[Max Combined]

"What sort of bone head idea is that?"

It is not bone headed, it is a time honored military technique that works. Read a little history. Brutal, overwhelming tactics often result in fewer total casualties and more important, they often lead to total victory, even when dealing with fanatics, such as these Islamic terrorists, the Jewish Zealots during Roman times, and the WWII Japanese

[kjam22]

In some ways the administration has really dropped the ball on this thing. Changing the goal from fighting terrorism to establishing a free Iraq was not a good idea.

I understand that the REAL purpose is probably to have a "free Iraq" that lets us set up a military base there as a useful thing in the region. But the problem is that everybody else in the middle east understands it too, and it just makes them "hate" us more..... which is something that we say we're trying to avoid.

[been_lurking]

Read a little history. Brutal, overwhelming tactics often result in fewer total casualties and more important, they often lead to total victory, even when dealing with fanatics, such as these Islamic terrorists, the Jewish Zealots during Roman times, and the WWII Japanese.

Failed military operations can usually be traced to "fighting the last war" as opposed to fighting the current or "next" war. So much for historical perspective.

In this case, I think you are wrong.