Remember when Rumsfeld said "Stuff happens" when Iraq's treasures were looted?

[madfloridian]

Rumsfeld's arrogant words in 2003 on the looting of Iraq. "Stuff happens"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Declaring that freedom is "untidy," Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Friday the looting in Iraq was a result of "pent-up feelings" of oppression and that it would subside as Iraqis adjusted to life without Saddam Hussein.

He also asserted the looting was not as bad as some television and newspaper reports have indicated and said there was no major crisis in Baghdad, the capital city, which lacks a central governing authority. The looting, he suggested, was "part of the price" for what the United States and Britain have called the liberation of Iraq.

"Freedom's untidy, and free people are free to make mistakes and commit crimes and do bad things," Rumsfeld said. "They're also free to live their lives and do wonderful things. And that's what's going to happen here."

Looting, he added, was not uncommon for countries that experience significant social upheaval. "Stuff happens," Rumsfeld said. Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, agreed. "This is a transition period between war and what we hope will be a much more peaceful time," Myers said.

We were bombing and looting Babylon, and most Americans never knew it. From 2003

Babylonian Booty

It had been conquered and re-conquered a dozen or more times, by (among others) the Akkadians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Macedonians, Parthians, Arabs, Ottomans and British, and in February 1991, yet another foreign power raised its flag over the ancient city of Ur, near the mouth of the Euphrates: the Americans. Daring the allies to bomb the birthplace of the patriarch Abraham, Iraqis had parked their jets near Ur's 4,000-year-old ziggurat, but the planes were shot up all the same. American soldiers toured the ancient tower, then got out their entrenching tools and began digging for souvenirs. A forlorn Iraqi gatekeeper ran among them, wailing protests in Arabic, until U.S. officers put a stop to the looting. Last week, when NEWSWEEK visited the site, it was virtually deserted, except for a lone guide, the son of the old gatekeeper, keeping a wary eye on the American and British warplanes streaking overhead. "Ninety-nine percent of Americans don't know the country they'll be bombing is Mesopotamia," says Dr. Huda Ammash, a high-ranking Baath Party official. "Our country has served humanity for so long, now it's up to the international community to help protect Iraq."

[NYC_SKP]

1. We were witness, you and I madfloridian, to one of the most shameful chapters in US history.

Great post.

K/R

[madfloridian]

3. Indeed we were. Sickening and shameful.

Last edited Mon Feb 18, 2013, 10:29 PM - Edit history (2)

[Ian David]

2. I wonder if he'd feel the same way if people were looting his Home Depot stores. n/t

[madfloridian]

4. He'd never admit it.

Arrogance means you get to always act tough.

[Bonobo]

5. I will never forget. It was one for the history books.

Truly shameful on a historic scale.

I mean -hang your head in remorse and sadness level shame to even BE an American and to cause the destruction and looting of mankind's great cultural legacy.

Wow, it doesn't get any lower than that IMO.

[RobertEarl]

6. Sad times

I believe in Karma. Especially when you mess with the ancients.

I look forward to the day when we can say all the war freaks have died off. And gone to their own special hell.

[Demeter]

7. Hence the Bipartisan Move to Totally Tidy Totalitarianism

With the surgically striking Predator Drones and Extras (extraordinary renditions, that is).

[triplepoint]

8. This coming from an onsite/eyewitness 9/11 Inside Job Denier

He lives on property where Frederic Douglas was a slave...That speaks volumes...

[Solly Mack]

9. Not likely to forget.

[kas125]

10. It literally made me sick watching that happen. And tonight

I'm feeling that same kind of sick. I've never stopped protesting, and evidently, seeing those war criminals on tv tonight just makes my stomach protest, too. Ugh, I hoped I'd live long enough to see them in prison, but I doubt that it'll happen.

[dreamnightwind]

11. +1

And I like your avatar and tagline.

[kas125]

13. Thanks! Your name is pretty great, too!

I'm sitting here right now watching a crazy cat peeking through lace, but it's curtains, not a bandana, lol.

[dreamnightwind]

14. Ha! you seem to know the

song pretty well. Might want to check your inbox.

[kas125]

15. Thank you!!

[madfloridian]

12. The night they showed the shock and awe on TV I was shaking inside.

It redefined our country forever.