Sam’s pissed.

When the USA went to war in Iraq I was double minded about it. At the time, against my better judgment, I thought the President - with the enabling of Colin Powell, whom I trusted more - made a compelling argument that Saddam Hussein posed a significant threat to the USA. Therefore, I tenuously supported the invasion. However, I said then very clearly that the main problem I saw was that President Bush and his cronies would totally fuck things up.

I’ve been proven correct.

But, then, after we didn’t find any weapons of mass destruction, and the much touted connections to al Qaeda were found to be spurious at best, the whole rationale for the invasion changed to something akin to liberating Iraq from the clutches of a dictator who repeatedly violated human rights. This whole bait and switch routine has infuriated me to no end.

What is even more infuriating is that instead of bringing human rights to Iraq and delivering the nation from the barbarian treatment of their citizens, it seems our invasion has perpetrated even more abuses. We see religious fanatic running amok, and the systematic mistreatment of many minorities and historically oppressed people there.

This week things have really swelled to outlandish proportions. It’s been revealed that as many 25 boys and men have been murdered in and around Baghdad simply because they were perceived to be gay. Tribal leaders there are targeting and shooting men, and the local government is conducting no prosecutions of these murders or offering any protection to future possible victims.

The legal status of homosexuality remains very ill-defined. It’s not outright illegal to be homosexual there, but gays and lesbians are routinely harassed and killed, and the Iraqi government, which is fully supported by the US administration, is completely unwilling to do anything about it. What is completely reprehensible is that I’ve heard no outrage from either President Obama or Secretary of State Hillary Clinton about this. It seems the US government is turning a blind eye to these abuses.

I’m outraged.

The only voice of support I’ve heard from the halls of the administration or congress in this regard is from Colorado House Representative Jared Polis (D) Boulder. He was in Iraq this week and was speaking out strongly about the crimes there against the GLBT community. He also spoke out forcefully about the military’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, which is nothing but a bunch of bullshit in my opinion. I’ve been infuriated about it since Bill Clinton supported it (and DOMA) when he was President.

The coward.

I’m very proud that Colorado elected the first openly gay Representative to run for office in US history. I think Jared Polis is a wonderful person, and I fully support him.

I’m looking to President Obama to do more to speak out on GLBT issues - worldwide. I am glad that under his leadership the USA agreed to sign on to the UN resolution calling for homosexuality to be decriminalized everywhere in the world, which is something we did not do when Republican George Bush held office.

But, I’m watching to see if President Obama will use his influence to change things in Iraq in this regard. I want him to condemn the killings and call on the Iraqi government to step up to the plate and protect the GLBT community there from being murdered.

I want President Obama to encourage and cajole congress to rescind “Don’t ask, don’t tell”, and I want the military to do away with this barbarian policy.

I never expected Barack Obama to do everything just the way I wanted it done. I knew he would do some things that I disagreed with, and he’s certainly fulfilling that prediction on my part.

But, in this regard, I will not compromise. I will hold him to task.

I encourage you to do the same.

Here is a link to an editorial Congressman Polis wrote.

Here is a NEW YORK TIMES article on the murders.

~ SamSez