What should we have done? Well, a coherent national energy policy not beholden to special interests (including the Arabs) would have been a good start. It would certainly have given us a free hand in our policy there.
After 9/11 we had to “do something.” Going into Afghanistan was a good idea, so long as it was to depose the Taliban, and kill as many terrorists based there as possible. The mistake was in staying. We should have just left them to their own devices after doling out some punishment. Oh sure, some day we would have to do it again. But staying permanently was a really bad idea.
We should have left Iraq alone.
I was dumb enough to think that the US was delberately surrounding Iran by going into Afghanistan and then Iraq, but I guess I overestimated our government
That is exactly how Reagan defeated the Soviet empire; he cut off the cash flow.
“Going into Afghanistan was a good idea, so long as it was to depose the Taliban...”
During the Cold War we used to know how to overthrow their dictator and put one of our dictators in their place. Once the Taliban were overthrown, our guys were done. From there we could have thrown $$ and weapons that way and let the CIA handle things. Ah well, woulda, coulda, shoulda.