PELOSI’S ARMENIAN GENOCIDE RESOLUTION: A RECKLESS GAMBLE WITH AMERICA’S SECURITY
Paul Ibrahim

North Star Writers Group, MI

Oct 22 2007

Congressional Democrats are at it again. When they tried to withdraw
from Iraq, President Bush launched the troop surge with significant
popular support. When they tried to discredit the surge, General
Petraeus showed up and told them that it was working wonderfully
after all.

When these congressional Democrats tried to insult and tarnish General
Petraeus by protecting their friends at MoveOn.org, Americans condemned
them for it and responded favorably to the military’s progress on
the ground.

Now, congressional Democrats want to sink even lower than they ever
have. By harming the war effort in the worst manner yet, they are
officially willing to put our military’s progress on the ground at
a severe and unnecessary risk for their own benefit.

For some reason, these Democratic leaders in Washington have decided
that now would be the perfect time to anger Turkey, a crucial ally
in the Middle East and an important player in the region, by passing
a resolution condemning the appalling treatment of Armenians by the
Ottoman Empire (now Turkey), calling it a genocide.

Congressional Democrats are fully aware of the threat this would pose
to our effort in Iraq, but have nonetheless passed the resolution in
a congressional committee, and might do so on the floor very soon.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I was born and lived most of my life
in Lebanon, a country that was for a long time occupied by the
awful Ottoman Empire. The occupation, which ended in World War I,
greatly harmed both the country and the people who lived in it. The
conversations I have had with those who spent their younger years under
Ottoman rule, and with their children (including my own grandparents),
more than corroborate historical records discussing widespread pain,
desperation and famine.

I also grew up befriending many of the descendants of those Armenians
who fled Ottoman persecution and ended up in Lebanon, making up 4
percent of that country’s population. Their children, grandchildren
and great-grandchildren to this day recount horror stories about the
cruelty perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire.

Those of us who are neither Turkish nor in denial are fully aware and
conscious that the Ottoman Empire, especially surrounding the years
of World War I, ranks among the most brutal in history. We really,
really don’t need Nancy Pelosi to pass a resolution condemning the
Ottomans, and with a bare majority mind you, in order for us to be
upset with them for slaughtering all the Armenians they slaughtered.

In response to the resolution, the Turks have threatened to cut off
American access to Incirlik Air Base, a major resupply center for
U.S. operations in Iraq and the region. A few days ago, they acted
to allow their military to invade northern Iraq to chase Kurdish
enemies, potentially destabilizing what is supposed to be one of
Iraq’s most secure areas. Turkey has already recalled its ambassador
from Washington in protest of the actions by Congress.

It is not worth it for us. It’s just not. This is obvious to any
reasonable observer, and should especially be so to those who are
fully in the loop, such as congressional Democrats.

What could possibly account for the urge to condemn an empire that
doesn’t even exist anymore, particularly at such a sensitive time?

The supposed urgency is simply not present. We really won’t appear
to be endorsing genocide if we don’t pass this resolution right here,
right now. Besides, if congressional Democrats have really become all
that principled all of a sudden, maybe they can start looking at the
far more extensive atrocities committed by communist regimes in much
more recent decades.

Seventy percent of U.S. air cargo sent to Iraq goes through Turkey. A
peaceful Kurdish region would continue to be much needed as we work
on tackling the more difficult central areas of Iraq.

Armenian Americans should understand this, and should themselves
withdraw support for the resolution. They might not like it, but
Turkey is extremely important to our efforts in the Middle East. And
they should know that if our efforts in the Middle East fail, leading
to the growth of expansionist theocracies and the spread of radical
militancy, one of the first to suffer would be that small Christian
country bordered by Turkey and Iran, and not too far from the Russians
and the Chechens to the north – a nice, pleasant circle of friends.

Passing this resolution would bring America a lot more harm than good,
and congressional Democrats are simply blundering again. At this point,
even if the resolution is not passed, the Turks will recognize that
they can now successfully push us around because of our dependence
on them.

Shame on Pelosi and her self-righteous associates. The United States
has had almost a century to condemn the Ottomans, and the timing
today is not at all coincidental. This behavior by congressional
Democrats could be intentionally reckless, or merely foolish. Either
way, it is extremely dangerous. And even more disturbingly, there
is no indication that this is the last time they take a gamble with
America’s security and the world’s future.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress