Ding Dong! The witch is dead!

Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. Will this solve all of Iraq's many problems? Of course not. Is it a step in the right direction? You betcha! Yesterday, Saddam Hussein, the Butcher of Baghdad, assumed room temperature as he was executed for just one of thousands of crimes against humanity that he and his henchmen committed against the people of Iraq. I have seen a film of his hanging that was taken by a witness with a video cell phone; Saddam looked frightened, but composed.

Before anyone gets all weepy about a 69 year old man kicking at the end of a rope, let us revisit some of the atrocities that he inflicted upon his own people, and keep in mind that these thousands were just as scared as Saddam Hussein was at the thought of their impending death or disfigurement, but Hussein went in a much more merciful fashion.

These atrocites included the following:

# Medical experimentation

# Beatings

# Crucifixion

# Hammering nails into the fingers and hands

# Amputating sex organs or breasts with an electric carving knife

# Spraying insecticides into a victim's eyes

# Branding with a hot iron

# Committing rape while the victim's spouse is forced to watch

# Pouring boiling water into the victim's rectum

# Nailing the tongue to a wooden board

# Extracting teeth with pliers

# Using bees and scorpions to sting naked children in front of their parents

# And of course, sending clouds of poisonous gas descending upon villages and towns.

So if you look at Saddam at his execution and feel any sympathy for his predicament, just remember other images like this:


Saddam sure didn't give a crap about these people at the moment of their death, now did he?

Keep in mind, much of the fence straddling and lack of cooperation from many of the Iraqi people toward the American presence and the push toward Iraq's democratization has been caused by the fear that somehow, some way, Saddam would make it back into power - and in that case, Allah help anyone who collaborated with the Americans. Now that Saddam is taking the eternal dirt nap, it will be interesting to see what happens.

Good Day to You, Sir (no, not you Saddam)