Memo to the President

By Crispin Sartwell

Re: Saddam

George. I've been pondering your Iraq stategy. Some advice:

Don't be a wuss.

One thing a wuss does is make empty threats. You've been threatening to attack Iraq daily for a year now. But you haven't done anything. You're vacillating. Put up or shut up. Do it, or stop talking about doing it.

Do you think it's essential to assemble a serious coalition before you go? Then assemble it. Do you not think so? Then attack unilaterally.

And stop leaking plans, whether they're real or imagined, threats or promises. The press has reported where and when and how. That's deeply stupid and deeply embarrassing.

And if you attack, attack hard and fast. There's no point in some kind of incremental or halfway approach. Do the whole job, and do it as quickly as humanly possible.

Figure out why we should do this, and tell us.

Is Saddam tied to Al Qaeda? Then you better make that case.

Is Saddam developing chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons? Really? How far along are these programs and what's your proof? Is the situation any more urgent that it was a couple of years ago? Why, exactly?

Is the envisioned invasion connected with the so-called "war on terror"? If so, exactly how? Or is it a separate operation? P.S. We are not, at the moment, at war, no matter what you may say.

Be honest.

Now, perhaps I'm a cynic. But I don't necessarily believe what y'all are telling me. I remember the Gulf of Tonkin, when LBJ and his men manufactured an incident to justify escalation of the ridiculous, disgusting war in Vietnam.

I'm getting the vibe of secrecy and disinformation from your boys like Dick and Donald. In the long run, you're going to look more sincere if you're telling the exact truth. In the long run, history won't despise you for honesty. I don't necessarily believe what you guys are telling me about Saddam. I don't believe he's a plausible nuclear threat.

If, in the next few weeks, there's an incident that becomes the occasion for war, it is likely I won't believe what you say about it. Try to be as open as possible to the media, for example.

This is not, of course, to say that you must share details of the military planning with CNN.

If I don't believe you, I can't support you.

Think about the people of Iraq. How do they feel about Saddam? If he's got popular support, why? What's he done for his people? If he doesn't, how we can we put that fact to use?

And how are Iraqis going to feel about the US as an occupying force? I have a feeling there's a certain resentment of our sanctions over there, especially as they've had disastrous effects on the everyday lives of many Iraqis. Is there anything we can do to reduce the resentment with which we're regarded?

In short, get busy or shut up. Commit yourself to a real course of action, and do what you commit yourself to. Tell us what you're doing, and prepare for the situation on the ground.

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Crispin Sartwell teaches philosophy at the Maryland Institute College of Art.