Monday, March 17, 2003

A Gulf War veteran talks about Saddam.

To underestimate Iraqi President Saddam Hussein would be a tragic mistake, says a Gulf War veteran. He is an evil man who must go, for the sake of the Iraqi people and the world at large, said USS Kearsarge public affairs officer Senior Chief Gregg Snaza.

"I think it's naive of people to say that this is a war against any type of religion, race or creed," he said. "Saddam is a menace and he has done things that are pure atrocities. "If I was of the same religion as he is, I would be embarrassed by his actions. "I would think he would need to go too. I don't believe he represents Muslims very well. I don't think he represents Iraqis very well. Saddam does not represent the very best Iraq has to offer."

The 38-year-old served as a photo-journalist for navy publications during Desert Storm, operating out of Bahrain.

"Saddam has not gone out and done an aggressive act to those people around him that is as overt as people would like to see, if you were going to war," he said. "People like to see cause and effect. They are more reluctant to look at the threat that Saddam poses to the rest of the world."

Senior Chief Snaza personally believes that the Iraqi leader must go.

"I don't subscribe to any kind of camp that says kill him or assassinate him, but I believe Iraqis deserve a peaceful life the same way other countries in the world does. I think that's America's point," he said.

"We are here because we want every country to have the freedom to live the way they want to live. "We are not saying that they have to be a democracy, or have Western beliefs. "We are not saying this is something against Islam. "We are saying that the Iraqis have a right to prosper. I think you get very little argu-ment that under Saddam that's an impossible regime. "He rules with an iron fist and Iraqis don't stand a chance."

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