An Open Letter to President George W. Bush

Dear Georgie,

I have a few complaints to make about the way you allowed your former co-conspirator to be executed. You see, I have a problem with this idea of “now you’re my friend, now you’re my enemy” kind of relationship. Oh, I know that you and Daddy Bush really hated former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein because he stood up to you both. But our good friend Donald Rumsfeld, who was kind of excommunicated from your gospel church group called, ” Let’s Kill Iraqis for Oil/Israel,” once had a very good relationship with the Iraqi dictator.

Now, let’s see. Once you hang a dictator in the wrong way, he sort of becomes a martyr. This is exactly what has happened in Saddam’s case. No matter what kind of ruler you call him, he was the symbol of the history of his people. He governed his country for 24 years. His execution is yet one more crime against humanity and has turned a person who victimized his enemies into a victim and a hero.

I have an issue with those people who killed Saddam. None of the executioners wore uniforms. They had no respect for life or death, They looked, dressed, and conducted themselves like a street gang. On the contrary, Saddam wore nice clothes and looked much more dignified than his assassins. Even at the last moment of his life, those who chose to hang him were edgy and wore ski masks on their faces because they were afraid. Please don’t bother to tell me that they covered their faces because they were following any regulations because the video tapes that all the world has now seen proves contrary. No one followed rules, regulations, or had any respect for a person about to lose his life. May I remind you that a crowd becomes a mob when there is no control, when people panic, and when hate rules victorious. The words, “Go to Hell,” were heard by all who watched the contraband video. Also the executioners chanted out the name, “Muqtada, Muqtada.” May I remind you, Muqtada is Muqtadah Sadr.

Another thing that bothers me is why was Saddam tried only for the Dujail killings of 143 people? We all know he committed many massacres. But were you a conspirator in his demise to silence him so that the world would not know those vast and very grim secrets that he took with him to his grave? We cannot really say that the Americans had nothing to do with his execution because they turned him over to the Shiites, and once he was dead, flew his body to his hometown of Takrit for burial. This means that you, Mr. President, are an accomplice to injustice. Because of you, Saddam was handed over to America’s enemy, Muqtadah Sadr, for it was Sadr after all who placed the noose around Saddam’s neck. Now with all due respect sir, don’t you think that this whole staged comedy should be called a situational irony?

I have some more questions I would like answered. Why was the execution of Saddam held outside the Green Zone in Baghdad? Why was the execution on December 30, only for Saddam himself? There were supposed to be two other people executed at the same time. One was Barazan, Saddam’s half brother and the other was Al Bandar, who was the head of the Iraqi court under Saddam Hussein. By the by, Al Bandar was Shiite. Another question, though no cell phones were supposed to be allowed, why were there cell phones at the scene of the hanging and why was the audio on the supposedly official tape of the execution silenced? I believe the audio was silenced to hide the truth of what really happened and to cover up how the executioners taunted Saddam and cursed him. I don’t recall any American execution carried out in such a manner, do you Mr. President? Another disturbing thing, Saddam was executed on the dawn of Eid Al Udha. This is the holiest day for all Muslims the world over. Think of the religious passions you have inflamed here.

However, the most disturbing thing of all is how Iraq’s Security Advisor, Dr. Mowaffak Al-Rubaie claims that he was proud of the way the execution was carried out. He also stated that it is a traditional thing for executioners to taunt the one to be executed and that dancing around a corpse is the thing to do. Isn’t Dr. Al-Rubaie ashamed of himself? Somehow he tries to make this ludicrous macabre scene dignified and stated that Saddam was in no way humiliated during his last moments. Now, we Americans can be fooled a lot of the time, indeed we are sometimes very gullible, but come on now Georgie, even you cannot believe these blatant lies! Come to think of it, you have told a few blatants yourself.

Saddam’s brutal execution has passed but the dark images of how he was killed will not pass. In the words of John Burns who is with the New York Times, the way the execution was carried out is very “dispiriting and disheartening.” The people who claim they are Saddam’s victims have now become the bullies. And instead of consolidating the moderate Sunnis, Prime Minister Jawad Al Malaki has infuriated them. Perhaps Mr. President, the worst is yet to come and you can really thank yourself for that. I hope that your New Year’s Resolutions are not as badly thought out as the horrible blunders you made last year! Look at your polls Georgie, they really cannot slip much further or they will drop way below zero.

A final thought, is this execution the emblem of the new democracy you claim to be building at the expense of American lives and money? For the past 3 years, you have sacrificed 3000 American heroes and spent trillions of dollars of the American taxpayers money. Are you sacrificing the lives of our young men and our money to now serve Muqtadah Sadr? What happened to Saddam during his last moments is very significant because this is the government Mr. President that you have boasted deserves to be defended by our troops. I think you should really get your act together doc and get the heck out of Dodge.