Iraq war will have dire worldwide consequences

The first global casualty in the Iraq war is air travel. International Air Line companies are expecting a loss of $10 billion. Hotels worldwide expect a 50 percent decrease in occupancy. And Pope John Paul II has denounced the Iraq war as a threat to humanity. In short, the Iraq war will further aggravate the current economic recession. The backlash on third world countries will be very bad.

In war truth is no longer an issue. For wars do not determine who was right and who was wrong. The reason only shows who was the stronger. Admittedly, some wars are inevitable and justified. But nations should only resort to war if all peace efforts have failed. Going by the worldwide demonstrations against the Iraq war, many people are not convinced that the Iraq crisis could not have been diplomatically resolved. As Winston Churchill phrased it, "To jaw-jaw is better than to war." Diplomats, they say, is one who can put his cards on the table without showing his hand.

US President George W. Bush says that only "decisive force" can end the Iraq war. In short, it is force that will decide the outcome of the war – not truth, justice or reason.

It is difficult to figure out the developments in Iraq. First we were told that the war would last for just days. Now, we are told that there is no telling how long the war will take. In short, it may be days, weeks, months or even years. If Iraq indeed has outlawed weapons, they certainly have failed to use them. It is, of course, possible that gas and biological weapons are not weapons that one can use in one’s own territory. The wind may blow it the wrong way. Saddam Hussein was saying that the Americans would encounter stiff resistance because they would find Iraqis fighting back in every bush and corner. The fact is that Iraqi soldiers were surrendering by the thousands.

The probability, of course, is that if indeed Iraq has gas and biological weapons they will be used in the mainland of the United States. We hope that this does not take place. So far, from all indications, the Iraqis do not seem to possess the weapons President Bush has accused them of harboring.

The most heartening thing about the Iraq war are the worldwide demonstrations asking for peace and not war. Even in the United States, right in Washington, there are strong protests against the war in Iraq.

The United States is spending billions in the Iraq war. We wish that money had been used to eliminate misery and poverty all over the world. It is ironic that in this day and age, nations can spend billions to destroy when that same money can be used to establish peace and progress.

Something is definitely wrong with our priorities.