Busy Bush Has Time to Run the World

President Bush has been a busy man. Even though the quagmire in Iraq threatens to worsen as Turkey prepares to invade the Kurdish north, Bush has time to undertake the arduous task of preventing World War III and begin the transition to democracy in Cuba. How does he do it?!

The president is on a sticky wicket in northern Iraq. The Kurds have longed to unite with their brethren in Turkey, Iran, and Syria to form independent Kurdistan. The big powers, the United States included, have never been crazy about the idea. But that hasn’t stopped American presidents from posing as champions of their cause — until it’s inconvenient. That’s what it is now.

Turkey is an “important ally,” as big powers like to say. For one thing, it’s been a member of NATO almost from the beginning. The “NA” stand for “North Atlantic,” and the last time I checked a map, Turkey was nowhere near the Atlantic Ocean. But never mind that; it’s an important ally that gives the U.S. military easy access to Iraq and other parts of the Middle East. No country that useful should be alienated. That’s why the Bush administration opposed the resolution in the House labeling Turkey’s slaughter of Armenians as “genocide” — in 1915! You’ve got to hand it to the House. It sure stays on top of things.

Anyway, the Kurds have been assaulting Turkish troops across their border, and the Turkish legislature has okayed an invasion of Iraq, warning Bush he’d better tame the unruly Kurds or else. You can bet that administration people are working overtime on that project. On the other hand, the Iranian government has complained that the Kurds are attacking their forces too. But I suspect that complaint is getting a much less sympathetic hearing.

Which brings us to World War III. President Bush raised the specter of another Great War during a news conference: “We’ve got a leader in Iran who has announced that he wants to destroy Israel. So I’ve told people that, if you’re interested in avoiding World War III, it seems like you ought to be interested in preventing them from having the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon.” More...