Iraq War Creating Generation of Traumatized Youth

Meet Mustafa Karim.

Mustafa is a 4th grader in Iraq who now lives in a Shia refugee camp. This young boy's witnessed more violence and trauma in his short life than many of us will in our lifetimes. His father and uncle were murdered in front of him by Sunni death squads. His story is all too familiar nowadays in Iraq.

The US-led invasion of Iraq has had many tragic consequences, the orphaning and traumatizing of young kids like Mustafa among the greatest. His generation is being referred to as the 'lost' generation; one characterized by children with overwhelming psychological problems whose prognoses to lead normal lives are increasingly looking grim by the day, induced by the illegitimate war being waged by the Bush Administration.

How people who support the Republican agenda can look at stories like Mustafa's and still support the war baffle me. Where is the humanity? Imagine if Mustafa was your family member... how can so many stay steadfast in their support of this war when faced with overwhelming evidence that everything about the Administration's pretenses for war was one big lie is truly a paradox.

Please read this article when you have a chance. I realize that reading this material isn't pleasant and it makes you feel sad and powerless to stop it, but this is the reality of the world in which we live and the distress you might feel is the by-product of being informed.