Re: Classical times

On Jan 27, 8:40 am, Tim Morrow <ct.mor...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
On Jan 26, 9:18 pm, Bruce Richmond <bsr3...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

We are not the world police.  We do not have the right to go into
other countries and overthrow their governments just because we do not
feel they are fair and represent their people.

In retrospect, and knowing what we know now, I think the invasion was
a mistake.  

So knowing what we know now, do you trust those that led us on the
wrong path, feeding you at best bad information but more likely
fabrications to get your support?

Do you trust those above not to do the exact same thing again if they
decide it is in their best interests to attack Iran, Pakistan, North
Korea, Venezuela or any other country that doesn't toe the line?

Do you expect those that led us down the wrong path to ever admit that
they screwed up and that it is not in our best interests to stay there
in the middle of a civil war?

McCain is on record as saying that we should keep troops in Iraq for
100 years if that's what it takes to do the job. Do you agree with
that?

I knew where Bush was going when he first warned Saddam to do
something or troops would be brought in. Bush wanted to attack and
there was nothing Saddam could do to prevent it short of stepping down
and letting Bush apoint a puppet. Yup, Bush wanted to show that he/we
could kick ass, and that he could finish the job that his daddy
started. That was all part of his legacy.

You wrote, "At the time of the invasion, I supported the overthrow of
Saddam Hussein and the mission to replace his dictatorship with a
democratically elected, pluralistic, secular government." I don't
recall any mention of that before our attack. There may have been
statements made about what the government would be after Saddam was
removed, but for the most part our attention was directed at the
atomic bombs, nerve gas, etc, better known as WMD.

Yesterday you wrote, "I do NOT think the overthrow of Hussein was a
mistake. I do NOT think the freeing of the Kurdish minority from the
institutional
disenfrachisement that Hussein practiced was a mistake. I do NOT
think that freeing the Shi'ite majority from the shackles placed on
them by the Baathists was a mistake." Today you wrote, "In
retrospect, and knowing what we know now, I think the invasion was a
mistake." Are you saying that you have had a change of heart since
yesterday? If not how do you reconcile the two statements?

You wrote, "I do NOT think that a unilateral unconditional immediate
withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq is a good idea now, nor do I think
a power
vacuum in that area of the world would do any good for the U.S., the
developed world, Israel, OR the Iraqi, Iranian, Pakistani, Afghani,
Kuwati, Saudi, or Palestinian people.

Neither, you might note, do many liberal Democrats, including all but
ONE of the Democrat candidates for that party's presidential
nomination."

While they may not be calling for withdrawal to start on the day they
take office, all of the Democrat candidates are saying that they would
start the withdrawal within months of taking office. That is a big
difference from what McCain said. It is difficult for most of the
candidates to get too critical of our involvement in Iraq since they
were snowed into supporting the attack as well. That and the fact
that such statements would most likely alienate some voters.

Bruce
.

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