The Useful Idiots of George W. Bush

Those would be all of those dim bulbs bright lights of the conservative movement, who backed the Iraq War because of the stated concerns that (a) Saddam was a vicious dictator; (b) freedom would reign in the Middle East if he were removed; (c) Saddam had nukes; (d) Saddam had bankrolled the 9/11 attack; (e) Halliburton would make a shitload of money; (f) the oil companies would make a shitload of money: (g) a through d; or (h) e and f.

It may be that none of that was true. George Bush sought to go to war because, in what passes for his soul, he believed that going to war with Iraq would kick-start a Biblical prophecy.

In 2003 while lobbying leaders to put together the Coalition of the Willing, President Bush spoke to France's President Jacques Chirac. Bush wove a story about how the Biblical creatures Gog and Magog were at work in the Middle East and how they must be defeated.
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There can be little doubt now that President Bush's reason for launching the war in Iraq was, for him, fundamentally religious. He was driven by his belief that the attack on Saddam's Iraq was the fulfilment of a Biblical prophesy in which he had been chosen to serve as the instrument of the Lord.

I do not overlook the possibility, however remote, that this story is a clever bit of disinformation by Chirac to make himself look to be the wiser party to the conversation. That could be, but there are two arguments against viewing the story as disinformation. First, given the state of Bush's reputation, there is no need for a leader of another country to portray himself or herself as smarter than Bush. That is automatically assumed. Second, when this story makes its way to the enemy, they will seize on it as proof positive that American motives in Iraq were indeed religious. It would take an exceptionally cynical and cruel man to launch that sort of story, knowing full well that the story would be used as a rallying cry and propaganda tool for the enemy. On the other hand, Chirac may just be that evil a person.

I view this story as highly probable and very disturbing. If one adds in the various contractors, about 5,000 Americans have died, tens of thousands have been wounded, over a hundred thousand Iraqi civilians have been killed and millions have been made into refugees, all because George W. Bush sought to use their blood and suffering to trigger a Biblical prophecy.

My father warned me to beware of people who acted based on religious beliefs, as they had no problem with justifying dishonest, immoral, evil and horrific acts as "God's work."

Dad was right.

(H/T to Jill)