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Iraq: Understanding the Debate

The purpose of this page is to assist my philosophy students and others in understanding the past debate about the morality of the U.S. invasion of Iraq and the current debate about what a just policy is now..  I have tried to select representative articles from both sides of the debate.  I have looked for articles whose authors place their articles within a philosophical framework, but such articles aren't easy to find.  I have also provided links to web sites where students can find many other articles.  Although I have included sites that present the perspective of the U.S. government, I have tried to emphasize sites that help students to look beyond the dominant perspectives found in the news and that direct students to look at many international sources of information.  

                                                                                                                            Holly Graff

Anti-War Articles

The Case Against the War" by Jonathan Schell
"The Case Against War " by Stephen Zunes

 Catholic Bishops' Letter to George Bush (use of traditional just war theory)
 Cool War: Economic Sanctions as a Weapon of Mass Destruction
Why Another War? (a good background article)
"Just War Theory and the Recent U.S. Strikes Against Iraq" by Mark DeForest  (This article isn't about the current situation, but it provides a helpful summary of just war theory.)
"The Will of the World" by Jonathan Schell



 
Pro-War Articles

  George Bush's Speech at the American Enterprise Institute
  Colin Powell's U.N. Speech
  "Asymmetrical Warfare and Just War" by Michael Novak (use of traditional just war theory)
  "The Case for American Empire" by Max Boot
  "Why and How To Conquer the Savages" by Mark Pisaturo" (libertarian conservative)
  "A Post-Saddam Perspective" by Robert Kaplan (another article advocating American empire)



The Current Situation

Iraq's Fig-Leaf Constitution
Exiting Iraq (Several articles from In These Times)

 

Links to News Sources


Worldpress.org
(Overview of world press with political tendencies identified)
Al-Jazeera New Service
The Times of India
Guardian (United Kingdom)
BBC Online
(United Kingdom)
Al-Ahram Weekly  (Oldest newspaper in Arab world)
New York Times
  (You need to register, but you don't need to pay for access to this site.)
The Washington Post

Indymedia

The Onion
(If you are ready for some humor with very serious intent, try this satirical newspaper.)




Links to Alternative Views Usually Absent from the American Press

The Nation
National Labor Committee
Amnesty International On-line: Human Rights Website
ZNET
Greenpeace International Homepage
In These Times
Middle East Research and Information Project
The Progressive
Common Dreams New Center
Boondocks 
This Modern World



Sites That Offer Conservative  Views on the War Issue

White House (Official Presidential site)
National Review
New American Century


General Information on Iraq

Arab Gateway: Iraq
Timeline of Modern Iraq's History (This NPR Timeline contains useful links to many NPR reports.)
Protecting History in Ancient Iraq (NPR Report)


Geography Sites

CIA Factbook 2002
Quick Maps from Theodora.com/maps

University of Texas Library Map Collection

A much more extensive listing of relevant sites is available from Paul Boisvert from Oakton's Mathematics Department.  The site is called Critical Thinking.

Page Author: Hollace Graff
Oakton Community College
Last updated: September 3, 2005

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