War In IraqDustin and Jamine and the War in Iraq Whilst out and about in Brussels last week a friend and I found ourselves eating next to two young Americans. They were on holiday in Brussels as part of a tour of northern Europe. They were on holiday from their jobs ... in Iraq! Both work for Haliburton. He (Dustin) had served in the war in Iraq in the 101st Airborne Division. They were the guys that chased about after the Republican Guard. He was with the team that 'found' Uday and Qusay Hussain. He has seen the infamous 'rape room'. I was really surprised about their thoughts. I don't know too many Americans in Brussels and so don't get the chance to sound out 'regular' opinions. Much less often do I get the chance to chat to people involved in an ongoing conflict. Both were really supportive of the war in Iraq. More surprisingly to me, was that they both felt that it was going really well and a complete success. I tried to explain how most Europeans viewed the situation and both were genuinely shocked to hear that Europe (almost to a man) is negative. They didn't realise that not everyone is positive about the work of Haliburton or Dick Cheney. The polarisation is what surprises me. As far as I can tell, almost everyone I know would vote for 'anyone but Bush' in the upcoming election. Of course, we are all European and so won't be getting a vote. (That is something of a shame because this election is now becoming far too important to just let Americans decide - it will influence us all.) But, the polls in the US are really split. Bush has alienated most of Europe but not the American public. Even Dustin from Nebraska who has had to go and do the dirty work was not concerned that weapons of mass destruction have not been found. I really do not know what to make of it. If he isn't bothered, should we be? Or should accountability be our guiding principle? * This was published in September 2004 *
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