Liberator
I’m still writing the next chapter of Otherworldly Goods, so I thought I’d use the opportunity to do another What Now cartoon. And since the US is recycling old justifications for going to war in the Middle East, I thought I’d recycle an old In Contempt image to address. The In Contempt strip from 2003 featured a panel of Unkle 800-lb Gorilla smashing up Iraq while screaming, “I’ve come to liberate you.” Well, here we are again. Only bigger, bolder, crazier than ever. It only made sense to revisit the concept and blow it up, so to speak.
I looked around for the 2003 strip — or I think it was 2003, it could have been 2004; my memory is a little dusty, and my files from 20 years ago are in another computer that is not currently active and a PITA to launch. However, I did find this similar strip from 2004, expanding on the gorilla gone mad trope:
In Contempt 5/24/2004
Ahmed Chalabi was the founder of the Iraqi National Congress, a group of expats that advocated the US invasion of his home country and overthrow of Saddam Hussein. They got their wish, and the US installed Chalabi as president, calling him “the George Washington of Iraq.” While he was no slaveholder, Chalabi was corrupt as hell, revelations of which prompted investigation by the US (ironic, given the people involved in the US occupation), which prompted him to side with the Iranians. He vowed for years to expose the corruption of the Paul Bremer occupying regime, and when he died Iraqi media speculated he was poisoned to keep him silent. I’d love to see Armando Iannucci do a satirical biography of this guy.
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