In 1976, a British journalist wrote an admiring piece on Saddam Hussain:
An Arab country with the second largest proven oil reserves, a fierce revolutionary ideology, a large and recently-blooded army, and a leadership composed almost entirely of men in their thirties is obviously a force to be reckoned with. Iraq, which has this dynamic combination and much else besides, has not until recently been very much regarded as a power. But with the new discussions in Opec, the ending of the Kurdistan war and the new round of fighting in Lebanon, its political voice is being heard more and more. The Baghdad regime is the first oil-producing government to opt for 100-per-cent nationalisation, a process completed with the acquisition of foreign assets in Basrah last December. It was the first to call for the use of oil as a political weapon against Israel and her backers. It gives strong economic and political support to the ‘Rejection Front’ Palestinians who oppose Arafat’s conciliation and are currently trying to outface the Syrians in Beirut. And it has a leader — Saddam Hussain — who has sprung from being an underground revolutionary gunman to perhaps the first visionary Arab statesman since Nasser.
Who was it? Answer over the fold.
(via Dennis Perrin)
3 comments ↓
Seems Christopher was a fan of “rape rooms” and torture, so long as they were applied to those evil “bearded folk”… yet more proof that neo-cons are warmed-over Trotskyists still in search of their “Permanent revolution”.
I would suggest finding some nice “secular, progressive” Arab tyrant to lock him up - perhaps Assad would be willing? Assad also likes communist Kurds, doesn’t he?
Saddam was the Hamid Karzi, the Nouri Al MAlaki and the Mahmud Abbas of his day.
One day they too can grow up to be petty tyrants like Nasser or Mubarak.
Hitchens is doing no more than many other western intellectuals do when they boost the their “Muslim employee of the month” they tell lies for a short term tactical gain.
Justin Raimondo on the issue.
Leave a Comment