Occupation of Iraq?

Grandpa took me into town one day because he had a few errands to run. As we strolled up to the bank entrance there was a couple of old codgers sitting there arguing about the war in Iraq. Grandpa listened to them for a few minutes then just shaking his head silently he proceeded to enter the bank to do his business there.

I decided to stay outside so I took a chair that was empty and continued to listen to the two gents arguing. As I was listening I noticed that the gent who was taking the anti-war position kept referring to the coalition as the occupation forces. Though I wanted to speak up about it I remained silent as I had learned to do by a couple of good whoopins by grandpa when I interrupted his conversation with another person.

Finally I could remain silent no longer and I spoke up. " Sirs, the coalition forces can no longer be called an occupation force."

The man taking the anti-war position just looked at me and said in a harsh voice, "boy, weren’t you taught better than to interrupt when others are speaking? And who are you to think you can correct grown men?"

About that time grandpa came out and as he did, he looked the man who spoke, straight in the eye and said;
" The boy is someone that I am very proud to say is my grandson and yes he was taught not to interrupt others but he is also correct in what he said. The coalition should no longer be referred to as an occupation force. An occupation force results from an invading military force that has overthrown the present government and proceeds to govern the people in the name of the invading country or countries as would be the case here. There must be no intent of handing the power to rule back to the country invaded. That is an historical fact of war. It is the basis by which empires were built. It is the means by which those who sought to rule the world used.

And yes, the United States invaded the country of Iraq. And yes the coalition overthrew the previous government as led by Saddam Hussein. And yes during the interim immediately after the government of Iraq was overthrown the coalitions forces could be called an occupation force. but there must be acknowledgment that it was done so with the intent of giving up that power. That is a historical fact also.

But once the Iraqi people elected those whom they chose to govern them we no longer can be defined as an occupation force and Iraq can no longer be referred to as a country occupied. Iraq now has a government that can be declared as a government of the people, by the people, and for the people as Abraham Lincoln would say.

The coalition forces should now be referred to as an armed force in alliance with that government against a mutual enemy, an enemy that seeks to overthrow this new government and install either a dictatorship or a theocracy in the line of Iran. The coalition forces can only be seen as an armed force in defense of this new legitimate government as elected by the people.

To see it on any other terms is not to see it in historical terms but in ideological terms of the meaning of being an occupation force. And once this is recognized then it will be seen in terms of seeking political power by manipulation rather than by logically convincing the people to grant them that power."

With that said he just contemptuously turned his back to the man he was speaking to and said to me; "Boy, tis time to head for home or grandma will be taking us both out behind the wood shed." I just smiled and nodded as I followed grandpa. i didn't hear another word said by either of the two old codgers we left behind.