April 30, 2003
The New York Times reports that Iraq owes various entities about 60 to 80 billion dollars.
Who owes that money?
Iraq has been run by a dictator for 30 years. Saddam Hussein was never elected to power by free and fair elections. The vast majority of the citizens of Iraq had absolutely no voice in the government's decision to borrow money. And what was the money borrowed for? Probably to buy weapons. Why did Saddam need weapons? To crush his own people.
So who owes the world 60 to 80 billion dollars? Saddam Hussein, that's who. And when Saddam Hussein came to these banks and government institutions to ask if he could borrow some money and the banks said, how do we know you'll pay it back, he answered, the people of my country willingly undertake to cover all of my debts, and the banks reply: but Mr. Hussein, you were not elected! And he didn't get his money. Right?
So if you're Russia or Citibank or France or Halliburton (which did more than $40 million of business with Iraq only a few years ago) or whoever the hell is owed that money, I guess you just sigh and say to yourself, "darn-- if only Saddam hadn't been deposed! Now we lost our money."
Ha ha ha.
Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!
I'll tell you what we are going to do. We are going to make the people of Iraq pay Saddam's debt. It's only fair. They live there. What would banks and credit agencies do if people didn't repay their debts? They would become irresponsible parasites who cheat us out of our money and they would never learn the value of good hard day's work. Almost like stock analysts.
Or a billion barrels of oil.
I hope you think I'm joking but I'm not. Iraq's predicament is no different from that of many third world countries. Some asshole rises to power by killing his opponents and bullying citizens into helpless submission. He imprisons, tortures, and murders his own people with impunity. They live in terror of being arrested by his secret police. Then he goes to Citibank. Does Citibank say, "gee, that would be a risky loan-- what if he is deposed and the people don't want to pay for his palaces, his air force, his missiles, and his tanks? I'll lose my money."
No. Citibank says, "we can always count on the IMF and the World Bank and the United States government to enforce these loans!
And so it is.