Is Bush’s victory good for the CNMI?

The people have spoken, as they say. What the people have said to the rest of the world is we endorse the killing of 100,000 Iraqi civilians, the number according to an underreported Johns Hopkins University study. They said we want our soldiers in Iraq to avenge all zero Iraqi terrorist attacks in America since America started bombing Iraq regularly 14 years ago. If you support this war, and have a strong stomach, I recommend you look here http://www.thenausea.com/usa-iraq.html and see exactly what you support. On that page you can see the real effects of cruise missiles on innocent civilians.
The people have also said we endorse having the corporate world in the pigpen on a feeding frenzy and passing it on to future generations. The U.S. treasury, aided by those tax cuts for the rich with no subsequent reduction in spending, another key Republican principle, has added $824 billion in debt in just the last two years alone. Naturally a large part of it is passed on to the military industrial complex, which is all part of those pro-business Republican principles: Welfare is bad unless it is corporate welfare for big business.

I read in the Saipan Tribune the article about the CNMI celebrating Bush’s victory. Included in this story were several predictable comments from Republicans praising Bush’s election. I have a hard time writing re-election given the last presidential election. At least they have their act together enough to have Republicans supporting Republicans. I found it laughable to see that the Democrats here chose a chairman who supported a Republican for the highest office. Now if it were Lincoln, I’d understand, but in this case we’re talking about an absolutely loathsome Republican in Bush who presided over a massive increase in debt, enormous job losses, and plunged the nation into a pointless war with no end in sight. To put this in historical context, we still have troops in Germany and Korea from WWII and the Korean War. So kids graduating in the class of 2054 might be going to Iraq if historical patterns continue. But at least the Republicans stick together, unlike the embarassment of a Democratic party here.

However, this idea that Bush is good for the CNMI is suspect at best. One of the guidance counselors at my school, also the head disciplinarian, was called up from the reserves for this pointless war. I’ve read in this paper that one of the school principals was about to be plucked off to war with little notice. One of the legislators is also gone. None of that helps Saipan. I see several students at my school, most with few other options, heading toward the military. Now, the military is a noble profession, and the U.S. has fought some noble wars, most notably WWII. I have great respect for soldiers’ hard work, dedication and sacrifice. However, there is a great chance that any one, or even several, of these people will not be returning alive. If they were going to participate in the Battle of Saipan or the Normandy Invasion, or even in Afghanistan today, I could see the point of their sacrifice. Like most of the world, I can’t see the point of Iraq, and accordingly can’t see how kids dying from the CNMI, which is borderline inevitable the way things are going, so Halliburton and other oil companies can have record profits is so great for Saipan.

Jeffrey C. Turbitt
As Lito