YOUR AD HERE »

Dire predictions

Dear Editor:Three years into Operation Iraqi Freedom and the majority of Americans now oppose the ongoing occupation of Iraq, in part because many of the predictions I made in past letters to the editor have come true:Jan. 31, 2003: “I don’t believe Hussein is a threat to America.”March 25, 2003: “The Shi’ites comprise the majority of Iraq’s population, so they would have the advantage in a democracy, gaining dominance in government.”April 16, 2003: “Talk to me six months to a year from now when U.S. troops are still trying to restore order to Iraq, control the opposition and deal with the insurgents.”June 9, 2003: “The killing of U.S. soldiers and Iraqi civilians will continue, because the war for Iraqi freedom is not over, it’s really just begun.”March 18, 2004: “More likely [the U.S. invasion of Iraq] will lead to civil war, and … a whole new crop of America-hating terrorists.”Now if someone like me, using just common sense and a little Internet research, could predict the result of the Bush administration’s “pre-emptive” attack, how come our nation’s leaders weren’t able to? Or did they just ignore the facts because their real intentions were neither to free the Iraqi people nor make America safer? Perhaps as I’ve said all along; the sacrifice of coalition soldiers and Iraqi civilian lives was purely intended to establish huge profits for certain well connected corporations.My predictions for the future? Until the American people wake up and demand major policy changes as well as electoral reform, it’s going to get much worse …Republicans will maintain control of Congress in the 2006 elections. The military draft will be re-established. The U.S. will attack Iran. A Republican, possibly from the current administration, will “win” the presidency in 2008 (thanks to Diebold voting machines). Under near totalitarian rule, our constitutional freedoms will be further violated. Terrorism will again visit our shores and if the military-industrial complex is not reined in, there’ll be a mushroom cloud on the horizon.Let’s hope I’m wrong this time, but unless we citizens get our act together and stop this madness, we’d better get ready to duck and cover.Sue GrayCarbondale