Replies

We have eliminated the armed forces of this mad dog state and probably should be satisfied. They will not be an armed threat to their neighbors, the US or Israel for many years regardless of their governance. Against my better judgment, I got carried away with the optimism of the Bush Administration regarding the desire of the Iraqi people to move toward some sort of democracy or any kind of enlightenment. I fell for this because I wanted to believe it, though reasoned thought told me otherwise. Muslim arabs are not now nor perhaps until after the passage of a century or more will be ready for anything other than some form of dictatorship. We were much too soft in our handling of the aftermath of the war. If we had handled the aftermath of the war as we handled the aftermath of WWII in Germany and Japan, outlawing under pain of death the display of anti-american behavior or any display of Saddamism, Baathism and terroristic Islamic fanaticism and totally controlled their media (press and electronic) until we had routed out these despicable philsophies, we might have succeeded.

We should announce to the world that we do not plan on liberating any country from despotism in the future but a strike against us from any country will result in a catastrophe to that country. The President should declare a national state of emergency and drill oil in every possible venue (off shore, in wildlife preserves and anywhere else within the jurisdiction of the US where it may be found and set aside environmental suits and build whatever refineres we need.)

Frankly, I have no solution for where we find ourselves today in Iraq, short of "Iraqi est omnia divisa in partes tres". Let the Kurds (the only sane people over there) have the North and continue technical aide for them. Just leave the rest of Iraq to its fate. Perhaps after the Sunnis and Shia liquidate at least half of each others population, the Kurds can move in and consolidate the rest of the country but whatever, get out now. Someday maybe they will get serious about peace and we can assist them at that time but we never do nation building again unless we do so as we did in Japan and Germany, with absolutely no quarter given to any interference in our efforts.

>>Against my better judgment, I got carried away with the optimism of the Bush Administration regarding the desire of the Iraqi people to move toward some sort of democracy or any kind of enlightenment. I fell for this because I wanted to believe it, though reasoned thought told me otherwise. <<

“The masses live by, and are ruled by, subconscious and emotional thought process. The crowd has never thirsted for the truth. It turns aside from evidence that is not to its taste, preferring to glorify and to follow error, if the way of error appears attractive enough, and seduces them. Whoever can supply the crowd with attractive emotional illusions may easily become their master; and whoever attempts to destroy such firmly entrenched illusions of the crowd is almost sure to be rejected.”