David Spates "Therefore I Am" Published Feb. 25, 2003

Breaking news: Saddam is not to be trusted

Is it a natural reaction to detest a dynasty? Is that why so many people around the world hate America?

We are a dynasty, you know. We dominate. We're the Dallas Cowboys, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Lakers, Detroit Red Wings and Tiger Woods all rolled up into one. It leaves little room for ambivalence. You either love us or hate us. Those who love us really love us, and those who hate us really hate us.

During the national media's extensive coverage of this month's worldwide anti-war rallies, I saw lots of America-bashing -- some of it from Americans.

We Americans are free to express our self-loathing. That's fine. To provide the widest possible spectrum of freedom, we must permit even the most contemptible forms of speech. If you're an American and you hate America, you're free to say so. I can't fathom why you choose to live in a country you hate, but that's another issue for another day.

Slogans that kept cropping up over and over again among the protesters I saw was George Bush as an "international terrorist" and "war monger." Berlin, London, Paris, New York, San Francisco, even Knoxville -- the posters were everywhere.

If you're against military action in Iraq, that's one thing, but tagging our president an "international terrorist" is hitting below the belt. It's a cheap shot, and it's baseless. Protesting America's policies is much different than personally attacking America's leadership. George Bush is my president, he's your president, and he's our neighbor's president, but he's not an international terrorist. You may disagree with his policies, but resorting to unfounded name-calling is just childish.

Where does that even come from, international terrorist? Do these people honestly put Bush in the same category as Osama bin Laden, or are they so desperate to get folks riled up with inflammatory speech? It seems like a lot of grandstanding hyperbole. Some folks didn't like George W. even before he took the oath, and now they're using the prospect of war to further express their dissatisfaction with the vote tally.

And what do you make of George W. as a war monger? I don't get that, either. Does the POTUS go to bed every night dreaming, fantasizing, yearning, longing, lusting, thirsting for battle? It's just my opinion, but he doesn't strike me as the type.

Iraq is in the crosshairs, that's for sure, but the president hasn't pulled trigger yet. Why? A war monger would have started carpet bombing months ago, regardless of protests, marches, petitions and certainly regardless of the objections from those Nazi-surrendering amnesiacs in France. Who needs France, anyway? We took care of Saddam in 1991 with some well-flown attack missions, a handful of ground troops and a couple of CNN cameramen who received on-the-field training in the handling of Iraqi quitters. Just go back to the vineyard, Frenchie. We'll take care of this threat, too.

Make no mistake about it, Saddam is a threat. The United Nations knows he still possesses some very nasty chemical and biological weapons. Are the protesters of the world suggesting that we wait for something to happen to us before we make our move? That seems pretty foolish to me, or has Sept. 11, 2001 already softened and faded from our consciousness? Saddam has proven he cannot be trusted, and I don't think we should give him the benefit of a first strike. Maybe he won't use his anthrax. Maybe he will. Maybe he'll present a tank of VX nerve gas to Osama. Maybe he won't. Your guess is as good as anyone's.

How would the protest signs read if a few hundred thousand Americans died from anthrax while our soldiers stood by waiting for our "allies" to give us a big hug?

I'm not a political science expert. I'm not educated to the ins and outs of international affairs, but I feel as though I have a fair sense of what's right and wrong. President Bush is no terrorist, and he's no war monger, contrary to a protester's poster.

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David Spates is a Knoxville resident and Crossville Chronicle contributor whose column is published each Tuesday. He can be reached at davespates@chartertn.net.