How Long Should It Take???

[crimzon22]

Is it time for us to leave Iraq and make them stand on their own two feet or should we stay until the job is DONE!?

 

[Peter Parka]

We fucked it up so we should stay as long as is necessary.

 

[gillibean]

It's not so much making them stand on their own feet as it is rebuilding the country so they can do it.

 

[charLIE2291]

As long as it takes. Theres been to many lives lost for us to pull out and let the place fall back to shit.

 

[dt3]

Is it time for us to leave Iraq and make them stand on their own two feet or should we stay until the job is DONE!?

The job will be done when they can stand on their own two feet.

 

[FreeWorkVest]

Iraq is f*****. Whether we stay or leave, it will be politically unstable. There is too much wealth there, and too many other countries will be fighting over it to allow a stable government. I imagine at some point, a strong leader will rise and clamp down, much the way Hussein did.

But at least Haliburton will have exclusive rights to Iraq oil. Which is partially what this was all about

 

[GraceAbounds]

The job will be done when they can stand on their own two feet.

Agree'd.

 

[Minor Axis]

As a veteran, after 9-11 I felt that going after the Talaban in Afghanistan was the thing to do. However, Iraq was a figment of someone's imagination or if you're a cynic, it was deception on the American public. If you really wanted to be worried about a dangerous dictatorship, it should have been N. Korea, instead of making excuse after excuse about why we really invaded Iraq.

Ok, so now we are stuck there. If you know about this area, it was a country artificially created by England on behalf of the league of Nations at the end of WWII, that joined people who did not get along. I don't know how Iraq developed over the decades, but I do know that Saddam Hussein ruled with an iron fist, harshly putting anyone down who got in his way. When the U.S. invaded and SH removed from power it uncapped long standing tension between these groups. At times the situation in Iraq has been described as a civil war. I have a feeling that whenever the U.S. vacates, violence will increase so as a country we have to decide if we want to stay there for some period of years and continue to throw LOTS of our tax dollars at it or continue digging our selves into deeper and deeper debt (which the Republican party, you remember the party of fiscal responsibility back when Clinton was in office currently likes to do).

While I'm mad as hell about Iraq, I do have mixed feelings about it along the lines of Colin Powell's statement, "if you break it, you own it." Well, our idiot leadership certainly broke it, the war which was supposed to be wrapped up in 6 months has now dragged on longer than WWII. It's a complete and utter failure if this war was somehow supposed to resolve the treat of Al Qaeda. It makes me want to scream at the waste of lives and money sunk into this effort.

I am not prepared to stay there for the next 5-10 years with a semi-permanent occupation. I'd say if they can't get it stabile in another year or so, we should bail. Although I realize that our reputations will be hurt more than it all ready is, and if we stay we'll be building Iraq schools, while our schools at home are falling down. It's a really discouraging situation.

 

[crimzon22]

Helping someone build a democracy is not a 3-6 month job. If you remember your history, the US had to fight for democracy from England. We did not do this alone and we did not do this quickly. France had to step in and help us and it took YEARS for us to establish our independance.

The Iraqi people have lived under that "Iron Fist" for so long that they have no idea how to start over without being told what to do and how to do it.

I think be bit off more than we could chew but the good news is that we are not the only ones who are helping these people. Even Australia is over there helping which is a great thing to see.

Yes, oil may be at the very core of this war but I think we are helping those people in the process. Everything great costs money. We are throwing away MILLIONS of dollars every year for other projects that some call useless and maybe they are but in the long run, doing something nice for another country is priceless.

 

[Minor Axis]

Yes, oil may be at the very core of this war but I think we are helping those people in the process. Everything great costs money. We are throwing away MILLIONS of dollars every year for other projects that some call useless and maybe they are but in the long run, doing something nice for another country is priceless.

This may sound harsh, but I'm not directing my anger at you.

Regardless of what you consider the ideals of this country are, the U.S. did not invade Iraq to help the Iraqi people even though it makes you feel good to think that we did. All it was ,was a power play in the Middle East based on a wrong headed foreign policy and taking advantage of a situation.

 

[crimzon22]

I think that may have been what the upper echelon of the goverment had in mind at the beginning of this thing but if you actually go over there, you would have a very different opinion. The military is making it a number one priority to establish an Iraqi military. There are ultior motives to most of the moves the government makes but the MILITARY PEOPLE are making this one worth more than the public will EVER know.

 

[Minor Axis]

There are ultior motives to most of the moves the government makes but the MILITARY PEOPLE are making this one worth more than the public will EVER know.

I have very high respect for our military and am grieved when they come home in caskets because of what this country set in motion, and what little has been achieved (not to mention tens of thousands who have been maimed and psychologically damaged).

 

[crimzon22]

Hopefully, everyone can agree with that statement Minor! I know I do!!

 

[Peter Parka]

Even Australia is over there helping which is a great thing to see.

Not any more, the Australians ditched that racist idiot, John Howard, at the last election and the new PM, Kevin Rudd has pulled their troops out of Iraq.

 

[dt3]

Not any more, the Australians ditched that racist idiot, John Howard, at the last election and the new PM, Kevin Rudd has pulled their troops out of Iraq.

Wrong. He pulled out their combat troops. They still have boots on the ground to provide logistical support.

ABC News: Australia Ends Combat in Iraq

 

[crimzon22]

Maybe you should read the news more Peter because I just left Iraq and had dealings with TONS of Australian troops.

 

[Peter Parka]

Yeah maybe, if it's on the news though that Australia are pulling their troops out, its not really that surprising that I came to the conclusion I did. My mistake.

 

[crimzon22]

I understand and I"m not trying to be nasty. I aplogize if it came across that way. The news stations tend the spin things in the direction they want instead of telling the whole truth.

 

[Minor Axis]

Maybe you should read the news more Peter because I just left Iraq and had dealings with TONS of Australian troops.

Were you in the military or support? Feel free to PM me if you don't want to go into it publicly. I was in the USN for 9 years.

 

[DACS]

It depends what the 'job' is: no-one has really given me an answer to that yet