The United States has always mocked the dead. All its aggressive wars have resulted in ruins and blood tracks for their victims. In Vietnam, over 3 million civilians were killed under bombings in which even chemical weapons were used. In Latin America, the secret diplomacy and the spying bodies that directly report to the White House were behind military coups that resulted in the torture and death of thousands of fighters for democracy. In the Middle East, the United States sponsors the repressive State of Israel, which massacres the unarmed Palestinian population in a daily basis. In the struggle against socialist Cuba, that same imperialism does not hesitate in sheltering and protecting notorious terrorists, such as Posada Carrilles, responsible for the explosion of airplanes and bombs in hotels. It is a history that, besides being a criminal one, is one of assumed mockery and cynicism towards the dead. The illicit acts of United States’ imperialism always find excuses and legitimacy in the pens and voices of a propagandistic army at its service. “Human rights”, “Democracy”, “National security”, “Defense of strategic interests” are the common expressions with which the criminals mocked and derided the dead. In the present “preventive wars”, the practice is not being different. In Afghanistan the United States’ troupes promote a pillage to hunt down the former ally terrorist who was at its service during the anti-Russia war of the 1980’s. In Iraq, with false excuses and evident lies, the United States destroyed one of the most ancient cultural heritages of mankind, destroyed the country’s infrastructure, killed dozens of thousands of civilians - 28 thousand according to some sources, 40 thousand according to others. The cities of Fallujah, Talafar, Samarra and Haditha were decimated in siege and destruction operations, which had results that could be compared in some cases to genocides. And yet the behavior of the empire that poses as omnipotent and invincible remains as a mockery towards the victims. In order to kill Zarqawi, the leader of the Al-Qaeda faction, the occupation forces had to bomb his hiding place in Baquda. The president of the United States, in a demonstration of moral and political decadence, celebrated the fact as a great victory of his administration. Pursued by a public opinion that is increasingly becoming more critical towards the occupation war, demoralized by the countless defeats both in the political and battle fields, which is showing up more and more in public opinion polls, George W. Bush is making efforts to capitalize on the fact in order to demonstrate the “utility” of the war to the critics. The lack of accomplishments is of such an order that the aggressors do not feel embarrassed in proclaiming that it was the greatest exploit since the capture of Saddam, almost three years ago. The collection of defeats in Iraq might explain why the imperialists, without self-criticism or demonstration of regret for their crimes, are replacing the mockery towards death with another feeling that is far more in adequate to the period of decadence that they are now facing: fear. So the commander of Guantanamo concentration camp, rear admiral Harry Harris, considered the suicide of three unfortunate prisoners past Saturday “an asymmetric act of war”. The United States massacres the living. And is afraid of the dead. That was the clearest confession of defeat ever made by a US authority; it is the most solemn demonstration that the United States is digging its own grave in the war against Iraq. It’s the accurate demonstration that also in the case of the United States’ intervention in Iraq “the only truth of war is its victims”. President Bush himself, being realistic, had to say that Zarqawi’s death is not enough to “end violence” in the occupied country. He made a “surprise visit” to reiterate the “support” to and “trust” in the recently built government, a puppet government, so much that it was informed on the meeting with the emperor only five minutes before it took place. In those same days, the liberation of more 66 billion dollars to pay the war operations in Iraq was announced in Washington, elevating to 320 billion dollars the total expenses with the slaughter. Everything indicates that Bush’s visit was useless and that his occupying armies will continue fearing not only the dead but also the living. In the domestic front, Iraqi resistance actions continue to multiply. And externally, international public opinion just became aware of a study carried out by British independent institute Oxford Research Group, unsuspected of being anti-American, according to which, after 18 months of research and investigation, terrorism is not the main threat to humankind. To that institute, the real dangers are “climate changes”, “marginalization of the majority of the world’s population”, “competition for natural resources” and “world militarization”. On that last aspect, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, from Sweden, just released some data referring to worldwide military expenses, which amount to 1.1 trillion dollars, 40% of which, or 478.2 billion, correspond to the United States. Besides that, the research indicates that the “war against terrorism” has been counterproductive, for it is generating “greater instability and security lack”. It is one more condemnation to the doctrine of “permanent war against terrorism”, which is in the ground to the slaughter carried out in Iraq by the United States. As long as the United States’ aggression war remains, with its series of crimes against humanity, the resistance war of Iraqi people shall proceed, for they are aware of their freedom and sovereignty and have shown in several other historic situations that foreign domination will not be accepted. That is why, despite everything, the United States harvests defeats and is condemned to fail in its neocolonialist campaign. President Bush has reiterated that he will not leave Iraq so early. As for that, the movement for peace and international solidarity is not allowed to make mistakes. The demand for withdrawal regarding the imperialist occupation troops is simultaneously a matter of principles and a word of order for immediate action. - José Reinaldo Carvalho, journalist. Communications Director of Cebrapaz, member of the Political Commission of PCdoB’s Central Committee and member of the BRussells Tribunal.