Iraq War (1 Viewer)

[Redp3n]

you've had your oppinions before the war, and during the war.

now its pretty much over. (although Americans are still getting killed)

What are your oppinions now? Was the war necessary? or just a waste of lives.


When the Americans capture Baghdad, and the civilians rushed out to hug and kiss American soldiers, pulling down statues of Saddam. I think that is enough to be in support of the war (even though its over)

Sure weapons of mass destruction weren't found, but how was Bush supposed to know?

After September 11, and all, he couldn't just sit there and wait untill a bomb exploded in his cities and then attack those responsible. He had to prevent it from happening.

Prevention is better than cure.

If he gets some type of intelligence saying that Iraq has Weapons of Mass destruction then making a pre-emptive strike to avoid the threat was the smartest thing he did.

In this case however, the intelligene was false. (still, he did the right thing).


As for the oil argument, well I haven't seen any proof that the US is using it for themselves. (if this is true, I would like to know)

And some people say " If Bush is after WMD, why didnt he go after North Korea?"
well he couldn't take on both countries at once.
and if he did take NK, people would say " Why didn't he go after Iraq".

Overall, I think what Bush did was great. I commend him. I also commend John Howard and Blair.

They had the balls to declare war and protect freedom when needed.

Dumbass Greens who stand on the sidelines criticising their every move piss me off.


However, this is just my oppinion.

If you got your own, lets hear it.

Keep it civilised please.

 

[jayz]

bush is a wuss, he flies in to iraq and acknowledged by troops as hero, then sneaks bak to his texas ranch. in general, when ever a 'bush' comes into presidency, a war starts and then the 'bush' is rejected from presidency in the next election. 'bush'=primitive finking

 

[Redp3n]

wut do u think the man should have done?

 

[d_carey]

Well I don't think the war was 'necessary' but I would say that overall it was desirable.

I think that the scenes of jubilation present in Baghdad once American troops entered the city was justification for the war. I believe the vast majority of people in Iraq are now much better off that such a brutal dictator has been overthrown.

As for your comments about WMD not being found I don't really consider that to be a big issue. We all know Saddam had WMD. Indeed we know that Saddam had used WMD on his OWN PEOPLE in the past.

I agree that in the post September 11 world, every effort must be made to destroy terrorism. Iraq was a country which actively supported terrorism and thus regime change was necessary.

There hasn't been any evidence that the US has used Iraqi oil for themselves and I think that Iraq as a country will now benefit greatly as sanctions have been removed allowing more oil to be exported to pay for imports and also privitisation of the oil sector may occur in the future leading to greater efficiency.

I think that the US could have fought North Korea as well but it is important to remember that the threat from North Korea is more nuclear/military rather than terrorist. Also war on the Korea pennisular could have a major destabilising effect throughout the whole region.

I also commend Howard, Bush and Blair. Particulary Tony Blair, it is nice to see a Labour leader with some courage. The ALP could learn a lot from Tony Blair's New Labour.

 

[Frigid]

my opinion? nah, i'll give you google's opinion of a 'miserable failure':

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=miserable+failure&btnG=Google+Search

 

[jm1234567890]

He attacked iraq to scare the other middle east countries, like iran

 

[ae]

although i agree with war with iraq,
i also believe there are better alternative than a war to control terrorism. infact, after this war, terrorism appear more often.

anyway, for those you dont support war against terrorism,
can you imagine a suicide bomber in central station in sydney, say at peak hours?

 

[Butterfly_Wings]

The whole thing was ridiculous and shameful.

 

[Generator]

Iraq and terrorism is a sad link...
The yanks would never attack North Korea as it is much more of a threat than an army with little on its side (although recent attacks have shown that despite their superior technology the US troops are still being beaten from time to time).

Terrorism is far from being a simple occurrence. How do you combat terrorism when many people do not see these people as terrorists, but rather as members of an army fighting for what they believe in? If that problem can be overcome, then maybe the US may have greater success in defeating such groups.


Edit: How will the privitisation of Iraq's oil reserves help the nation? Maintaining government control may encourage slight corruption, but that is better than having the profits diverted to private parties with little interest in funding the new government.

 

[d_carey]

Originally posted by Generator
Iraq and terrorism is a sad link...
Edit: How will the privitisation of Iraq's oil reserves help the nation? Maintaining government control may encourage slight corruption, but that is better than having the profits diverted to private parties with little interest in funding the new government.

In the short term it would obviously be beneficial for oil reserves to remain publicly owned. However in the medium to longer term privitisation will ensure greater efficiency higher volumes or export, more foreign investment, employment opportunities etc. Losses in oil profits could be offset by increased taxation revenue.

 

[Redp3n]

I'm a stupid fucker

 

[Gregor Samsa]

Originally posted by Redp3n
Sure weapons of mass destruction weren't found, but how was Bush supposed to know?

After September 11, and all, he couldn't just sit there and wait untill a bomb exploded in his cities and then attack those responsible. He had to prevent it from happening.

Prevention is better than cure.

In this case however, the intelligene was false. (still, he did the right thing).

Keep it civilised please.

In short, I was definately against the war, being without proper justification, involving at least 10 000 civillian casualties, the violation of international law and much deceptive media practises..

The intelligence that Iraq in fact possessed no WMD's was definately known within governmental circles prior to the invasion itself, as corroborated by UN weapon inspectors, and reported by multiple sources, including Andrew Wilkie.

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0823-05.htm

However, this information was kept from the public, with a 'news' campaign that virtually constituted propaganda instead being conducted, influencing much opinion toward war..

For instance, a survey earlier this year reported that 66% of Americans believe that Saddam Hussain was behind 9/11, when there was no connection. If anything, Hussain was against terrorist groups, as Iraq was a secular state, opposed to fundamentalist groups such as Al Qaeda.

The crux of the entire issue, is that while Saddam (Speaking of which, Saddam was supported by America and Britain throughout much of the 1980's...Right up to the invasion of Kuwait.) was undoubtedly a tyrant, the means of invading Iraq violated multiple international laws and covenants. Rather than being based upon a sincere desire to liberate the Iraqi populace, the invasion was instead a powerplay to gain America a stronger position in the Middle East.

Beside, the 'freedom' of the Iraqi people was used as justification only following the shift from earlier pretexts such as the supposed WMD's, evolving in reaction to events.

It is well known that Iraq was not a threat to surrounding nations, having been economically crippled by sanctions, and as mentioned earlier, being without WMD's.

As cynical as this may sound to some, the probable reason for the difference between governmental approaches to Iraq and North Korea is that North Korea actually does possess WMD's.

Interesting that many people focus on Bush, Blair and Howard as 'strong' leaders...Seeing thats exactly the image they intend to project, and creating cardboard national targets, as well as encouraging paranoia is a fine (if evil) means of doing so.

Speaking again of the Iraqi people, I really hope that the situation in Iraq doesn't end being that of Afghanistan, where an ineffectual government is left without funds to repair state infrastructure, much power instead being held by regional warlords.. Sadly, these events are barely reported in the mainstream media. (I've only seen one article detailing them.)

Of course, what else is extremely frightening about this whole situation is that it sets international precedent, and is quite likely to incite multiple arms races.. The simple message to many nations is that weapons are required to avoid American pressure/invasion.

It is quite probable that Iraq is not the end of this imperialistic policy..

We meet here during a crucial period in the history of our nations and of the civilised world. Part of that history was written by others, the rest will be written by us-George W Bush, February 26th, 2003, speaking to the 'American Enterprise Institute'.

Damn Big Dubya..

 

[Generator]

I don't think that this is likely to incite an arms race when one has existed for centuries. It may change its nature, though.

 

[Gregor Samsa]

Originally posted by Generator
I don't think that this is likely to incite an arms race when one has existed for centuries. It may change its nature, though.

Accelerate at least then.

 

[Suney_J]

The yanks are the biggest hypocrites.

firstly, durin the 80's they supported saddam as he was fightin iran. so 2 claim his tyrancy is a justification 4 the war is rubbish, cuz if that were tru they should've disposed of him many yrs ago, keepin in mind he was in power for almost 25yrs (i think)

Secondly, their primary objective 4 the war was to find WMD, yet when it was obvious they couldn't find the WMD, they gradually shifted the objective to topple Saddam

and to claim they were the 'saviours' of the iraqi ppl is BS, as they were the ones who cemented his power, and thus instrumental in the loss of civillian lives under Saddam, bcuz of their own greed in keepin the shah of iran in power

 

[hipsta_jess]

i think that it was over oil rather than WOMD, and that he was trying to do what Daddy couldnt

 

[freaking_out]

Originally posted by Redp3n
wut do u think the man should have done?

well, let the UN inspections to keep going...coz iraq was actually fully co operating...i think for sure it was done for the oil, no other reason!

 

[nemuca]

well, obviously iraq was disarmed already 10 yrs ago, if anyone has watched a documentary called "In Shifting Sands"...

the weapons of mass distruction that the americans claim that iraqis are hiding, were actually "weapons of mass distraction"... LoLz~

 

[Gregor Samsa]

Originally posted by Suney_J
The yanks are the biggest hypocrites.

firstly, durin the 80's they supported saddam as he was fightin iran. so 2 claim his tyrancy is a justification 4 the war is rubbish, cuz if that were tru they should've disposed of him many yrs ago, keepin in mind he was in power for almost 25yrs (i think)

Indeed.. The Shah of Iran came to power in 1953, through a CIA-assisted coup of the democratically elected Premier, Mohammad Mossadeq.. The Shah would remain in power until the 1979 'Islamic Revolution'..Which would then lead to American support of Iraq in the Iran-Iraq War, due to Iraq being a secular state.

There are many examples of American coups and 'interventions' in the post WWII period (73 according to at least one count..). Among the worst examples are the September 11th 1973 coup of Salvador Allende (Chilean premier..Allowing Pinochet to come to power), and the 1980's funding of the Contras against the Nicaraguan Sandanistas.

The hypocrisy of American policy can be seen through the continued large funding of nations such as Columbia, with extreme right-wing governments, and a great amount of human rights violations.. Traditionally, tyannical leaders have been tolerated, even favoured, until they broke with American policy, such as Saddam's invasion of Kuwait.

 

[Suney_J]

has ne 1 seen the second series of 24
what a series to air so close to the war, im not sayin its the truth, but it does make u think