I know - it’s been a long time, but I have been so disgusted with Republicans I got tired of trying to stay with them on their long, strange trip into Democratic appeasment-land. So, I’m waiting for us to find our gonads and be re-energized or else nominate Juiani McCain and slit my throat (that’s hyperbole, by the way, not a promise). With all the Republican self flagellation going on, I couldn’t help but let someone know there is one left who believes.
I’m sorry that there appears to be a state of civil war in Iraq, but what does it have to do with anything really? In the past 60 years Iraq has been in a constant state of war of some sort - starting with a violent military revolution in 1958, another violent coup in 1963, war with the Kurds in 1974, a 9 year War with Iran in 1979 and the invasion of Kuwait & the succeeding Gulf war in 1990. Not to mention the requisite purgings after each coup and Saddam, Uday and Qusay’s dalliances with mass murder.
Frankly, a civil war beats the hell out of your government just unilaterally killing you as Saddam Hussein did. At least in a state of civil war you have a fighting chance to survive and redeem your nation.
That is not my point, however. Although I know it is de rigueur to decry the current state of affairs in Iraq whether you are liberal or conservative, I am happy with the outcome of this war right now. If we left today, I think it was a success. Here’s why:
First off, we did not go into Iraq to find weapons of mass destruction, we went in to ascertain that there were, or were not such weapons. Saddam had ample opportunity to present proof of the destruction of those weapons and he chose not to do so. The United States required the assurance of their non-existence for obvious reasons. We tried to find out the nice way.
We have rendered Iraq unable to make war – on us or her neighbors. They also no longer host terrorist training camps, hide terrorist leaders or support terrorist groups around the globe financially. This is a good thing.
Iraq is now a democracy and thus, as an entity in the world community, is inherently more stable than it ever was as the brainchild of one evil maniac. It doesn’t look like America, but then, America didn’t look like America in 1779 either.
An undisputed, brutal and oppressive dictator who was responsible for the deaths of millions of his countrymen is dead. Yesssssss!
And finally, thousands upon thousands of Islamic terrorists from around the globe have come to Iraq to allow our soldiers, marines and sailors to send them to Allah. (Now that’s a win – win situation).
Unfortunately, Iraq has not stabilized the way we would like. That’s too bad, but it certainly doesn’t tip the scales over to a defeat. As Iraqi wars go, this “civil war” if that is what it is, is a cake walk. If Iraq will hold fast, those insurgents will leave because they ultimately cannot hold Iraq even if they were to win it. They can only disrupt it, and there are far better places to disrupt than Iraq in their fevered economy once the U.S. leaves.
By any reasonable accounting, this war is a success for America and for the world. George Bush should be lauded as a visionary and a man of courage to have seen it through in the face of such resistance.
I guess neither the Democrats nor Republicans will have me now.
