Whose gain, whose loss?
THE MISSION OSAMA
THE MISSION OSAMA
BUT THE BIGGER QUESTION IS THIS. WAS OSAMA WORTH TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS US SPENT ON TRACKING HIM DOWN AND THOUSANDS OF INNOCENTS KILLED IN THE PROCESS, reports SHOAIB SHAH
Obama announces Osama dead. Congratulations America, Congratulations Obama. You have done it. Good Job. And here does the American and others celebrate the death for most of the people of the world this day marks as an end of the terrorist activities to a very significant level. All accepted, but do we realize what Americans have lost and what exactly they have gained. The US president applauded his team who were involved in the killing of Osama Bin Ladin but here should we not understand that Osama was just an ordinary man, an individual whom the US itself projected as the world’s most wanted and the number one threat to the American race inspite of the fact that no concrete proof was established for his involvement of the September 11 2001 attacks on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. Opinion Research Business published an update to the survey on 28 January 2008, indicating the death figures in Iraq Conflict crossing 1,033,000 and an estimated cost of three Trillion Dollars. The result of the three Trillion dollar war is just a mere assassination of an individual called Osama. Was Osama’s life worth killing millions of innocents and spending trillions of dollars? Similar persons who are involved in the killing of innocents through fake encounters wander freely here in the Kashmir and they are no other than the top officers of the Indian army and paramilitary persons, whom the government have given medals and mementos for the killings and when the government acquire the proof for their involvement in the innocent killings, the officials are either retired as top brass commanders and majors enjoying a luxurious life in some foreign country or are either dead. No doubt that these officials are not involved in such huge magnitude of slaughter as that of the Sep 11 2001 massacre but Islam says if a person kills even a single innocent; it amounts as to the murder of the entire mankind.
The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 resulted in 2,996 deaths, including the 19 hijackers and 2,977 victims. To seek revenge, the US adminstration started tracing Osama and ultimately started a massacre by entering into war with Afghanistan and Iraq. Every conscious human might be aware of the fact that when the US entered into the war, the super power had not known its trajectory before they launched the attack. The Iraq War, referred to as the Second Gulf War, a military campaign began on March 20, 2003 with the invasion of Iraq by a multinational force led by troops from the United States under the administration of President George W. Bush and the United Kingdom under Prime Minister Tony Blair and till this date there seems to be no end to it. The United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) got access by Iraq under provisions of the UN resolution but found no evidence of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) that the US had claimed to be in procession of the Iraq. Notwithstanding the verification, ultimately US entered in war with Iraq and killing innocents under the cover of tracing the WMD, which till date the US has failed to locate any. Accusing Iraqi President Saddam Hussein of harboring and supporting al-Qaeda, with no evidence of a meaningful connection resulted in the most inhuman act of violence and terrorism, when lacs of innocent, including Saddam Hussain and family got killed ruthlessly. This is how the US refers to their efforts of protecting innocent lives. Finally Obama announced an 18-month withdrawal window for combat forces, but with approximately 50,000 troops remaining in the country on the pretext of advising and training Iraqi security forces and to provide intelligence and surveillance after claiming that the security and economic indicators had began to show signs of improvement, again a mere statement that till date has not been achieved. Instead of the stiff opposition to the initiation of the war with Iraq, the US and the NATO country officials ignored the call and start the bloody massacre. Not contended with the bloody massacre the US simultaneously started yet another fresh brutal carnage of the innocents by the infliction of the war in Afghanistan in an effort to dismantle Al-Qaida and the end to the Taliban Regime. The George W. Bush administration dared to state that, as policy, it would not distinguish between terrorist organizations and nations or governments that harbor them, thereby giving his uniformed men open access to start homicide of the innocent poor illiterate public of the Afghanistan. The war inflicted on poor helpless Afghans rendered thousands homeless, in addition to the hundreds and thousands of people being slaughtered at the hands of the force. Not contended, Barack Obama announced in dec 2009 a deployment of an additional 30,000 soldiers over a period of six months apparently, I guess in order to complete the massacre that the former US president had given birth to. He also set a withdrawal date for the year 2014, envisaging that the Afghan race would have been erased out by then thereby safeguarding the people of America. An estimated cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as per the Center for Defense Information is tabled below.
Spending such a huge amount of dollars on arms and armies is purely inherently undesirable and unwarranted. Even if it seems necessary, it constitutes a misappropriation of already scarce resources. America has been diverting social capital from productive to destructive purposes, war and the preparation for war deplete, rather than enhancing its strength. Assertion of military necessity might camouflage the costs entailed, but the US can never negate them altogether. The amount that the US had spend on these wars could have been utilized in a constructive purpose rather than destructing the countries of Iraq and Afghanistan. Every artillery or firearm that is made, every warship launched, every missile fired signifies, in the concluding sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed and as such any nation that diverts its treasure into the purchase of weaponry is ultimately spending more than mere money. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, and the dreams of its children. As a matter of fact, the cost of one modern heavy bomber equals to that of constructing a modern brick school in more than 30 cities. For a single destroyer that the US fires, it spends more money than that could have constructed new homes catering more than 8,000 people. Americans face a sustained period of 10% unemployment nationwide, and still the US administration wasted $100 billion and probably more on an un-winnable war. Can Obama afford to spend on building more prisons and bases, or occupy another country by bombarding Libya or Syria. Rather should it focus on investing in America’s future? Inspite of all these facts, the US admin thinks that getting Osama was its priority and a hurdle in the achievement of a peaceful America.
In addition, there have been other incalculable costs: the death and trauma of U.S. soldiers and Afghan civilians and similar hidden costs. The costs are too high, and the mission had never been clear enough. Senior security personals of America, who have served for their country and spend sufficient time in these countries, believe that they (Al-Qaida) have only a few people in Afghanistan. A recent assessment on veteran suicide rates demonstrated that for the second year in a row, the U.S. military lost more troops to suicide in 2010 than it did to combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. The services reported 468 suicides by personnel on duty in 2010 which exceeds the total number of personnel lost in combat (462). These statistics do not only draw attention to the alarming inflating rates of suicides in the military, they demonstrate something more and Obama should have the answer for them. He thinks he has given America something to celebrate, but in real sense he has brought a huge loss to his own people.
Author can be reached at : shoaibshah19@gmail.com
The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 resulted in 2,996 deaths, including the 19 hijackers and 2,977 victims. To seek revenge, the US adminstration started tracing Osama and ultimately started a massacre by entering into war with Afghanistan and Iraq. Every conscious human might be aware of the fact that when the US entered into the war, the super power had not known its trajectory before they launched the attack. The Iraq War, referred to as the Second Gulf War, a military campaign began on March 20, 2003 with the invasion of Iraq by a multinational force led by troops from the United States under the administration of President George W. Bush and the United Kingdom under Prime Minister Tony Blair and till this date there seems to be no end to it. The United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC) got access by Iraq under provisions of the UN resolution but found no evidence of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) that the US had claimed to be in procession of the Iraq. Notwithstanding the verification, ultimately US entered in war with Iraq and killing innocents under the cover of tracing the WMD, which till date the US has failed to locate any. Accusing Iraqi President Saddam Hussein of harboring and supporting al-Qaeda, with no evidence of a meaningful connection resulted in the most inhuman act of violence and terrorism, when lacs of innocent, including Saddam Hussain and family got killed ruthlessly. This is how the US refers to their efforts of protecting innocent lives. Finally Obama announced an 18-month withdrawal window for combat forces, but with approximately 50,000 troops remaining in the country on the pretext of advising and training Iraqi security forces and to provide intelligence and surveillance after claiming that the security and economic indicators had began to show signs of improvement, again a mere statement that till date has not been achieved. Instead of the stiff opposition to the initiation of the war with Iraq, the US and the NATO country officials ignored the call and start the bloody massacre. Not contended with the bloody massacre the US simultaneously started yet another fresh brutal carnage of the innocents by the infliction of the war in Afghanistan in an effort to dismantle Al-Qaida and the end to the Taliban Regime. The George W. Bush administration dared to state that, as policy, it would not distinguish between terrorist organizations and nations or governments that harbor them, thereby giving his uniformed men open access to start homicide of the innocent poor illiterate public of the Afghanistan. The war inflicted on poor helpless Afghans rendered thousands homeless, in addition to the hundreds and thousands of people being slaughtered at the hands of the force. Not contended, Barack Obama announced in dec 2009 a deployment of an additional 30,000 soldiers over a period of six months apparently, I guess in order to complete the massacre that the former US president had given birth to. He also set a withdrawal date for the year 2014, envisaging that the Afghan race would have been erased out by then thereby safeguarding the people of America. An estimated cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as per the Center for Defense Information is tabled below.
Spending such a huge amount of dollars on arms and armies is purely inherently undesirable and unwarranted. Even if it seems necessary, it constitutes a misappropriation of already scarce resources. America has been diverting social capital from productive to destructive purposes, war and the preparation for war deplete, rather than enhancing its strength. Assertion of military necessity might camouflage the costs entailed, but the US can never negate them altogether. The amount that the US had spend on these wars could have been utilized in a constructive purpose rather than destructing the countries of Iraq and Afghanistan. Every artillery or firearm that is made, every warship launched, every missile fired signifies, in the concluding sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed and as such any nation that diverts its treasure into the purchase of weaponry is ultimately spending more than mere money. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, and the dreams of its children. As a matter of fact, the cost of one modern heavy bomber equals to that of constructing a modern brick school in more than 30 cities. For a single destroyer that the US fires, it spends more money than that could have constructed new homes catering more than 8,000 people. Americans face a sustained period of 10% unemployment nationwide, and still the US administration wasted $100 billion and probably more on an un-winnable war. Can Obama afford to spend on building more prisons and bases, or occupy another country by bombarding Libya or Syria. Rather should it focus on investing in America’s future? Inspite of all these facts, the US admin thinks that getting Osama was its priority and a hurdle in the achievement of a peaceful America.
In addition, there have been other incalculable costs: the death and trauma of U.S. soldiers and Afghan civilians and similar hidden costs. The costs are too high, and the mission had never been clear enough. Senior security personals of America, who have served for their country and spend sufficient time in these countries, believe that they (Al-Qaida) have only a few people in Afghanistan. A recent assessment on veteran suicide rates demonstrated that for the second year in a row, the U.S. military lost more troops to suicide in 2010 than it did to combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. The services reported 468 suicides by personnel on duty in 2010 which exceeds the total number of personnel lost in combat (462). These statistics do not only draw attention to the alarming inflating rates of suicides in the military, they demonstrate something more and Obama should have the answer for them. He thinks he has given America something to celebrate, but in real sense he has brought a huge loss to his own people.
Author can be reached at : shoaibshah19@gmail.com
