If anything has become more clear after Bush’s State of the Union address and Colin Powell’s “evidentiary hearing” at the United Nations, it is that those who oppose military action in Iraq will never accept the situation. It doesn’t matter what evidence is uncovered, what Saddam says or what illegal weapons he has — groups like “Time for Peace” will always see it Saddam’s way, not America’s way.

Groups like these don’t weigh the consequences of allowing Saddam to have weapons of terror. Peaceniks would rather simply ignore the evidence and believe that Saddam was kidding when he said in a Barbara Walters interview, “We call on all peaceloving nations to help the Arabs obtain the atomic bomb.”

This is the man that leftists are working to keep in power.

One has to question both the actions and the motives of peacenik groups. First of all, where were these groups when a Democratic president was bombing radio stations, bridges, roads and the Chinese embassy in Serbia? It would be hard to argue that Milosevic was a threat to the United States. Additionally, Saddam’s regime has reportedly murdered over 1,000,000 innocent civilians, dwarfing alleged human rights violations by Milosevic. By both the conservative measure (national security) and the liberal measure (human rights), Saddam must be dealt with.

When Iraq was brought to the front burner by the administration, intense pressure was put on Bush to pursue a diplomatic solution. Despite Bush’s concerns that diplomacy has been attempted for the past 12 years, he sent a resolution to the United Nations that received a 15 to zero vote of support. Resolution 1441 stated that Iraq must completely disarm itself of all weapons of mass destruction, and U.N. inspectors would confirm Iraq’s efforts to disarm. If Iraq did not pursue disarmament, Iraq would be in material breach, and Resolution 1441 would authorize the use of force in that event.

Peacenik groups and several traditionally anti-American countries seem to ignore the fact that Iraq must disarm itself. Resolution 1441 establishes that the inspectors exist to simply confirm Iraq’s disarmament — not search for weapons hidden in a country the size of California. Colin Powell’s presentation firmly established Iraq’s constant efforts to thwart inspectors and ignore the U.N. resolution. Iraq is in material breach of Resolution 1441, therefore, force is now warranted.

All I could do was shake my head as the French ambassador to the United Nations made a statement shortly after Powell’s presentation. Powell cited the resolution’s construction to hold Iraq accountable for disarmament, and disarmament is not the job of the inspectors. Powell then made it clear that Iraq was in violation, as they clearly work only to thwart inspectors. The French rebuttal was that we should “let the inspectors work.”

The fact that the inspectors have found numerous weapons that were omitted from Iraq’s declaration warrants the use of force per Resolution 1441.

I’m curious if the French have even read the resolution.

So why do peacenik groups in the United States constantly doubt our leaders and speak out against action that only benefits an evil dictator? Liberals constantly look to the government to take an active role to benefit their interests, but don’t want our leaders to take action to protect our collective interest. Too often leftist groups take a dissenting position with Republican presidents just to dissent. Their voices are often silent when a Democratic president takes the same position. They scream about international law, but they ignore it when a Republican administration seeks to uphold it. Peaceniks voice activism above security and politics above country.

Many liberals continue to ask, “Why is Bush taking a different approach to North Korea?” This wouldn’t be so confusing to peaceniks if they wouldn’t ignore what Bush has said. The United Nations has attempted a diplomatic solution to the Iraqi situation for 12 years. North Korea made a statement admitting defiance of the non-proliferation treaty several months ago. Both liberals and conservatives believe in giving diplomacy a chance, as it has worked before with North Korea.

Iraq, on the other hand, has been uncooperative for 12 years. These are obviously two separate situations, and they need to be dealt with differently, just as Bush is doing.

The outcry from peacenik groups and anti-American nations has grown lame. Despite their efforts, Saddam has run out of excuses. The world knows of his deception.

It is still sad, however, that so many on the left would take a position that protects America’s enemies. I fear that many Americans identify more with their ethnicity or ideology than their country. My only consolation is that a strong and protective man is in the oval office, working to keep this country safe from these enemies that peaceniks work so hard to support.

Nathan Borst is a senior in political science from Ames.