Easy to find some folks to blame for speading the wrong info on Saddam/Iraq - our CIA, British secret service, most all the secret service organizations around the world, most western nation leaders, Presidents Clinton & Bush, Republican and Democratic leaders as well as most rank and file of both parties, and the media.
If we had not invaded, Saddam would still be alive and in control of Iraq. If we were truly Imperialistic, we would be colonizing the place and killing 10's of thousands of those who dared oppose us until they were for the most part in such a minority as to no longer pose a real problem. We possess the capability to do that but since we are not trying to colonize Iraq we have chosen a different path.
No arguments from me that the place is a mess and bad decisions were made. At this point, IMHO, we must consider the future of the region as it impacts the rest of the world, and choose our options most carefully. Otherwise, we find ourselves back there again in a much worse situation than we have now.
I have no argument that Saddam was a bad person, but after the first Gulf War, his real ability to stir up chit in the area was stripped, as has been proven by the lack of discovery of his alleged weapons of mass destruction. Whether he would have been able to develop them again is a matter of endless debate and a mute point now for sure. In wars we've "won" (that in itself is a word that could be debated), we have not only won a military victory, but a moral and political one as well over both the government AND the people. We basically squashed them in one way or the other. We were basically dictators, though not imperialists in the traditional sense of the concept.
The American public, as indicated by every poll, and by the most recent elections, have little patience for the type of political/police action our military is currently engaged in...Vietnam should have taught us that lesson.
So yes, in a relative sense, the majority of the people in Iraq were probably sleeping better at night when Saddam was in power, and most of them could go about their quest for food, clothing, and shelter without much fear of having themselves or their children blown to hell and back by some idiot with a bunch of nails wrapped around his body with explosives underneath. Democracy or some variation based on it, is not for everyone. We seem to forget that from time to time.
The present administration is directly responsible for what it has unleashed in Iraq...no other. No, we cannot just pick up and walk away now, but lack of proper foresight, and choosing to ignore all expert advice offered by both military and political experts in the arena, and only listening to what he wanted to hear deserves a special place in history.
Please understand that this is an editorial comment, and not directed at any particular individual of this board. It is simply my opinion, and everybody knows what they say about those...
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Topic: BUSH COMES TO MC DILL A.F.B. (Read 4886 times)