Rand Paul is right — toppling Saddam hurt America

The Week ^ | April 29 2015 | Matt K. Lewis

[WilliamIII]

On Monday, presidential hopeful Rand Paul had this to say to a group of Orthodox Jews in Brooklyn: "All the way back to the Iraq War, I think it was a mistake to topple [Saddam] Hussein." The Kentucky senator continued:

Hussein was the bulwark against Iran. The Sunnis didn't like the Shiites, now Iraq is a vassal state for Iran. I'm worried [Iran] is twice as strong as it was before the Iraq War. [Rand Paul]

I'm no dove. But I must admit: Rand Paul has a point.

[HiTech RedNeck]

He ain’t perfect, he has his own mantras that substitute for logical thinking too.

But I think we don’t want to despise the acorn just because a blind squirrel has presented it to us.

There was not a good follow up ready for the Bush assaults on Muslim land. We really misunderstood what Islam needs to stay civilized, and that is a strong, quasi-rightist monarchy. A democracy might as well be an anarchy to them. It’s quickly turning into an anarchy HERE, do we think they are any better?

[Rome2000]

Paul is not a moron.

His contribution to the debate surrounding the GOP nomination is more relavant than anything that Huckabee, or for that matter Rubio or Bush bring.

[HiTech RedNeck]

He has his own axes to grind, but that doesn’t totally take the place of thinking.

[Forgotten Amendments]

Was it a mistake to topple Japan?

Japan was defeated militarily. MacArthur refused to let gangsters string up the Emperor. He didn't criminalize the surviving military (except the ones who deserved it) and he treated them with respect. His understanding of the situation went far beyond the Civics Class pap we heard from the Bushies & neocons post 2003.

Were it not for MacArthur's wisdom (highly opposed in the US), the occupation would've been bloody and led to a Soviet Japan. Not unlike what's happening in Iraq now.

[Rome2000]

No invasion of Iraq in 2003, no President Obama.

Hussein Obama usurped his way into office via massive voter fraud and an inept RNC oligarch opposition with a terrible candidate John McCain as it's face.

Hussein Obama and the CPUSA capture of the American Executive Branch in 2008 had nothing to do with the war.

[HiTech RedNeck]

He knew something about grace in that situation.

When the emperor bowed to that, it defused the Japanese popular fury. It’s interesting Japan did have a popular religious point of view and understood the existence of a heaven and that it had a will. It did not have to come up to the level of Christian faith (and it still doesn’t) to have a civilizing influence.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Not that simple I think. Follies were intertwined.

[dp0622]

I just came here to read that arguing. I learned my lesson last thread on this. Got killed on my position, which I will now hold close to my vest!!

[JmyBryan]

Yeah, those poor Iraqis who couldn’t get medicine. If we would have just lifted the sanctions, everything would be fine now. Oil for food anyone?

[entropy12]

Saddam’s WMD bluster was to check Iran which is bigger and
stronger. Those WMD’s, even if found and existed, were no
immediate and present danger to the security of United States. Saddam and no such ambitions or the rockets to deliver them to US soil.

So.....we borrowed from China to topple Saddam, added to the already obscene national debt, had thousands of or brave soldiers killed, and a hundred thousand brave soldiers maimed and disabled, now getting screwed by the VA, not to mention the enormous cost on heads of tax payers.

Saddam was keeping the Sunni-Shia fights under control. But the hare brained idea to invade Iraq has now resulted in Shia Iran taking control of 2/3 of Iraq, and the Sunni insurgents giving birth to ISIS. Libya is now in the hands of Jihadists, Syria will be next.

Since I became as adult in the 1960’s, this is the second stupid foreign policy and military adventure. First was Viet-Nam. Results speak for themselves.

[entropy12]

How long should we have stationed troops in Iraq? The Shia-Sunni war is 1400 years old and will never stop. Yes, it is true Obama hastened the chaos in Iraq, but it was absolutely and equivocally unavoidable, because public opinion would have demanded it, after suicide bombers and suicide bombers killing our brave soldiers stationed in Iraq.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Saddam was only a slightly naughty child compared with what got uncorked afterwards.

We really don’t understand good and evil nearly as well as we’d like to make ourselves out to know. Good is not necessarily “more of what we are doing right now.”

[samtheman]

I disagree. Obama rode dissatisfaction with the war into the White House. The invasion of Iraq put a muslim in the White House.

[armydawg505]

We fought the wrong war under Bush. It would have been the ideal time to take down Iran once and for all. They are the root of terrorism around the world.

[entropy12]

Exactly right!!! But try convincing the neocons, willing to borrow more money from China to satisfy their need for wars.

How is it CONSERVATIVE to keep adding to the already obscene national debt to get involved in 1400 year old wars in the middle-east?

[Rome2000]

How is it possible that a Monday morning quarterback position like yours could be so wrong?

For 7 years an evil moslem degenerate communist has been conspiring to achieve defeat in Iraq.

Pulling all forces out of Iraq is on faggot Hussein Baraka, and is THE REASON that the SHTF.

We still have forces in Europe from WWII, which ended 70 YEARS ago, and Korea, which ended 60 YEARS ago, yet you seriously are trying to blame Bush?

[re_nortex]

But try convincing the neocons...

Be advised that throwing the "n*oc*n" term around isn't prudent. Solid Conservative Rush Limbaugh makes it abundantly clear:

These media people [are] speaking in their own code language. A case in point is their use of the term 'neoconservative.' Whether they choose to hyphenate the label or not, it's a pejorative code word for 'Jews.' That's right. They use it as a way to say guys like Bill Kristol, Irving Kristol, Charles Krauthammer, Richard Perle, Paul Wolfowitz, Norman Podhoretz, John Podhoretz and others are just trying to support Israel at the USA's expense.

And I'll hasten to add that the Patriotic Hero who founded Free Republic, Mr. Jim Robinson, "wholeheartedly" supports the Bush Doctrine.

[PGR88]

We actually had this thing won until the bamster came along and effed it up.

I agree Bush had the situation stabilized and it probably could have been maintained had Obama simply not pulled out - but again, for what benefit and cost to the USA? I WISH it was a war for oil as the left said. Next time, just take the oil and forget the BS about freedom-loving Muslims needing to be given liberty. Once Saddam was gone, the Sunnis and Shiites just wanted to settle scores.

Remember also - the American people chose Obama, twice. That's where the problem lies. Americans no longer have the unity of purpose and culture which would allow such wars to be won, and the American population eventually was persuaded by leftist politics, media, academia and overall propaganda. Given that, I would recommend America avoid such wars in the future.

[re_nortex]

Everything worth knowing about lil' Randy Paul was summed up succinctly by the boss who wrote:

FURP!! Leftist surrender monkey!!

No one nails it any better -- and in fewer words -- than Our Jim!

[entropy12]

Did’nt Japan attack us first? Did we invade Japan before Pearl Harbor attack?