Iraqis no better off with Hussein gone

History Professor Gabriel Piterberg is against the war in
Iraq. He participated in the March 5, 2003 walkout and has spoken
against the U.S. occupation at a number of teach-ins and events.
The Daily Bruin sat down with him to ask how he feels about the
Iraq conflict one year later.

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Daily Bruin: Have your views on the war changed since last
year?

Gabriel Piterberg: No, they’ve just been confirmed and
have become stronger. Obviously I think this is a political and
moral disaster.

DB: Is the situation in Iraq any better than it was under
Saddam Hussein?

GP: No, no. Just that (Iraqi resistance) happened quicker than I
thought it would. Anyone who knows the history of colonial
occupation should have been aware of this. It’s horrendous in
the sense that the health, social life, economic life of Iraqis are
no better. I don’t think they have more democracy than they
had under Hussein.

DB: Do you think the constitution that was drafted will
provide any immediate stability for the people?

GP: It’s just for public relations. I don’t think it
has much legitimacy in the eyes of the Iraqis. As soon as that
society can, it will revolt.

DB: How important is the November presidential election to
the situation in Iraq?

GP: I’m not sure. I don’t see huge differences
between the two (political parties) in terms of foreign policy. At
the same time, it is different in certain ways, and there’s
probably logic to the phrase, “Any Democrat is better than
Bush.”

DB: What do you think about Spain’s declaration to
withdraw its troops by this summer? Will it affect U.S.
policy?

GP: Obviously I think at the symbolic level it does, in terms of
conveying the message that Western Europe is opposed to this war
and to the Bush foreign policy.

DB: Does your role as an educator, as a historian and as
somebody who is very much in the eye of students, influence how
vocal you are against the war?

GP: I’m not saying my concept is the only one, but I think
as scholars we have a sort of public commitment. Of course
something like the war gives you more opportunities because there
are more teach-ins, there are more requests to explain, to talk. So
in a way the quantity increases, but it’s not as if the way
in which I understand my vocation changes.

DB: How do you see this war looking in the history
books?

GP: We still don’t have enough perspective on it. In the
end, in conventional terms of success or failure it will depend on
how long they stay and in what state of affairs they will pull
out.

DB: Where do you see Iraq going from here?

GP: I think the resistance will not stop and I think the
brutality and ruthlessness of the American response will be
intensified as well. This is one thing that will happen in the very
near future. We will see.

Interview compiled by Shaun Bishop, Daily Bruin news
reporter.