In Iraq, the war was "won" when the Hussein government fell.
We lost the rather unfocused and quixotic occupations however.
The US is in full retreat accross the planet thanks to the Obama Administration.
Both our enemies and allies know it. America is just...not there or hiding behind the teleprompter.
Not only are we in retreat, we are apologizing, indecisive and biting our finger nails at every possible decision making threshold.
Proud America that believed in “American Exceptionalism” has now become a Cateresque, navel-gazing pansy.
“It is mistaken to call Iraq and Afganistan “lost wars”.
In Iraq, the war was “won” when the Hussein government fell.”
We lost in Iraq; we replaced a bad man with worse ones, then fled at midnight so there would be no “1975 Saigon” pictures. What would you tell the parent of a dead soldier that their son accomplished in Iraq?
Afghanistan is Act II of the same show.
-——We lost the rather unfocused and quixotic occupations however.-——
I would argue that time is a factor in the equation of change. History does not occur in orderly 90 day increments. The outcome in Iraq is far from being determined.
Obama understands that the change he wants will not occur during his presidency. He is making a political decision. Which of two bad choices makes me look better? Staying or leaving? His interest lies only in the propaganda he can generate for his own self image.
What loss in Iraq are you talking about?
I was there 2004 - 2007. We didn’t lose S. We deposed and prosecuted the Ba’athists, stabilized the country, transitioned rule to a national, constitutional representative republic, and then left just as we said we’d do.
Iraq is the first democratically-elected government in Muslim history and many thousands of multi-national theocratic militants died along with Saddam Hussein trying to prevent that.
Now shut the hell up!
DU is over there. ->
What exactly was lost in Iraq?
We lost when what should have been pure punitive expeditions transformed in a short time into meals on wheels / nation building.
I hate to say it, but the quicker we get out, the better. So I agree with Obama here. Just loosen the insane ROEs that have gotten so many of our guys killed.