And now, a report from our BBC correspondent in Baghdad, Iraq.
"Hello, Robin. I just became an eyewitness to the funeral procession of 38 children who died in front of their parents. Now, some of them were less than one year old. It is unfair for them to have died, when actually
they were not even born during or before our 1991 blitzkrieg."
"Jullian, can you say why these children have died?"
"Well Robin, due to our joint U.S./British-led trade embargo on Iraq, this once-rich nation has even run out of medicine. I asked a local woman if her family was doing well. She replied that she found herself helpless as she saw her one-month-old son breathe his last breath because the most common medicines that the United States exports to such nations as China were unavailable in Iraq."
"What do the Red Cross and local doctors have to say about the situation?"
"Nothing. They too are helpless. I have seen doctors dividing one tablet among four patients."
"But Jullian, what about the 'oil-for-food/medicine' deal that we have with Iraq?"
"That is not enough. Medicines have not been coming in regularly, and the oil has been made to sell at cheap prices. You can see the price drop at your local gas station."
"Is it true that cancer is becoming widespread in Iraq?"
"In fact Robin, we can now say for sure that the U.S.-made depleted uranium shells work fantastically! Ever since we used these nuclear bomblets near the city of Basra in 1991, uranium dust has thoroughly become a part of the local ecosystem. Now Iraqis are suffering with all cancers imaginable, including lung and blood cancers."
"And are the Israelis still worried of Iraq and its chemical weapons? How about Kuwait?"
"Well Robin, the Kuwaitis and the rest of Arabs resent the United States going hard on Iraq while having a cozy relationship with Israel. Kuwaitis are not scared of Iraq. On the other hand, Israelis are buying out the U.S.-made respirators like hot-cakes! So the business is booming."
"Jullian, which country in the Middle East is suspected to have nuclear weapons?"
"That would be Israel."
"Which country in the Middle East seized the sovereign territory of other nations by military force and continues to occupy it in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions?"
"Uhh, Israel."
"Which country in the Middle East is in defiance of 69 U.N. Security Council resolutions and has been protected from 29 more by U.S. vetoes?
"Robin, that would definitely be Israel."
"What country in the Middle East is the United States threatening to bomb because 'U.N. Security Council resolutions must be obeyed?'"
"Why, that would be Iraq."
"Thank you, Jullian, for this informative report, live from Baghdad."
- Vyas is a sophomore chemical engineering major who's not from the Middle East, but who wonders who will be the next victim of U.S. double standards. He can be reached at himanv@bayou.uh.edu