[lbo-talk] Iraq, the left and the 'resistance' (Geras blog)

[Liza Featherstone]

It is indeed worth thinking about. There are a lot of different forms of
"resistance" there, many not about blowing anybody up. On Doug's radio show,
Naomi Klein said that rather than worry about all the different resistance
groups that might be distasteful - my paraphrase, I can't remember her exact
words - and which ones we should lend our "armchair" support, the anti-war
movement should organize in international solidarity with the hundreds of
thousands of Iraqis protesting in the street who are calling for the U.S. to
leave, and for real democracy and real elections. "Election not Selection"
has been one rallying cry. As Klein argued, there's no doubt we should
support THAT resistance in whatever meaningful way we can. Calling for what
these Iraqis want - real democracy - also has the advantage of turning
Bush's own rhetoric on its hypocritical head. It's also politically, a
language that most everyone in the US speaks, an advantage to those
writing/organizing/conversing in the US context.

Of course, the Iraqis will probably vote horrible people into power. But the
principle that this is a decision they should be allowed to make themselves
is a good one. 

Liza


> From: "Seth Ackerman" <sethia at speakeasy.net>
> Reply-To: lbo-talk at lbo-talk.org
> Date: Mon, 9 Feb 2004 12:40:49 -0500
> To: <lbo-talk at lbo-talk.org>
> Subject: Re: [lbo-talk] Iraq, the left and the 'resistance' (Geras blog)
> 
> From: "Stephen E Philion" <philion at hawaii.edu>
> 
>> --gosh seth, you're the media critic, not me, you have much greater
>> knowledge of the way the the prowar party frames their arguments in the
>> media. Geras is a supporter of the invasion and the occupation, he will
>> say ANYTHING to justify that position. Who is Norm Geras to tell me or
>> any of us who we should or should not support? I take his advice as
>> seriously as I do Hitchens or Horowitz.
> 
> I don't like Geras' position on the war, but I thought he made a decent
> point in criticizing Pilger for urging support for the resistance. Why
> should we support people who are trying to take over Iraq by blowing up
> civilians? As you keep pointing out, the occupation is an important issue
> and it's worth thinking about what we're for and what we're not. Fulminating
> about the awfulness of the invasion just seems like a way of avoiding Geras'
> argument.
> 
> Seth
> 
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