Selling War

White House Debuts Iraq War Infomercial

WASHINGTON, DC—Hosts Donald Rumsfeld and Linda Evans told viewers that Iraq could be ours for the low cost of $238 billion.

This "news" article from the The Onion combines elements of pure nonsense with actual facts surrounding the war in Iraq in order to play on the U.S. government's attempts to "sell" a largely unpopular war. Even to those unfamiliar with the satirical nature of The Onion, the first sentence alone reveals the true intent behind the article: "In an attempt to gain support among idle and sleepless Americans, the Bush Administration made its case for the continuing war in Iraq in a one-hour paid program that premiered early Tuesday morning."

Although this article can certainly be read for pure amusement, it's resemblance to the actual situation in which the U.S. government has found itself is remarkable. In fact, for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, the supposed host of this fictitious infomercial, states that "...I bet you all think freedom in Iraq costs about $500 trillion and 2 million civilian casualties...Well, you're wrong. Try $238 billion and some 30,000 casualties!" Interestingly, this comedic gesture mirrors the actual tactics employed by the government as they make the extremely hard sell for this war. The Bush Administration has frequently cited the relatively low number of casualties in this war compared to wars of the past, as if this is somehow consolation for the fact that anyone has died at all.

Finally, the article ends with Donald Rumsfeld utilizing the government's most preferred method of justification: complete denial that the war may have been started prematurely or in error.
"...the naysayers can't punch any holes in our justifications for occupying Iraq with military force."