I've often been told
That time brings about a change.
Yet, I've had two years of torture
And my heart still feels the same.

When Ray Charles sang "Two Years of Torture," he was echoing the familiar blues theme of failed romance. Sadly, the opening lines of the song apply equally to the American occupation of Iraq. For those of us who opposed this war from the beginning, it has been two years of torture - figuratively and literally.

The contrary Bush Administration position is that while the Iraqi occupation has occasionally had difficulties, it has provided an example of democracy for the Middle East. In other words, it has been worth it.

Has it? Two years certainly seems like enough time to assess whether the invasion and occupation of Iraq has, in fact, been worth the thousands of casualties and billions of American dollars.

The initial justification for the war was widely off the mark. No weapons of mass destruction were found. During the chaotic early days of the occupation, looters took specialized Iraqi equipment and weaponry, some of which was capable of producing weapons of mass destruction; this probably ended up in the hands of terrorists.

The Bush Administration, which came into office promising a new era of responsibility, has never accepted blame for these failures. The closest they came was the resignation of CIA head, George Tenet, who was later given the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Condoleezza Rice, who as National Security Advisor to the President was responsible for many of the key decisions that led to the invasion, has been promoted to Secretary of State after Colin Powell, known to have strenuously objected to the plan, was forced out.

While the initial invasion went well, the occupation has been a disaster. The Bush Administration expected to be greeted as liberators, and for there to be a smooth transition to a stable democracy; instead, there was widespread looting resulting in extensive damage to Iraq's infrastructure - electricity production is still not back to pre-war levels. Over the two years, the Iraqi resistance has quadrupled and many parts of Iraq are unsafe for all but armed convoys of Americans - over the past year the number of insurgent attacks has grown from an overage of 14 to 70 per day.

No one responsible for the faulty planning of the occupation has been reprimanded. General Tommy Franks, who underestimated the number of troops needed for the occupation, was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Paul Bremer, who as administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority made one disastrous decision after another in the early days of the occupation, was also given the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Paul Wolfowitz, who assured Congress that our forces would be greeted a liberators and the actual cost of the war would be minuscule, is being promoted to run the World Bank.

Before the invasion, the United States was basking in the worldwide sympathy that resulted from the 9/11 attacks. This goodwill was quickly dissipated by an invasion that most of the world community believed to be ill advised. The contrived coalition that began the occupation has diminished from 35 participants to 14. By most accounts, America has lost its leadership role in the world community.

The Bush Administration told Americans that the invasion and occupation were expected to be of short duration and the cost of the war would be only a few billion dollars. In reality, the occupation has cost more than 255 billion dollars and is expected to last at least two more years.

For many in America, and the world, the lingering image of the Iraqi invasion has been the pictures of prisoners being tortured at Abu Ghraib prison. Although the Bush Administration denied that this was a widespread practice, subsequent evidence has indicated the contrary. Once again, those most responsible for the advocacy of torture have not been punished. Alberto Gonzales who, as counsel to the President, drafted most of the memos taking the United States out from under the restrictions of the Geneva Convention has been promoted to Attorney General.

The Bush Administration argues that its hard work in Iraq is now producing results: the Iraqi elections were a success and, as a result, there are growing democracy movements in Egypt, Lebanon, and Saudi Arabia. However, the Iraqi election succeeded despite the US; at first, the Administration resisted democratic voting procedures. Recent polls indicate that 70 percent of Iraqis want us to leave. The fledging democracy initiatives have nothing to do with us; for example, the Lebanese protests were set off by the assassination of Rafik Hariri and were followed by massive anti-US demonstrations.

Has the Iraqi war been worth it? Only if you believe that the ends justify the means. Iraq has become America's continuing moral nightmare. America has lost the battle for the hearts and minds of Saddam's former subjects, and the vast majority of those in the Middle East. We've had two years of torture and America's heart will never be the same.

Bob Burnett is a Berkeley writer and activist. He can be reached at bobburnett@comcast.net.

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