LIMITS OF POWER, LAWS OF LIFE
On August 2, 1990, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein sent his troops into Kuwait and took control of it. This was clearly an act of aggression. Soon after, on August 6, the U.S. chargé d’affaires in Baghdad, Joseph Wilson, met Saddam Hussein and delivered a message from President George Bush. The American envoy, using diplomatic language, warned Saddam that he had committed an act of aggression. Any differences he had with Kuwait should have been resolved through mutual dialogue, not force.
But Saddam Hussein, then intoxicated by his sense of victory, responded to the American diplomat with the following words, reported in English:
“Give my regards to President Bush and tell him that the Al-Sabah family has now become history.”
Saddam’s message was clear: Inform President Bush that Kuwait’s ruling family, the Al-Sabah, is now just a thing of the past.
The very next day, on August 17, Saddam went even further and declared that Kuwait no longer existed—it had become Iraq’s 19th province.
But the story didn’t end there. At Kuwait’s request, the United States intervened directly. Washington warned Saddam Hussein to withdraw his forces from Kuwait by January 15, 1991. Saddam ignored the ultimatum. On January 17, 1991, the US launched a massive attack on Iraq. Saddam’s forces were completely defeated in defense, and by March 1, 1991, the war ended with Iraq’s worst defeat.
After this, the U.S. imposed a strict blockade on Iraq from all sides. This destroyed Iraq’s economy. Helpless, Saddam Hussein was forced to accept all of America’s demands. Finally, on November 10, 1994, under his leadership, the Iraqi parliament met and unanimously passed a resolution recognizing Kuwait as an independent state. On November 14, 1994, Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz met the U.N. Secretary-General in New York and formally conveyed Iraq’s decision in writing (Times of India, November 15, 1994).
Saddam Hussein wanted to create history on his own terms, but in the end he simply became a name in history. This proved that he understood only his present; he was completely unaware of what his future would turn out to be.
This is, in fact, the story of every human being in the present world. Everyone knows their today, but no one knows their tomorrow. A person is aware of their own actions, but they are unaware of the actions God’s angels are recording against them. They imagine themselves capable of passing judgment on others, whereas in truth, they do not even have the power to decide their own fate.
The lesson from this incident is that no one can claim victory over another’s land. A plan to take someone else’s property to expand oneself will never succeed. In this world, everyone has the right to live and grow, but no one can erase another to move forward.
Events show that progress made within one’s own limits is steady and lasting, while the progress gained by taking someone else’s share is never stable. In the end, such a person suffers double loss: he loses what he had, and the other’s share was never really his to take.
Whether a person is of humble status or a holder of political power, no one is exempt from this law of life. No one is so powerful as to escape it. This law is as unchanging for one person as it is for all others.
