To truly understand what's going on in Iraq and in Afghanistan, we must set up an hypothetical situation.

We must forget that we have a military force some six times as powerful as the next two nations on earth. We must forget that we have over three thousand multi-megaton weapons of mass destruction that can be launched in minutes with pinpoint accuracy to targets anywhere on earth.

We must pretend, for the moment, that we are vulnerable.

Now, let’s say that we are American citizens and love our country, our Constitution, and our Bill of Rights. Then our country is taken over by an appointed leader and a gang of cronies, who trash our Constitution and Bill of Rights, take away the freedoms that have made our country great, ignore the international treaties our nation has made, rob the poor, the middle class, the military rank and file, and give the spoils to their wealthy, influential supporters, then start a unilateral war of conquest in the guise of anti-terrorism.

Now, let’s say that another country, or coalition of nations, fearing the doctrine of preemptive war espoused by our government, managed to invade us and take out that gang. They now declare that they have liberated us, but to ensure our freedom, they will stay and occupy us until they are sure we are capable of sustaining self government, and furthermore, they will set up a government for us based upon their own form of government, whatever that may be.

No matter how grateful we may be for their having gotten rid of the parasites that infested our government, if we cannot reestablish the constitutional form of government that our nation is based upon, we are going to be doing everything in our power to run them out of the country so we may have it back. Quite a few million Americans are going to be doing the same thing, sniping, bombing, sabotaging, doing anything they can to get rid of this foreign power that wants to rule our country. (The same thing happened in France and other countries during the Nazi occupation.)

Regardless of reprisals, torture, hostages or anything else, the people will keep fighting to regain their country.

That is the situation we find ourselves in in Iraq and in Afghanistan. The people of Iraq may be happy that Saddam is gone, but they will resist occupation as long as we are there, and they will probably resist a puppet Quisling government imposed by the conquerors, pardon me, liberators. The Soviet Union went through the same thing in Afghanistan until their losses in personnel and equipment drove them almost to bankruptcy. Now we are charting the same course and heading for the same reef. Come to think of it, we already ran aground in Vietnam and had to abandon ship.

Stephen M. Osborn (theplace@whidbey.net) is a freelance writer living on Camano Island in the Pacific Northwest. He is an "Atomic Vet." (Operation Redwing, Bikini Atoll 1956, ) who has been very active working and writing for nuclear disarmament and world peace. He is a retired Fire Battalion Chief, lifelong sailor, writer, poet, philosopher, historian and former newspaper columnist.

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