published: April 9, 2004

BAGHDAD, Iraq, April 8 — When the United States invaded Iraq a year ago, one of its chief concerns was preventing a civil war between Shiite Muslims, who make up a majority in the country, and Sunni Muslims, who held all the power under Saddam Hussein.

Now the fear is that the growing uprising against the occupation is forging a new and previously unheard of level of cooperation between the two groups --and the common cause is killing Americans.

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