'Get Out, You Damned One'

NY Times ^ | July 2, 2005 | JOHN TIERNEY

[neverdem]

President Bush has the bully pulpit, but Saddam Hussein has the hot novel. Bootleg copies of his latest work are selling briskly in the Middle East, and not just because of the free publicity he got when Jordan banned it this week. Say what you will about Saddam, he knows his audience.

The critics have not been kind to the prose and the plot, but they miss Saddam's strength. He's a marketer. He is said to have finished the novel just as the war was beginning, when American leaders were fantasizing about their troops' being welcomed as liberators. But Saddam knew enough to give his novel a surefire title for the post-invasion era: "Get Out, You Damned One."

It's a naked appeal to xenophobia, an impulse that's far more ancient and widespread than the yearning for democracy that President Bush talked about this week. Yet it's been curiously underestimated by conservatives who used to pay close attention to just this sort of instinct.

When liberal intellectuals dreamed of a socialist world with a selfless "New Man," conservatives realized that he'd be as greedy as ever. When some feminists envisioned the end of gender stereotypes, conservatives insisted there were ingrained differences between the sexes. Yet when American troops met resistance after the war, conservatives dismissed the early insurgents as "dead-enders" and expected Iraqis to join Americans in quickly vanquishing the thugs.

In those early days, when the memory of Saddam was still fresh, you could walk down a street in Baghdad and be greeted by an Iraqi stranger thanking you for bringing freedom. But even back then there were plenty of Iraqis like Saleh Youssef Sayel, who proudly told me of the reaction of his 5-year-old son, Mustafa, to an American soldier.

[ladyinred]

The critics have not been kind to the prose and the plot, but they miss Saddam's strength. He's a marketer. He is said to have finished the novel just as the war was beginning, when American leaders were fantasizing about their troops' being welcomed as liberators.

Guess what boy wonder, they do welcome the troops as liberators!

I have heard story after story from returning troops that confirm just that. The media will suppress the truth at any cost!

[Jeff Head]

when American leaders were fantasizing about their troops' being welcomed as liberators

Fantasized? They were welcomed as liberators by the vast majority of Iraqis...and still are.

GO HERE FOR MORE PICS

[Mad_Tom_Rackham]

What drivel. But more proof (as if we need more) that what's harmful to America is gleeful to the Left.

[endthematrix]

"In those early days, when the memory of Saddam was still fresh, you could walk down a street in Baghdad and be greeted by an Iraqi stranger thanking you for bringing freedom. But even back then..."

"early days?"

"memory?"

"memory?"

We aren't talking 1860 here, but a little over two years! Many Americans have a short memory but I'll bet an Iraqi's can hold pre-war accounts well. Sheesh!

[jwalburg]

What? The Red Cross must believe that it would be a cruel, inhumane treatment to prevent Saddam from publishing novels while captive?

[neverdem]

Fantasized? They were welcomed as liberators by the vast majority of Iraqis...and still are.

But hardly the Sunnis and many Shia. Remember al Sadr and his Shiite militia?

[neverdem]

What drivel. But more proof (as if we need more) that what's harmful to America is gleeful to the Left.

What makes you say that? This guy's no lefty.

[okie01]

Remember al Sadr and his Shiite militia?

Moqtada al-Sadr's was a splinter group, which was disowned by every other Shi'ite cleric in Iraq.

As a group, only the Sunnis have been resentful of our role.

[neverdem]

As a group, only the Sunnis have been resentful of our role.

The Shia didn't welcome us as liberators either. Only the Kurds welcomed us as liberators. The Shia remembered our idle reaction to Saddam's onslaught in 1991 after the first Persian Gulf War.

[HisKingdomWillAbolishSinDeath]

I would love to know how much foreign money has been used to influence the NYT, in order to keep the anti-American bilge flowing from their primordial sump.

[neverdem]

Did you read the whole article? Just what is anti-American about it?

[Paul Atreides]

"Get Out, You Damned One."

That ought to be the title of a book about Hillary.

[neverdem]

LOL!

[Jaysun]

We should have slit his throat when we found him in that sewer. Now he's nothing more than another nut for the left to worship - he joins the ranks of Castro, Stalin, and Jimmy Carter.

[Jeff Head]

Nevertheless, the vast majoprity did welcome us and still do.

[MNJohnnie]

I cannot understand why Bush critics on the right and left fail to understand the reality of Iraq. Iraq is terrorist flypaper. It forces the terrorist to fight our strength, (our military) on a battle feild of OUR choosing with numerous allies (the vast bulk of the Iraqi people) with their weakest ability (conventional military strength). In stead of hiding in camps in countries around the world planning attacks on our civilians, the terrorist are going into Iraq and getting killed. What is really despicable is that people who know full well that is what Iraq is all about (Wes Clark, Joe Biden, John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Ted Kennedy et al) are busy doing everything they can to undermind that effort for no better reason then their own political ambitions. The very fact that those people are willing to put their own personal political goals ahead of what is best for the American people indicates clearly they are unfit for any power at any level. What I cannot understand is why! ! spokespeople for the Right seem so willing to join with the Hysteric Left in under minding this effort?

[MNJohnnie]

You know you should be intellectually honest and change your name to ALWAYSDEM since you can be relied upon to always be posting the latest DNC propaganda line. "Fantasized? They were welcomed as liberators by the vast majority of Iraqis...and still are.
But hardly the Sunnis and many Shia. Remember al Sadr and his Shiite militia?"


And remember that the actions of a few is not to be confused, like you the DNC and the Dinosaur media do daily, as the opinions of the many. Apparently you have not been paying attention to reality at all. The vast bulk of Iraqis welcome us. Also, in case you missed it, 2/3s of the new Iraqi Parliament voted against a motion to condemn the Iraqi Govt for not demanding an immediate withdrawal of Coalition troops. When was the last time anything passed our Legislatures with 2/3's majority. Again, Never Dems, instead of spewing out the usually hysteric Left Propaganda, maybe you better do some research and find out REALITY instead of just spewing forth your usual line of DNC directed propaganda.

I cannot understand why Bush critics on the right and left fail to understand the reality of Iraq. Iraq is terrorist flypaper. It forces the terrorist to fight our strength, (our military) on a battle field of OUR choosing with numerous allies (the vast bulk of the Iraqi people) with their weakest ability (conventional military strength). In stead of hiding in camps in countries around the world planning attacks on our civilians, the terrorist are going into Iraq and getting killed. What is really despicable is that people who know full well that is what Iraq is all about (Wes Clark, Joe Biden, John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Ted Kennedy et al) are busy doing everything they can to under-mind that effort for no better reason then their own political ambitions. The very fact that those people are willing to put their own personal political goals ahead of what is best for the American people indicates clearly they are unfit for any power at any level. What I cannot understand is why! ! spokespeople for the Right seem so willing to join with the Hysteric Left in under minding this effort?

[neverdem]

Did you read the whole article?

I did two tours in Vietnam. My military occupational specialty was light weapons infantryman. If you can't recognize the power of xenophobia, study some more history as well as current news about illegal aliens.

You spewed a mountain of venom, the reason behind it I can't fathom, other than the article came from the NY Times, and so you can't read it, regardless of the author's bona fides, just because it's in the NY Times.

You know you should be intellectually honest and change your name to ALWAYSDEM since you can be relied upon to always be posting the latest DNC propaganda line. "Fantasized? They were welcomed as liberators by the vast majority of Iraqis...and still are.

As if the Nazis and Japanese were happily occupied while we conducted trials for WAR CRIMES! I'm sure that they enjoyed it beyond all reason.

John Tierney and David Brooks write for the NY Times. They are not lefties. If they describe reality too realistically for you, take a deep breath. I don't believe that they want us to lose. I certainly don't want a repeat of April 30, 1975.

If you don't believe me, read All Hail Moore, or read Tierney's other articles since he joined the Times on April 12, 2005 as an OpEd columnist. His articles were posted completely before they had to be excerpted. Have a happy 4th of July!