Coalition of the willing
The video footage from Wikileaks of American military in Iraq is upsetting, and I am not surprised that it is making some Icelanders call for an investigation into why Iceland was listed as one of the countries in the "Coalition of the Willing."
The American military invasion of Iraq did not just sit badly with Icelanders, though. It sat very, very badly with a majority of Americans.
I remember really well making the sign the night before a rally in 2003. I used a black marker for the oil drops at the top of the sign, and a red marker for the blood drops at the bottom of the sign. I wrote out, "No blood for oil!" and then the next day, me and several thousand other people met on the lawn of the National Mall, really pleading with the Senate not to approve funds for the War in Iraq. President Bush's mind was not to be swayed that day, in fact I think he made up his mind about that war before he even took office.
The vidoe footage, and indeed the continued US military presence in Iraq, is a reminder of the necessity for a very robust democracy, and that is something America does not have so much. Perhaps Iceland does not either, but I am not one to judge that.
The American military invasion of Iraq did not just sit badly with Icelanders, though. It sat very, very badly with a majority of Americans.
I remember really well making the sign the night before a rally in 2003. I used a black marker for the oil drops at the top of the sign, and a red marker for the blood drops at the bottom of the sign. I wrote out, "No blood for oil!" and then the next day, me and several thousand other people met on the lawn of the National Mall, really pleading with the Senate not to approve funds for the War in Iraq. President Bush's mind was not to be swayed that day, in fact I think he made up his mind about that war before he even took office.
The vidoe footage, and indeed the continued US military presence in Iraq, is a reminder of the necessity for a very robust democracy, and that is something America does not have so much. Perhaps Iceland does not either, but I am not one to judge that.
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