-Caveat Lector- >Whatever the political reasons may have been for the war in Iraq, >ultimately, it was the right thing to do. Now we have a much better >chance at an endgame than we ever did enforcing international policies >that were never designed to succeed. Do not forget that enforcing those >policies also tied down tens of thousands of American troops, put them >in harms way on a daily basis, and cost the American people a sum nearly >as large as the $87 billion recently funded to help pay for the war. How >was that, especially since it was an unending situation, better? If all >else fails, now we can just leave and know that at least Iraq will not >trouble us for some time to come.
The "right thing to do"? Please explain how invading and occupying a sovereign nation while knowing full well that said nation posed absolutely no threat to any other nation; simultaneously alienating our allies and further infuriating our enemies, resulting in *increased* likelihood of terrorist acts; using highly toxic weaponry that endangers the long term health of our own soldiers and contaminates the occupied land; causing the deaths within the first year of tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians and almost 600 (and growing) of our own troops; all on premises that were outright lies the "right thing to do"? Whatever the political reasons may have been for the war in Iraq -- personal grudge against Saddam, distraction from a failing/nonexistent domestic agenda at home, reconstruction and energy/oil contracts for his big donor Pioneers/Rangers, failure to find Osama, some ridiculous Perle/Wolfowitz grand vision of "Democracy in the Middle East" -- Dubya's Big Adventure in Iraq was, ultimately, absolutely the WRONG thing to do. And it was done while brazenly LYING to the American people in order to keep them sufficiently terrified to support this madness. Yes, George W. Bush is a TERRORIST, as terror is exactly what he visits upon his own subjects in order to keep them in line. (In order to win their hearts, he uses a deceptive "tax cut," year after year... the guy's like a broken record.) I'm afraid history won't look very kindly on this sad chapter. THIS, my friend, is an unending situation, and it's most certainly NOT better [than containment]. At least w/ containment/sanctions we weren't losing 2 American lives a day over there, we weren't hemorrhaging our own economy to fund it, we weren't pissing off the entirety of the rest of the world (just, you know, *most* of it) and our bombs were killing far fewer innocent Iraqi civilians. As far as the cost, if you assess containment from 1991-2003 as "nearly as large as the $87 billion [...]," that's $7.25 bil/yr, which I dare say is substantially less than the almost $200 bil we've spent so far in the first year alone (let's not forget the $79 billion initially outlayed, long before the $87 bil request!). It ain't chump change. >Politics are always burdensome in times of war, but that burden does not >make the politicians criminals. What makes politicians criminals in war >and in peace is irresponsibility when faced with the daunting task of >waging peace and war. Um, actually that burden DOES make the politician criminal when said politician wages a criminal war, which is exactly what Gulf War, the Sequel was and is. This was purely an elective war, started by the Bush Cartel, with no direct provocation (harsh language and acting a little shifty don't count). In fact, this war is in clear violation of international law. Don't like the rest of the world? Okay, try this: Since Bush LIED us into a war that only he and his buddies actually wanted, a rather strong case could be made that he deliberately misused our nation's military. Last I checked, that was a crime. In fact, it's impeachable. -eh www.ctrl.org DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
