Quote:
Originally Posted by 19Herr_Rapp86
It wasn't a war on terror? That's news to me. Seeing Zarqawi worked for Al Qaeda, among many others. And as for handing the country over to Islamic revolutionaries and Iran or whatever the hell else you spewed... Guess you don't own a globe? Look what is in the middle of Iraq and Afghanistan. I wonder what borders those two countries with, those two countries with a large amount of American troops, equipment, bases, and airfields.... Hmmmm... If only I had a map....
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Afghanistan was a reaction to 9/11, Iraq was not: Iraq war was planned written by Wolfowitz ten years before the war, and before Clinton took office. When Bush became president, that plan was taken out of the drawer where it was parked for wintersleep during Clinton's years.
Al Quaeda had no links to Saddam, and Saddam had no links to Al Quaeda. That is noi surprise, becasue both were natural enemies indeed, for Saddam represented - like the Saudi regime - what Bin Laden called to fight against in corrupted Islamic regimes. There was a short sniffing between the two at some time, followed by the disillusioned conclusion that they still did not love each other at all. Iraq has had no hands in 9/11. Saudi Arabia did, the one with which the Bush clan is so very close befriended with. So close that representatives from Saudi Arabia who were guests of the Bushs at the time the towers got hit, were helped by the Bushs to leave the country before the FBI could question them.
"War on terror", is a war against wepaons and tools, "terror" in this case. Would you say WWII was a war against submarines? Tanks? Planes? Hardly. I assume you still would prefer to say that WWII was a war against the Third Reich and Imperial Japan, who both made use of these weapons and tools. The issue thus is who makes use of the tool of terror, for what reason, what is he motivated by: this somebody is who the war is on. The answer is: Islamic ideology, the demands of Quran and Sharia for superior reign of Islam over all world, Bin Laden's declaration of war against the corrupted Saudi elite and the big Satan, America.
Afghanistan gets destabilised by Pakistan that wants to improve its position against a possible war with India. It also gets destablised by Iran that wants it because the US wanted it. Iraq gets destablised by inner ethnical hate, and a power struggle between Shias and Sunnis, Iran and Saudi Arabia, Kurds in the North and any central government, and thus Turkey that does not want a strong Turkish faction in Iraq. The big winner in this game is Iran.
The formal excuse that the government gave to the public over launchign an attack on Iraq was that it had biological and nuclear wepaons of mass destruction, it was said: "We know they have them and we know where they are." Original quote end. But as I said, the war was planned and accepted by the socalled Neocons already a decade before that - when WMD and war on terror had nothing, absolutely nothing to do with it. When WMD were not found, we have seen a series of repalcmeent ecuses being tried, who also did not hold theirt ground. It finally ended with something "But we killed Saddam, isn't that not already reason enough?" - Sorry. There is a difference between a reason, and an excuse made in order to get away with it.
The strategic power balance has shifted in the region, against the US and in favour of Iran. The US military'S reputation suffered dearly, so did the prestige of the US, with its nimbus of being "invincible" (especially after Iraq 92) neutralised.
The longterm benefit will be earned by Iran, Iran and then by Iran again. Iran is the big winner. And they know it.
So, two lost wars later: was it worth it? My answer is a clear No.
And Afghanistan: when the Soviets were fought by the Taliban back then, they got support from Islamic legionaires from other countries, the socalled Green Legion. Afghjnais did not like them for the most. However, Legionaires, Taliban and fighters from othe rfactions all said that now they fight to overturn the Russians, and tomorrow the whole world. Today, Taliban spokesman say the same again, that the fight is about bringing Islam to all the world.
Well. Hallelujah.