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This Mother Jones' investigative report exposes the desperation of Iraqi people "after ten years of American-sponsored sanctions." The story describes the suffocating air in Basra's pediatric hospitals where thousands of children die because of malnutrition and lack of medicines. The article follows the history of Iraq in recent decades from the standpoint of ordinary people, who have survived in a struggle with poverty and Saddam Hussein's regime. The reporter points to examples of how Iraq cannot use its oil money to pay wages, to finance public-works contracts, to run hospitals or to revitalize the welfare state. A major finding is that this lack of cash flow makes it easier for the regime to monopolize access to all essential goods and services. "And, as the United States learned on September 11, that sense of injustice can fuel a desperate desire for revenge," the author concludes.

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