Kristina Gronquist's Columns

'America's Policy Has Consequences, Right or Wrong'

"'Are we safer?' This is a question being bandied about at this juncture, five years after 9/11 and nearly four years into the war on Iraq . The banal and selfish nature of this question is mind-boggling. Are we safer? Think about this in context to how the Iraqi people must feel today. Their nation was illegally invaded under false pretenses (Iraqis having nothing to do with terror) and now the beautiful 'land of two rivers' has literally been torn apart by the Coalition forces and the chain of violence they began. Tens of thousands of Iraqis have died and suffered, and hundreds die weekly. And we in the US have the arrogance and insensitivity to only ask one question, 'Are we safer?'"  Column by Kristina Gronquist.

Reports from Iraq Reflect War's Bitter Course

"...all of these deaths have resulted directly from that one disastrous decision by our misguided policy-makers: the decision to invade Iraq."  Column by Kristina Gronquist.

2006 Brings New Fears for Bush's Iraq Project

" When Bush says we won’t leave Iraq until we win, this is exactly what he means by winning: a pro-U.S. Iraqi regime conducive to Washington ’s economic and political goals in the region."  Column by Kristina Gronquist.

The Shifting Sands of War Rationales

"How complacently arrogant and idiotic the masses are over here, armchair experts, talking heads, discussing when, where and how there might be democracy in Iraq, while real Iraqi people – men, women and children – bleed to death day in and day out in the insane chaos our leaders have willfully created."  Column by Kristina Gronquist.

Teach Your Children Well

"All of the analysis, self-righteous indignation, and solemn debate misses what I believe might be a primary causal factor as to why America's children--rich and poor alike--seem destined to 'solve' their problems with violence.  Not surprisingly, they are simply following the horrid example set by their own government, which most of the adults around them seem to likewise support."  Column by Kristina Gronquist.

The Backdrop Never Changes

Embedded reporters continue to misinform on Iraq.  Column by Kristina Gronquist.

Send in the Clowns

"So I suggest that we bring the rank and file troops home immediately and in their place send in all these policy elites, especially members of all the 'think' tanks, people who lectured all over the media promoting this vapid regression in imperialism.  They dictate their sanctimonious nonsense from cushy offices while people in Iraq suffer and die."  Column by Kristina Gronquist.

Color Your Opposition to the War But Stay Within the Lines

"The lesson is that if you want to go mainstream with your opposition to the war in Iraq and get the time of day, first and foremost you must lace your argument with adulation for the troops’ heroism and patriotism. Steep your words in the notion that war is a glorious thing, even wars without cause. Don’t talk about dead Iraqis...."  Column by Kristina Gronquist.

Questioning the Ends and Means of Violence

"The futility of pursing policies where 'the ends justifies the means' reflects all around us. The violent strategies chosen by our government, not properly questioned by a compliant and uninformed mainstream, will blow back to haunt us, for in destroying human lives in other parts of the world, we destroy parts of ourselves; ultimately, we sow our own destruction."  Column by Kristina Gronquist.

Be Afraid!  Because Paranoia Is Patriotic

"Why try to address and deal with root causes of terror, like anger at our policies? Doesn't it make more sense to exist instead in this heightened sense of anxiety and paranoia, all of the time, with no reprieve in sight?"  Column by new Root Striker Kristina Gronquist.