The US government, in an era of militant foreign policy and an unending resolve to pursue these goals, has embarked on a misinformation campaign designed to manipulate its citizens into believing that its is a just cause, no matter where it materializes.

First came the craftily announced domestic threats by various organs of their government that created an air of unease among the people. Then came the threats of the weaponry of Armageddon.

WMDs were poised to strike the heartland of the nation. That was followed by evidence that lacked any credibility presented to the United Nations. And then came the strike against Iraq. And when it was all over, suddenly none of these threats that had been touted for so long to justify their incursion have materialized.

The Americans I know are not liars.

It was not a war or an act of heroism when a superpower like the United States — with a population of nearly 300 million — ganged up on a poor Third World country like Iraq with a population of 25 million.

Most Americans are not bullies either.

And after their entry, American forces allowed the continued looting in Basra, Baghdad and other Iraqi cities. Shouldn’t the first priority for the invading forces have been the business of putting their stamp on law and order? Or was there no plan to forestall a tragedy of such a destructive magnitude?

And no sooner had the last wave of bombs fallen than the hawks in the administration began to talk of expanding this incursion into neighboring countries, again using vague references to WMDs.

The Americans I know would welcome Syria’s call to keep this whole region free of WMDs. And in their pursuit for justice, they would demand that this applies to all countries, including the only one definitely known to possess such weaponry, Israel.

Yes, Israel, the major warehouse for weapons of mass destruction in the region. Sadly, that call would be buried among many others attempting to promote peace in the region in recent years.

What happened to Crown Prince Abdullah’s proposal of de facto recognition for the state of Israel conditional on its adherence to UN Security Council resolutions was another example of how reason was muffled by the louder sounds of war.

Going back further, in a November 1947 article, entitled “As the Arabs See the Jews,” in The American Magazine, King Abdallah of Jordan said: “I believe that you Americans do not realize how directly you are, as a nation, responsible in general for the whole Zionist move and specifically for the present terrorism. I call this to your attention because I am certain that if you realize your responsibility, you will act fairly to admit it and assume it.”

In stating the problem, King Abdallah also stated the solution: “I have the most complete confidence in the fair-mindedness and generosity of the American public. We Arabs ask no favors. We ask only that you know the full truth, not half of it.”

Meanwhile, a silent annexation and ethnic cleansing of a people continues. Where are the voices of truth and justice within this administration? The US media by and large is not interested in the pursuit of the truth. Israel is an entity that hardly ever comes under scrutiny. The fear of being accused of anti-Semitism has shut up a lot of people who dared to ask. And while bad guy Saddam was easy pickings, where were their journalistic ethics in the past decade, a decade that has seen hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi children die because of US-led sanctions? Facts have been withheld for reasons of “national security” and journalists have been co-opted into the propaganda machine, their reporting confined to pre-established limits. The truth has been stolen from the American people. If they could be faulted in the past, it would have been on their political naivety in matters beyond their borders. But there are encouraging winds of change.

They are beginning to reach out for the truth within and outside their boundaries. They are slowly beginning to understand the long-term ramifications of the actions of their present and past administrations. And once they wisen up to them, then the good qualities that make them the Americans they are will make those very qualities prevail in their relations with others.

Long live the Americans I know.