It is time for another way! We need to value different skills. Our mothers, grandmothers, wisest fathers and grandfathers and others can teach us different skills. Some are good solving problems so each person knows that they have been heard, valued, understood and their problems addressed. These are not aggressively competitive people who “win” elections or religious leaders who “win” the favor of the masses. Even the religion most of our elected officials profess has reverted into the human default program of aggression. The non-confrontational language and imagery of the lamb, the virgin, the dove, the gentle shepherd, and the kind father have been cast aside in favor of aggression and violence. Instead we are raising a “righteous” army on the battlefield of Armageddon. Everything is used to further the black and white, good vs. evil, mentality of domination and superiority.

Most admit that there are no good solutions to the problems in Iraq. Therefore, my idea is as valid as any other. It is not a strategy, it is not a tactic, it does not involve domination of others, obtaining objectives, or benefiting the financial situation of myself, my friends or even my country. I suspect it has a good chance of making things better for everyone because it is based on the highest principles, those things we profess we aspire to. The core of the idea is to just tell the truth. I would tell the truth about why we invaded Iraq, how we have kept the war going, and what our true objectives have been.

The idea begins and ends with telling the truth. If the truth had been told from the outset there would have been no invasion of Iraq. If the truth had been told war plans would never have come before the Security Council. After it was brought before them, telling the truth could have prevented the invasion. After the invasion, telling the truth would have resulted in handing over complete control to Iraqis within months. If telling the truth were the policy then war plans involving provocateurs who foment acts of terrorism would never have been implemented. At any point the answer to the increasingly dangerous problem is to simply tell the truth.

In truth we must admit that the US worked along side of Saddam as long as he protected our interests in the Middle East. By 1998 the architects of this war desired to invade Iraq. We need to tell the truth about who attacked us on September 11, who covered it up, and who is using it to reach their objectives. We need to tell the truth about the anthrax attacks on media personalities and political leaders who opposed the invasion. We need to tell the truth about the American “way of life” which we are told is in danger. We need to tell the truth that since the fall of Soviet Union our Pentagon budget has been in jeopardy. A bad guy always can be used to increase military funding. Falling towers were exactly what many needed for a “new Pearl Harbor” and Osama Bin Ladin and Saddam Hussein morphed into a scary composite bad guy to rally the people to war. In our truth telling we acknowledge that we know there has been conflict between Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds since the fall of the Ottoman Empire. We know it was no surprise that the area would become unstable when invaded.

We know that we are not the first nation to covet the resources of Iraq and tell lies to justify it. We also know that invading armies are always met with very determined “insurgents” (in truth they can be called patriots). I can, with certainty, say that nearly everyone in my neighborhood would fight back if a foreign army invaded. We did not invade Iraq to bring democracy because we know that this is something people have to pursue for themselves. No one can decide what cost in human life others should pay to obtain it.

How have we kept the violence alive? The plan from the outset was “Shock and Awe.” We know that many are glad Saddam is gone but we also know that jobs, electricity, and safety are essential. The truth is none of these needs have been honestly addressed. Instead, private foreign contractors using imported materials benefited from lucrative contracts. We know the truth that US contractors and or military personal ordered or carried out orders of unspeakable violence against many people who were not “terrorists” or even “insurgents.” These acts are not strategic mistakes. They are crimes. On the January 14 broadcast of Meet the Press, National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley said that it looked like “we were winning.“ just prior the bombing of the Golden Mosque. A little research reveals that the incident was unlikely carried out by Sunnis explained. Immediately US press began using the term “civil war.” Religious leaders wisely counseled that no one should retaliate because they knew this incident was designed in fuel sectarian fighting.

We know about the programs and plans of the US government to pose as terrorists and evoke terrorist‘s acts. Telling the truth means we have to admit that we have covert operators who foment terrorism and then they attack and kill others who “foment terrorism.” and there is no oversight of these clandestine programs. We know there were credible reports of British soldiers who killed Iraqi police while posing as Arabs. We know that people in high places know how to keep the violence alive. We know implementation of the El Salvador Option and the appointment of John Negroponte as Director of National Intelligence immediately preceded the emergence of Iraqi death squads. The truth is, death squads escalate local conflicts. Religion, money and power have all been used to keep violence alive.

What are the objectives of invading Iraq? To the winners go the spoils. When Iraqis were warned not to destroy oil fields, the lies about humanitarian concerns and democracy became evident. The president did not but advise how to protect the children and the elderly, only the oil fields. The focus from the beginning was the oil. We have all been lied to one “tactical decision” after another keeps the Middle East unstable. The final assessment of the Iraq study group calls for the privatizing of Iraqi oil so it is open to foreign investors. Other areas of the globe which are rich with oil and uncooperative with the United States face threats by these same forces. The goals of the oil industry seem to be synonymous with the goals of today’s US foreign policy. This is a truth we must tell.

The populations of both Iraq and the US have been manipulated. Most Americans do not want to spend our treasury on futuristic weapons and killing for foreign oil. The only way to change that is to cause all of the people to be afraid. The “war on terror” diverts huge sums of money from the US treasury into a new war machine by way of contracts to private corporations with global goals. Lies and deceit have been used to polarize Americans. With the “right” and the “left” arguing about how to “win” at war, and the masses gripped by fear, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights are being systematically destroyed. As we destroy Iraq we destroy ourselves. All the evidence leads to the truth that there are global objectives carried out by global players who see life only in terms of winning or losing and suffering or domination. This powerful few value money, power, and advanced weapons programs. They are not confined to a single nation they are a nation unto themselves. They reside on every continent.

I am an average civilian yet I knew what the consequences of our actions would be each step of the way. It is simply not possible that those who study the effects of tactical military operations, and responses of the citizenry, could have created what they have by mistake. War is not a game and citizens do not need to be categorized as owners, coaches, players and spectators and the globe is not the playing field. Our lands are part of who we are. They are the elders past and the children’s future. There are no winners or losers in war. There is only suffering and loss. Jesus stated it well when he said, “what does it profit a man if he gain the whole world but loses his own soul?” We do not benefit from strategies, deceits, manipulations and conquests. The best hope for us all is to tell the truth and learn to listen. That is this women’s plan for Iraq. The next thing we should do is tell the truth!

Karen Horst Cobb lives in rural New Mexico. She writes a weekly column for Every Church a Peace Church. Contact Karen at cairnhcobb@msn.com and find her other articles, speeches and lectures at http://karencobb.blogspot.com