Rebecca Solnit, Success Is for the Stubborn
Rebecca Solnit arrived at TomDispatch as a ray of light in a moment of darkness. It was May 2003. The largest anti-war demonstrations in history — organized across the planet before an expected war had even broken out — were so over. The Bush administration had done exactly what its top officials had long desired to do (certain as they were that unleashing American military power on Iraq was the key to a future Pax Americana in the Greater Middle East and a future Pax Republicana at home). They had invaded Iraq, taken the capital, proclaimed “mission accomplished,” named the giant base they were setting up on the edge of Baghdad “Camp Victory,” and were in the midst of major self-celebrations. By then, they had no doubt that the sun would never dare set on the unique country they were leading, and that the imperial Romans and Brits had been pikers by comparison.
On the other hand, the antiwar movement had essentially declared failure. In the U.S., many of the antiwarriors had already packed up their tents and headed for home in a state of depression. The fact that there had never been a demonstration of global will quite like what they had managed to put together lost its meaning in the face of a war and an administration that, in reality, they never had a chance of stopping.
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