Posted on 01/15/2005 2:30:04 PM PST by Prost1
Chaos will flourish in the Middle East if President Bush’s policy continues unchanged
EVEN DONALD RUMSFELD, in his more private moments, must wonder if the invasion of Iraq was really such a good idea. It has become obvious to almost everyone else, including many such as myself who originally supported the war, that it has been a huge mistake. My support was based solely on the evidence of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), on which the intelligence was exaggerated and which Washington has just admitted it is no longer looking for. There is absolutely no evidence that Iraq was supporting al-Qaeda. I believe that the real reason for the war, at least in the US, was to create a reasonably democratic, free-market Iraq to act as both a beacon and a rebuke to other countries in the region. That possibility looks more and more remote. The forthcoming elections look unlikely to produce a government with real authority and legitimacy, or to stop the violence, but they must go ahead; let us hope that they prove a step on the road to normality. Despite the bombing of the UN headquarters in August 2003, the current appalling level of violence did not begin until March 2004, a year after the invasion. It might have been more easily contained if the postwar administration had not made so many early mistakes.
(Excerpt) Read more at timesonline.co.uk ...
Quote: Say that in a year or so Iran gets nukes and allies with Saddam
Correct me but didn't they have a war and hate each other?? Also Saddam brutalized the shites with his minority controlled sunnis(who are now fighting us).
Iran is I believe mostly Shites who hate with a passion the Sunnies
This is a great success, not a 'disaster'.
Geez ... what the U.S. revolutionary war a 'disaster'?
Took more time and more lives than this effort will, for sure.
Add to that the fact that he had killed several of his neighbors years before, attempted to kill all of his neighbors on the other side of the earlier neighbors he killed.
Add that he had been killing his own family for years and burying them in his yard.
Also that he had been buying very large weapons and talking of invading more of his neighbors.
Also add that he had been talking to other super criminals and actually hosting and training them at his house.
He also invisioned himself as the ruler of all neighborhoods.
Any questions about what we did?
Irrelevent, and I don't care. Get to the alleged "elections" this month, then get the hell out. Leave a note saying "If you f with us, we'll kill you." Period.
Their country is theirs; let them sort it out. Or not.
We seem utterly incapable of getting out of anywhere, thanks to our damn politicians. South Korea, Japan, Germany, Phillipines, Bosnia - you name it.
We don't need to be stuck in yet another Moslem sh$%hole.
"I voted for Bush twice but I've been against the war from the begining"
Okay, so you are right about Bush but wrong about the war. Get over it.
" I 'm not to keen on the muslims ability to support democracy. It goes against much of what is written in the koran. "
You seem to be unaware of Indonesia. Anyway you ARE keen to let them stay under the thumb of terrorist-supporting tyrants like Saddam Hussein? I'd hope not.
Iraq will be a free, democratic and sovereign nation in due time, thanks to the efforts of Bush, our military and our allies. AND IT WILL BE A VERY GOOD THING.The fact that Islam has 'issues' with freedom and democracy is precisely why it isnt easy and hasnt happened yet. But that doesnt mean it isnt worth the effort... we wont win the war on terror unless and until we change Governance in the middle east.
I, for one, am just as glad to see us keeping the insurgents and AQ busy over there....vs on the streets of LA, Miami, NY, Springfield, Monroe, Athens, Litchfield, etc.
"The fact of the matter is, the Middle East may be destined for chaos in any case. "
Somehow, that strikes me as a slight *improvement* for some of those countries.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend.
They hate us far more and would ally against us.
I don't think it would be responsible to gamble on your naieve assumption.
"Appeasement won't work, but why aren't we using the advanced weaponry we spend BILLIONS on every year?"
HUH? WE've been doing exactly that, using tanks, air strikes, predators, and Marine snipers ... AS NEEDED.
"We could incinerate a city from 50,000 feet, but we choose to fight the battles in such a way" ... AS TO NOT DESTROY A COUNTRY WE ARE TRYING TO REBUILD. It's not a hard concept to grasp: We want Iraq to succeed, the terrorists want Iraqi democracy to fail.
We win if we kill the terrorists. We DONT win if Iraqi cities are levelled.
"I can't believe some of the anti-war crap the left is saying"
Ideology is more important than reality or self-preservation for some.
For some it’s the same reason why people stick objects through their nose or eyebrow. Shock affect, attention, stick out from the crowd. May it be an individual arguing or people like Michael Moore who state they have their position because they “care” so much about the soldiers in Iraq. Both are after the shock value either as an individual or as media. Michael Moore also cared soooo much about the kids in Columbine, that’s why he made that “Documentary”. (Sarcasm)
Red6
"We win if we kill the terrorists. We DONT win if Iraqi cities are levelled."
Uh, the presumption is that we level cities where terrorists are.
How does establishing an Iraqi gov't help us "win", since their army is nowhere near ready to takeover?
And, I think some "moderate" terrorists might give up if they knew we weren't hesitant to unleash our full arsenal at any time, any where.
WE WAITED 9 MONTHS TO GO INTO FALLUJAH AFTER THE "BRIDGE" INCIDENT.
I like it so much, I'm going to post it on my blog.
Only one correction: Electricity and fuel supplies are low this winter...
I believe the left simply hates Bush and will say anything to make him look bad.
So blind in thier hate that they don't see how stupid they look and dangerous their actions and words are.
and the Sarin gas-filled artillery shells ~
"We've found ten or twelve Sarin and Mustard rounds," Iraq Survey Group chief Charles Duelfer told Fox News, after his team uncovered the WMD cache last June.
"We're finding things and we're getting reports of hidden caches almost every day which we have to investigate," Duelfer added.
and then there was this development in Aug. 2003:
"American teams hunting for Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction found dozens of fighter jets from Iraq's air force buried beneath the sands, U.S. officials say.
"At least one Cold War-era MiG-25 interceptor was found when searchers saw the tops of its twin tail fins poking up from the sands, said one Pentagon official familiar with the hunt. He said search teams have found several MiG-25s and Su-25 ground attack jets buried at al-Taqqadum air field west of Baghdad. . . ."
The find astonished even then-House Intelligence Committee Chairman , now CIA Director, Porter Goss.
"Our guys have found 30-something brand new aircraft buried in the sand to deny us access to them," Goss told the AP. "These are craft we didn't know about."
Considering how easy it was for Saddam to hide banned weapons it is a safe bet we'll never really know what Saddam had amassed.
Anyone who buys the MSM and the dem's politically motivated rhetoric of "No WMD" is a damned fool.
I will not pretend this is 9-10-01. Anyone still desirous of arguing about the past services their own self interest at risk of de-stabilizing victory.
Thank God there are those like our President that hear these chaotic voices, yet have the courage to proceed forward.
Our actions have brought freedom to a region that never knew it. It is their right to be free, as it is ours. When it takes hold, as it will, our country will be further protected from the threat oppression breeds. Terrorism. If this is not understood by isolationalists or people pre-disposed to hate, doubt or even distrust, it is a pity but not a necessity. Enough people do understand what must occur, and so the President will retain the support needed to continue this mission.
This is a common claim by liberals who want to sound as if they are making a rational decision to oppose the war after originally supporting it so they don't sound as if they just hate America or base their opposition on the identity of the party in power.
Apparently, some on the right aren't that much different.
We cannot afford to go back to a pre-911 isolationist containment mentality no matter how much the Buchananites might wish it. Bush's policy towards the Middle East is comparable to Reagan's vision for Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. If we fail in Iraq, the terrorists win and we all lose. Strange how some people who call themselves conservatives don't get that.
Two words that should explain it all -pre-emptive strike. No WMD's because it wasn't exactly a sneak attack, it could have easily been moved to Syria.There is proof of a WMD program so it's a good thing we took Sadame out when we did.
...and the war-mongers like John Mccain were imbeciles... Are you sure? Do you think everyone who disagrees with you are imbeciles?
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