Tale of two dictators

OK, here is a scenario. A country has a dictatorial leader with a history of human rights violations. He defies dozens of U.N. sanctions and thumbs his nose at the rest of the world. He is said to be manufacturing weapons of mass destruction and does not give even the slightest hint that he is not.

You might recognize this maniac as Saddam Hussein. After years of threats, the U.S. and a contingent of other countries invade his country to restore basic human dignity and hopefully create a democracy that will allow the people to have a voice in shaping the country’s future.

OK, here is another scenario. A country has a dictatorial leader with a history of human rights violations. There were no U.N. sanctions against this country. He has been a “friend” of the U.S. for over three decades. He has not, nor has he ever shown, the slightest inclination toward the manufacturing of WMDs. After a very public uprising of thousands of his citizens, he is the target of a coordinated bombing, featuring the U.S. This maniac is named Moammar Gadhafi, and his country has a population of 6.5 million people. The U.S. does not have a stated goal in this bombing campaign. The U.S. is going to politically cripple Gadhafi and then hope for the best.

In the words of the legendary Marvin Gaye, what’s going on?

Rudy Pena

Spokane Valley