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Wed 21 Mar, 2007 03:54 am
When Geo. Bush stood on the deck of that aircraft carrier and his sycophants had that huge sign MISSION ACCOMPLISHED prominently displayed behind him, the liberals took the opportunity, a few weeks later, to laugh at the apparent nonsense of that sentiment. But, in fact, that banner was quite accurate, The US military had accomplished its mission with flying colors. The Iraqi army had been defeated in short order, routed in fact. Saddam Hussein's regime was toppled and the dictator was on the run. We had accomplished everything we set out to do.
So why are we still in Iraq?
Think about it. Our reasons for going into Iraq in the first place were purportedly two-fold: Iraq was suspected of having weapons of mass destruction and the Saddam regime was so oppressive that freeing the Iraqi people from this dictatorship was a matter of conscience. Well, we have determined that there are -- never were -- any WMDs. Good enough. We have accomplished regime change. The new, democratically-elected government is not an aoppressive dictatorship. We can be proud of having afforded Iraqis the opportunity to elect their own government.
So why are we still in Iraq?
There's a civil war in progress now. It took our fearless leader and his mendacious minions quite a while to admit this fact, which was for a long time obvious to the average 11-year-old, but it seems to have been recognized now. That's an internal Iraqi matter. It should be a matter of concern to the UN Security Council, but it's not directly our concern. A civil war in Iraq affects the lives of Americans only tangentially. Gasoline prices may be affected but that's about the extent of it.
So why are we sill in Iraq?
Our mission has been successfully accomplished. No less an authority than the President of the United States said so four years ago.
I have been trying to explain this to my students. They are 14 and 15 and 16-year-olds. They ask me this question, believe it or not. They want to know why their older brothers and uncles are being killed in a place where our mission has apparently been accomplished. I don't know what to tell them, how to explain it. Somebody help me, please:
Why are we still in Iraq?
Great post Andrew,
You can tell the students that pulling out of Iraq could spark new 911
Quote:Bush: Iraq pullout could spark new 9/11
President George W Bush has used the fourth anniversary of the start of the Iraq war to warn that US withdrawal would unleash a "contagion of violence" that could spark a repeat of the Sept 11 attacks.
Although he conceded that there would be "bad days ahead", he insisted that there had been "good progress" in Iraq and there were "hopeful signs" that the influx of 30,000 additional troops would stabilise Baghdad.
Or you could tell 'em the truth.
Thank you, Zippo.
Our being in Iraq is what could motivate another 9/11, not our withdrawing. People and nations that used to hate each other are now rallying against a common enemy -- us. Iran and Iraq were at war with each other not so very long ago. Remember? Syria was taking Iran's side in that conflict and Syria's Haifez Assad was down with the Ayatollah Khomeini, not his fellow Baathist party member Saddam Hussein. Remember? When Saddam invaded Kuwait and Geo. Bush Sr. put together a coalition to drive the Iraquis out, Syrian forces were sent to help the US. Remember that? Fachrissake, the Syrians were our allies in the Gulf War, along with the Saudis and the Jordanians. What we have accomplished is to make a martyr out of the butcher Saddam Hussein. By all accounts, Syria and Iran are now ready to collab with Iraq as long US forces are in that country. That's what could lead to another World Towers debacle, not our getting out.
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