Critiques and Alternatives  

 

John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M. Walt,  "Iraq: An Unnecessary War" Foreign Policy
The belief that Saddam's past behavior shows he cannot be contained rests on distorted history and faulty logic. In fact, the historical record shows that the United States can contain Iraq effectively-even if Saddam has nuclear weapons-just as it contained the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Regardless of whether Iraq complies with U.N. inspections or what the inspectors find, the campaign to wage war against Iraq rests on a flimsy foundation.

Jessica Tuchman Mathews "Is There a Better Way to Go?"  Washington Post

Sojourners, "An Alternative to War for Defeating Saddam Hussein,"

     PDF Format        Church Bulletin Insert

Michael Walzer, "What a Little War in Iraq Could Do," New York Times March 7, 2003

The United States is marching to war as if there were no alternative. Judging from President Bush's press conference last night, the administration seems to have no exit strategy, no contingency plans to stop the march. Our leaders have created a situation where any failure to fight would count as a victory for Saddam Hussein and Jacques Chirac...

So here is an exit strategy for the Bush administration. They haven't asked for it, but they need it.

Joseph Cirincione and Dipali Mukhopadhyay, "Why Pollack is Wrong: We Have Contained Saddam" Carnegie Endowment for International Peace Feb. 21, 2003  

Ken Pollack is a gifted analyst. But in his lengthy February 21 New York Times op-ed, he assembles a house of cards to prove that (1) Saddam Hussein may soon get a nuclear bomb, and (2) if he does, we cannot deter him from using it. For Pollack to be correct, all of Saddam's efforts to build a bomb must work perfectly and all of our efforts to thwart him short of war must fail miserably. 

The crisis over Iraq: the non-military solution Open Democracy

What would a non-military strategy for dealing with Saddam Hussein’s Iraq involve? A seminar convened by London’s Royal United Services Institute and the Oxford Research Group, and involving government and NGO representatives from around the world, recently addressed this vital issue. The ORG’s director presents her own interpretation of the proceedings.

Joseph Cirincione, NPR's Fresh Air January 28.

The report co-written by Cirincione discussed on the program is Iraq: What Next?  (Follow the link  for the press report, PDF of the report, and more)

The report details concerns over Iraq’s weapons capabilities and assesses the status of inspections. In brief Q&A format, it addresses the effectiveness of intelligence sharing, site visits, use of technology, and Iraq's willingness to cooperate. Far from being exhausted, the report concludes, the inspections process has just begun, and must be allowed a realistic timeframe – without ruling out future use of force. With Saddam Hussein currently under close watch, there is no need for a rush to war.

 

Panelists detail the options offered in the new Carnegie report, "Iraq: A New Approach," which proposes "coercive inspections" in which a multinational military force created by the UN Security Council would enable international inspections teams to operate effectively in Iraq. Audio and video clips, plus transcript.

Jessica Matthews, "How to make inspections work," The Observer Sept. 22, 2002

The President of the Carnegie Institute argues that Iraq's weapons capability can be neutralised without war, and sets out the new framework for "coercive inspections" which is winning influential support on both sides of the Atlantic.

 Nicholas Lemann, "The War on What" New Yorker

Paul Starr, "No Choice but War?" The American Prospect

Stephen Zunes, "The Case Against War,"  The Nation September 12, 2002

William Galston, "Perils of Preemptive War" American Prospect
Why America's place in the world will shift -- for the worse -- if we attack Iraq

Bruce Ackerman, "But What's The Legal Case For Preemption?"  Washington Post,  August 18, 2002

Stephen Zunes, "Seven Fallacies of  War Against Iraq"  Foreign Policy in Focus

     

     
 

 

[ Home ] [ Up ] [ Weapons of Mass Destruction ] [ Economics and Oil ] [ Insider Doubts ] [ The Hawks ] [ Critiques and Alternatives ] [ Iraq Sanctions Controveries ] [ Iraq Archive ] [ Anti-War/Peace Movements ] [ Iraqi Politics ] [ Iraq Humor ]