SELF & PEACE

Watching a Movie related to Iraq War Took me Back and Prompted Self-Examination

We are what happened to us: what we saw, what we experienced, what we learned, what we understood. Our strengths are gained through our experiences, and our flaws. Our flaws shape us.

A movie I watched recently took me back to my childhood, to my youth. I had been in fear of war coming to our region where millions of people lived — not once, but twice.

I don’t compare myself and my experience at all to those who lived in a war zone during their childhood, had their children there or were in dread of losing their lives and loved ones.

But who doesn’t sense the catastrophe of a war?

I was ten years old when the first war started in Iraq, the Gulf War. My family was living in a city in the eastern part of Turkey because of my father’s job. The city wasn’t a border city but close enough. The threat, as I remember it, was chemical weapons. My father nailed heavy-duty plastic drop sheets onto our wooden windows. I remember pondering how to breathe if the sheets could stop the chemical weapons coming in with the air. I was suspicious of their protective ability.

I learned about American patriot missiles and Iraqi counterattacking Russian Scud missiles at that time. I hated the endless news about the war on TV.

The movie which brought back my memories is “Official Secrets (2019)” about the second war in Iraq.

The true story of a British whistleblower who leaked information to the press about an illegal NSA spy operation designed to push the UN Security Council into sanctioning the 2003 invasion of Iraq. IMDb

Katharine Gun, through her work, found out that Americans wanted assistance from British Intelligence to be able to go into a war with Iraq. They were trying to influence some UN members to create justification for the war. That was too wrong for Katharine; she leaked the info.

So many protests took place in several parts of the world against the war in Iraq before and after the second invasion. I participated in one of them in Istanbul, this time as a 23-year-old. It was all about peace, even though every participant group had its ideals and banners to promote. There had to be another way, other than war, to resolve the problems.

Those wars in the Middle East didn’t bring any good for either side — only continuous unsettlement to the region. Thankfully, and I believe pretty much coincidentally, because of a very new government, Turkey didn’t allow American troops to use Turkish land in 2003.

In addition to reminding me of the old times, the movie also persuaded me to turn the spotlight on myself. Would I do something like Katharine did if I was in her shoes? Would I be brave enough to act on my values? It wasn’t exactly in the same situation, but how did I stand when my values were violated? What about being in power and abusing it? Would I break my values or realize I didn’t have any?

My answers to my questions weren’t always satisfying and happy. I did some wrong things, or I didn’t shout out when I witnessed the bad things; then, I regretted it deeply.

I like the reminders, though. Even if remembering involves suffering, to be a better person, I prefer to be prompted. My mistakes, if I know them, won’t be repeated. When I know my flaws, they won’t be my weakness.

Do you think the same?

Do you analyze your past deeds when you encounter a heroic act in a book, movie or in a story, even if the consequences of the act are not desirable?

If I do, if I re-enter and scrutinize my past, it tells me that there is a good story here.