The death of two ex- Presidents

During one and the same week, two ex-presidents died, Gerald ford and Saddam Hussein. One of them died of old age by natural causes, the other one, Saddam Hussein, died at the gallows. While his trial and the way he was sentenced in a country that is still under occupation, is very much in question as for it’s legality under international law, or even local laws, the way he was executed, the timing of his execution and the way and manner it was handled, are all a disgrace, to say the least, for the so-called government of Iraq, this does not by any means absolve him from the crimes he committed against his own people as well as his neighboring countries.

One ruled his country for about three years the other one for about three and half decades. Mr. Ford came to office as a vice president following the resignation of the then VP Spiro Agnew in disgrace, Mr. Ford was the minority leader in the house of representative at the time, he never asked for the job or campaigned for it, yet president Nixon selected him during a time of national and personal difficulties for Mr. Nixon himself as a result of the Watergate scandal.

About a year later, when Mr. Nixon was forced to either resign or face impeachment, he opted for the resignation, and Gerald ford once again found himself occupying the highest office in the nation, never asked for it or campaigned for it.

The nation was at what looked as a “constitutional crisisâ€‌, with Nixon’s resignation, the highest office in the nation was looking very shaky to the American people and needed a very strong and decisive action on Mr. Ford’s part to restore trust and confidence to the office of the presidency.

Ford, at his own political future expense, acted for the sake of his country, he could have put his political fortunes ahead, and acted selfishly, could have thought about his legacy as a president and the opportunity to rule for two additional full terms, but he put the nation first, and guided it through that most trying time to safety. He pardoned Nixon of all Watergate crimes, a decision that cost him the presidency three years later, he did not want the nation to be mired in a lengthy trial that would most definitely split and further divided a country that was already divided, and caused more political storms that would have impacted not just the US political environment, but a host of other issues, including the economy, foreign affairs, unemployment …etc. He sailed with the economy from almost depression status to a steady and stable one, he put the final touches to end the war in Vietnam with the full withdrawal of the American forces and about 150,000 refugees, he sparked the first political agreement between Egypt and Israel, and started the end of colonialism in southern Africa, All that in just about three years.

Many people do not credit him for much, and only remember his pardon to Nixon or his clumsiness in hitting his head at the door of air-force one, or his misspoken words about Poland, but those who knew him closely and spoke about him, and his performance as a leader in the congress and as a president, tell a whole different story.

Compare this to the other Ex-President, Saddam, who came to power by force and deception, who took his nation to war not one time but twice. He invaded Iran in the longest war in the twenty’s century, he caused the death of more that a million of his own people and the Iranians, as well as the countless number of permanently injured and destruction of properties, more than 1.2 trillion dollars loss on both sides in that war alone, a war in which he used all kind of weapons including chemical and biological, then invaded another neighbor, Kuwait, to be kicked out with more losses in human lives and equipment. He squandered hundreds of billions of his nation’s national resources in his wars while building palaces and statues for himself allover Iraq; he tortured and killed scores of his own people to protect his own live, he caused by his foolishness and stupidity an embargo on his country that only his people suffered and half a million babies died as a result of, but not him, his family and his elite. He, during his more than three decades, demonstrated stupidity and lack of basic knowledge in leadership, total ignorance of political, social, military and cultural skills. Some people “mayâ€‌ have a change of heart about him, had he died fighting the occupation, in a battle with the occupiers or an air raid or something of that nature, but he was caught hiding in a rat hole like ……a frightened rat.

Is it no wonder that ford died in dignity and honor and was grieved by the entire nation, that many people of all political convictions cried and mourned his death, while the other one, most of his people cheered his death and celebrated in the streets. That is the difference between the good and the bad, honor and dishonor, democracy and dictatorship. Will the other dictators in the Arab world learn something!!!!! I really doubt it.