ORANGE : Schwarzkopf Says War Was About Oil

Retired Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf told a Chapman University audience Thursday that the Gulf War was indeed primarily fought to protect the world’s oil supplies, but opponents who say the war was trading “blood for oil” have an argument “so simple, it’s stupid.”

“But let’s face it, 66% of the world’s known oil reserves are in the Middle East,” Schwarzkopf told the crowd of 3,000 students, dignitaries and others, most of whom cheered enthusiastically for the speaker. “When North America runs out of economically retrievable oil some time in the next century, there will still be 200 years of reserves left in the Middle East. . . . We can’t ignore it. That’s why we were involved in Desert Storm.”

His comments contradicted those of President Bush, who during the war said its purpose was not to protect oil but to free the Kuwaiti people.

But Schwarzkopf, who was the commander of the U.S. troops during the war, said the conflict also was about standing up to aggressors such as Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. Hussein’s troops attacked and conquered neighboring Kuwait in August, 1990, which led to the war five months later.

“We freed Kuwait and sent an aggressor home with his tail between his legs,” Schwarzkopf said in a booming but relaxed voice. He peppered his speech with anecdotes about himself and the military that drew uproarious laughter from the crowd, which had paid from $10 to $30 to attend.

Dressed in a dark gray suit, light blue shirt, and red and blue striped tie, Schwarzkopf began his 45-minute speech, “Desert Storm: Lessons Learned for All of Us,” by saying he is often not recognized when he dresses as a civilian. He drew a huge laugh when he told what happened last spring when he introduced himself to a young boy while wearing his all-white dress uniform.

“You are not (Schwarzkopf),” he said the boy told him. “Gen. Schwarzkopf wears camouflage.”

While Schwarzkopf spoke, about 30 demonstrators rallied peacefully outside to protest his appearance. They alleged that hundreds of Iraqi children are dying daily because of damage brought by the war and the United Nations economic embargo still in place against that country.

“Thousands of children have died because of the embargo, which is not affecting Saddam Hussein,” said Marion Pack, president of the Alliance for Survival’s Orange County chapter. “It’s one year later and what have we won? Saddam is still in power, our domestic economy is in shambles and we are still looking for enemies from without when we should be looking at our enemies within, which locally include homelessness and faulty education for our children.”

Schwarzkopf spoke on the concluding day of the university’s semester-long freshmen seminar, a required writing, speaking and critical thinking course. Its topic was “War, Peace and Justice,” and speakers throughout the semester addressed how they believe each subject will be viewed in the United States during the 21st Century.

His appearance was sponsored by the Young America’s Foundation, a conservative group based in Costa Mesa, which declined to say how much he was paid.

Since retiring after 36 years in the military on Aug. 31, Schwarzkopf, 57 and a Florida resident, has been touring the country giving about three speeches a month to business and college groups at a reported fee of $50,000 to $80,000 an appearance.

Members of the press were told by organizers that they were not welcome to attend Thursday’s speech and no press credentials were issued. The Times procured a ticket several weeks in advance for its reporter, but a local television crew and a radio news reporter were turned away when they tried to enter the sold-out gymnasium.

Schwarzkopf told his audience that the United States won the war so easily because it has the top military technology in the world and the best soldiers.

“I hear all the time that our country’s youth are going to hell in a hand basket,” Schwarzkopf said. “Well, this is for all of you students in the office, the next time you hear that, remind the person that it was the youth of America that gave us victory in Desert Storm.”