The following is an archived copy of a message sent to a Discussion List run by the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
Views expressed in this archived message are those of the author, not of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
[Main archive index/search] [List information] [Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq Homepage]
[ Presenting plain-text part of multi-format email ]
Will Wesley Clark Tomorrow Do
The Opposite of What He Did Yesterday?
Latin America, Yugoslavia, Iraq, China and a few other targets .
MICHEL COLLON
Is Wesley Clark the long hoped for contender to go up against Bush II? Further we will examine why
certain leadership circles in the U.S. anticipate the possibility to "change horses". But, first of
all, this silence about Clark's past record? Yes, you could vote for Wesley Clark, provided that
your forget about...
LATIN AMERICA (1996-97)
Clark, assigned to Panama to lead the US Southern Command, namely, Latin American operations,
supplied various regimes that practice terror on their citizenry with a great many military
"advisors" and US mercenaries. During this period, Latin America experienced a sharp increase in
human rights violations. In Colombia, for example, there were 2,400 political assassinations (not
taking into consideration the numerous incidents of people going missing or simply vanishing)
committed by the military as well as paramilitary groups that were trained and equipped by Wesley
Clark.
The Objective: a long series of aggressions against Chile, Cuba and many others. It's about
waging brutal combat operations against liberation movements in Colombia, Peru, Guatemala, Mexico
and Bolivia. It's always done for the purpose of allowing U.S. multi-nationals to continue to keep
the upper hand, with respect to economic relations, in Latin America. The fact that these wars were
fought far away from news cameras does not diminish Clark's responsibility.
[http://www.law.northwestern.edu/depts/clinic/ihr/display_details.cfm?ID=120&document_type=commentary]
[http://www.nato.int/cv/saceur/clark.htm]
YUGOSLAVIA (1999):
What about the war against Yugoslavia? Some people saw it as a humanitarian operation whose real
goals corresponded to its announced goals. Others saw a hypocritical military operation that
foresaw gaining control of Balkan oil routes and the country's markets, meanwhile eliminating
workers' self-management and the social benefits of "Yugoslav socialism".
It seems that Clark himself could have answered this question by drawing on the following
summary he made of his own mandate: "Potential adversaries should recognize that Western nations
are fully capable - militarily, diplomatically and industrially - of high intensity combat
operations that include the use of ground forces when their vital interests are involved and even
when less-than-vital interests are involved." Clark forgot to mention of the humanitarian pretexts
that had been so frequently invoked before and during the war. ("Clark Recalls 'Lessons' of Kosovo,
IHT, May 3, 2000).
Be that as it may, the crimes committed during this war by NATO, which was under the command of
Wesley Clark, are undeniable. Even though Clark, among others, will never be convicted because
international law does not exist for the mighty.
What about criminal acts? Even though he hit a laughably small number of Yugoslav tanks, Clark
bombed the Radio-Television building (killing 16 journalists and technicians), factories,
petrochemical complexes (which resulted in a dramatic rise in cancers and other maladies), civilian
infrastructure (electric power generating stations), a convoy of Albanian refugees who were
returning to Kosovo (70 victims), a passenger train... and, last but not least, the Chinese embassy
(3 victims). Which was, in other words, a "warning" because Beijing was supporting Yugoslav
independence. And let us not omit the use of "fragmentation bombs", which are deadliest, in the
long term, for children. And the use of so-called "depleted" uranium shells that has polluted the
region for a long time to come. The Spanish NATO pilot, Martin de la Hoz, protested openly against
the deliberate bombardment of civilian targets
(Articulo 20, Madrid, June 14, 1999).
Far from simply being a "obedient soldier", Clark is described by one and all as a "super-hawk"
who, most notably, wanted to bomb all the bridges of Belgrade in order to intimidate the
population. This super - hawkishness could also be seen in his attitude right after the war when
Russian troops moved toward Prishtina to try to protect the minority Serb population. Wesley Clark,
in a fit of monstrous rage, demanded that British General Jackson block the Prishtina airport to
prevent the Russians from landing. General Jackson replied: "Sir, I'm not going to start WWIII for
you!". Afterwards, Clark helped the terrorist militias of the KLA (UCK) escape demilitarization,
which had nevertheless been stipulated by a UN resolution. Today, these military mafias are
conducting a reign of terror against all of the national communities in Kosovo as well as against a
large part of the Albanian population.
IRAQ (2003):
Now that Bush has gotten entangled with the resistance put up by the Iraqi people, Wesley Clark
brags: "I told you so". He is even trying to cultivate an "anti-war" image through the electoral
process. But what did he say before the war? "I am categorically certain that Saddam possesses
weapons of mass destruction" (CNN, January 18, 2001).
And what did he write on April 10 of this year? Oh, well, he welcomed the aggression against
Iraq, which was motivated, according to him, by "strong convictions (...) Bush and Blair can be
proud of their determination." He reasoned that "nothing could be more moving" than the
"liberation" of Baghdad and that it was necessary to hurry up and "achieve this great victory". He
also applauded General Tommy Franks, a war criminal who is guilty of having, on the one hand,
ordered or, on the other, having concealed, the bombardment of civilians and attacks against
hospitals, ambulances, journalists...
And Clark, "a man of peace", has announced that "the operation in Iraq will also serve as a
point of departure (...) for military actions against countries that support terrorism and have
deployed weapons of mass destruction". This is an article to which Bush could have added his
by-line. (The Times of London)
TOMORROW CHINA, AND THEN... ?
Why is Clark scaling the ladders of power? Because the setbacks experienced by Bush have begun to
disturb one part of the leadership circle in the United States. They are afraid that, by having
disregarded all of their allies, it is becoming increasingly more difficult to wage the various
wars of aggression that they have prepared. In fact, the various factions of the U.S. bourgeoisie
are in complete agreement with the plan to totally recolonize the world in order to save U.S.
multi-national corporations from an economic crisis. But these factions disagree on the methods:
Should they share a tiny part of the plunder and booty with their European allies or not? Should
they respect at least the semblance of international law or not?
If Bush is going to be discredited by the resistance put up by occupied countries, by his own
lies, by scandals and by the failure of his own economic policies, then it will be necessary for a
replacement to lead the very same policies more effectively.
The episode demonstrates that the U.S., despite its superpower status, has its weaknesses. The
leadership circles in the U.S. are now in trouble because resistance to their policies is growing
worldwide. At the same time, the affair also shows that the "solutions" put forth by this system
consist of replacing one war criminal with another.
The professional positions that Clark held previously in his career prove that he too will be a
man who belongs to U.S. multi-nationals and their dangerous projects. Knowing that China is being
singled out to a greater and greater degree as a major target for the U.S. around 2015, it is
interesting to recall one recent interview that went almost unnoticed. Wesley Clark, questioned on
the subject of Saddam, responded that the U.S. would do much better to express more interest in
China: "During the Cultural Revolution they had cannibalism in China. And the same guys that ran
over the students in Tiananmen, they're still there."
(Fortune Magazine, quoted in
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2003/9/21/102656.shtml)
General Jackson wasn't wrong, it seems, when he labeled Wesley Clark as the man who wanted to
start WWIII... Progressives, despairing for their cause, do not chose a shark that appears to be
less dangerous than the one currently in power. Progressive politics is concerned with eliminating
the system of sharks.
September 23, 2003
P.S. Wesley Clark is president of "Wesley Clark & Associates" consulting for military industries,
administrator of WaveCrest Laboratories (closely linked with US Military & Industrial Complex),
Sirva Corp, Messer-Griesheim, EnTrust Inc, Time Domain, Axiom Corp, etc.. But he will not be
influenced by the interests of the multinationals...
_______________________________________________
Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq.
To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss
To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk
All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk