Posted on 01/14/2020 7:45:32 AM PST by Kaslin
With the death of General Soleimani and Iran's subsequent "saving face" retaliation, many pundits and commentators have expressed fear of an escalation of violence between the U.S. and Iran, something that could even mount into a third world war.
Considering that those pushing this narrative also happen to push the narrative that Trump is a fascist dictator, Obama's foreign policy was beyond reproach, and the current impeachment is completely legitimate, it's safe to assume that these critics are mistaken. Trump is unlikely to start a war with Iran; he has no reason to do so, nor does anyone want this of him.
The real thing to fear is the opposite scenario: Trump calls it a day after killing Soleimani and pulls troops out of Iraq and Syria. Many prominent conservatives have argued elsewhere that Americans should take this opportunity to the leave the region altogether. They argue that continued American involvement could well lead to an escalation of violence, but also that it has failed in its mission to promote peace and progress in the region. Furthermore, they point out how the U.S. presence has provided a cover and scapegoat for theocratic regimes trying to stay in power.
Therefore, they conclude that if the Americans left now, Iraq, Iran, and neighboring countries would finally deal with their own problems, have less reason for aggression toward one another, and have some kind of stability. And if things destabilize even more, the U.S. could at least not take blame for it anymore.
Even if some of the people making this case credit themselves as "realists," there is nothing realistic about this prediction. Rather, history strongly suggests that leaving the region altogether in response to Iranian threats and Iraqi protests would embolden bad actors; leave a power vacuum; and, yes,
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
Yeah, let’s perpetually remain in a warlike state.
Seriously. Let’s declare victory and get out. Today.
I agree that we shouldn’t be there. But we must be prepared for Iran & Co to move-in, and after all our loss of blood and treasure, to fill the vacuum, and return Iraq to the hellhole it was, within 7-10mos.
No president wants to be the one who “lost” Iraq (or Afghanistan’. So there we stay, year after year.
But wait. The Iraqi parliament has asked us to leave. This is a gift to President Trump. Take this gift Mr. Trump, before the opportunity slips away.
Because otherwise there can be no exit strategy. The region will never settle down. So either leave now, or stay forever.
“Now is the time to stay in Iraq”?
It wasn’t last year? Or the year before?
But if last year wasn’t the time to stay and we left, then we wouldn’t even be able to stay now that the time to stay has come.
We do not want to overstay our welcome. If Iraq is ready for us to leave, it is time for us to leave.
The Middle East is where great nations go to DIE!
We have been in europe and Japan and South Korea etc for a reason. So we do not have WW3
No. The American people have made it clear for a long time now that it is our will to end the wars and bring the troops home.
I agree that we shouldn’t be there. But we must be prepared for Iran & Co to move-in, and after all our loss of blood and treasure, to fill the vacuum, and return Iraq to the hellhole it was, within 7-10mos.
—
less
3 mos
I’ll go w/ your number. Sure won’t take long, that’s for sure.
I'd avoid moral and philosophical arguments in this affair personally - they're part of what got us here. To the point: what's the mission? And no, "keeping the peace" isn't a mission, not that could remotely describe what's actually taking place there anyway. Describe what actions we want the military to take and what metrics are to be used to measure success directly. If you can't do that, maybe the military isn't the proper tool.
The case here is presented as a Hobson's choice between a limitless commitment of forces and enduring a negative outcome, this in the face of clear evidence that economic sanctions have appeared to offer an alternative. Surely the emphasis on the part of the EU should be not on preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, but on dissuading that country from aggression against its neighbors overall? (We can hardly scold the EU too much for attempting to solve the problem by giving Iran money in the face of the Kerry/0bama giveaway, though.) Trump had that part right from the beginning.
In historic terms, the blink of an eye.
And we have civilized societies in those parts of the world. You are dealing with islam here, you can’t make peace with people who’s premise out of the box is covert or die. Islam has to be destroyed as a practicing religion and we are not willing to do that yet. Down through history no one can live with these heathen idiots. They fight each other if they can’t find non-believers. To hell with them, let them kill each other by the wholesale lots as long as they are not killing Americans.
Leave Iraq and keep the pressure on Iran. Iran has always been the head of the snake for radical islam along with the Saudi’s. The new Saudi prince seems to want to end that support, push him until he does and keep the screws economically and clandestinely on Iran. It’s hard to take over other counties when you are trying to put down revolution in yours.
As for Afghanistan, we killed bin laden, we destroyed Al-qaeda, and hammered the Taliban so why in the hell are we still there? Screw that sh*thole, let them live like 7th century goat humpers and pull our boys out. Remind them we can show up anytime, cut your throats or just kill you from high above if you want to screw with us.
More like a butterfly fart, in the wind.
It’s LONG past time to leave.
We should leave these people alone to kill each other in peace.
Let them kill each other for the next thousand years. Just like they’ve done for the last thousand.
L
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