In 2003 the United States invaded Iraq in what was then called Operation Iraqi Freedom. Six years later, the new Iraq is still a dangerous place requiring the protection and assistance of American troops. In some ways the Iraq War was a success. The United States was able to remove one of the most evil and tyranical leaders in modern history in Saddam Hussein. Democracy though fragile has been planted in a Middle East nation. And since the invasion of Iraq, the United States has not been attacked by terrorists on American soil.
But there has been a price. Over 4,000 US troops have been killed in Iraq since the war began. And the fighting has bled American's of another $700 billion to support the effort. And what many people forget is why America went to war in Iraq in the first place. Or at least the reasoning at the time. To this day, we have not found a single weapon of mass destruction in Iraq. Yet that was the defining reason and propaganda used by the Bush administration in it's push for war.
This cartoon was created by world famous political cartoonist Pat Oliphant. Oliphant doesn't hide behind his work. He openly calls the Bush administration evil and questions the leadership they provided during the past eight years. But it doesn't take bold statements like that to understand what he is trying to say in this photograph.
The first thing I noticed when looking at this picture is Dick Cheney towering over this dead soldier. He looks angry, dominant and even evil as he towers over the scene. This contrasts the small, innocent cowboy dressed version of George Bush we see looking curiously at the man on the ground. Why is Cheney so much larger in this photograph than Bush? Why is Cheney dressed in a suit looking angry, while Bush is dressed informal cowboy style with a look of almost childlike innocence on his face?
These minor details that Oliphant works into the picture send a clear message. In his mind, Dick Cheney was the man responsible for what happened to this soldier. And while Bush is on his knees trying to comfort him, Cheney stares angrily from above into the man's eyes. This tells us that Bush, though uninformed and inept for the task at hand, feels bad about what has happened to the soldier. We see no such indications through body language or any form of communication from Dick Cheney.
But what really seals the message in this cartoon are the words spoken by Bush. "Would it make you feel better to know we had inaccurate intelligence?" Notice also the typography, and the lack of color, size, weight and shape in the words. Nothing is done to the text to make it stand out, or to draw attention.
I believe this was intentional. Oliphant wants the site of a dead soldier on the ground, surrounded by an incompetent President and his destructive Vice President to sink in. He wants us to notice these subtle but powerful messages, before we read the akward quote that pulls all of the details and elements together.
The argument could be made that this soldier died for nothing. Or at least not for the reasons that he thought. We started this war to defend America from terrorism. We were told that Iraq was a threat to our country and our way of life. But was that true? Is the world safer today because of what happened in Iraq? And more importantly, did the Bush administration take advantage of September 11th to accomplish a political agenda. It's an issue I aim to explore in this project, and a message I believe Oliphant was preaching loud and clear through this cartoon.
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