Tales of woe and sadness
published: Friday | November 19, 2004

THE EDITOR, Sir:

IT SEEMS that ever since America invaded Iraq, the events that have unfolded have proved to be a tale of unimaginable woe and sadness. As bad as Saddam Hussein was during his dictatorial reign in Iraq, things were not nearly as bad, overall, as they appear to be today. There have been too many casualties, American and Iraqis, since America invaded Iraq last year.

The fact of the matter is that diplomacy works and has worked as an effective tool to solve problems between and within nations. The pre-emptive strike upon Iraq by the US was in direct contradiction with the primary mission of the UN ­ which is to promote peace around the world. Today, America's credibility has been shattered around the world, nearly 1,200 America soldiers have lost their lives, thousands of innocent Iraqis have been killed, America has spent billions of dollars waging this war, the relationship between the US and Europe has been severely weakened, the UN as a body has been severely weakened etc.

It seems to me that the price of liberating Iraq has made America weaker. There must have been a better way.

I am, etc.,

PATRICK A. GALLIMORE

pagalley@hotmail.com

Kingston

Via Go-Jamaica