What if the United States had never invaded Iraq?
On the surface it seems like a big mistake. Thousands (close to 1 million) Iraqis have died, trillions of dollars have been spent and the end result has been a ramshackled,decrepit semi democratic government coupled with ISIS, the worst organization on the planet.
Yet what would the alternative have been, leaving Hussein in power? The more I read, the less I am inclined to think the outcome would have been neutral, let alone good.
Saddam was probably the worst dictator/war criminal of my lifetime. He had used chemical weapons frequently, invaded and absorbed a sovereign nation and was a committed enemy of the United States. The Iranian Mullahs and Kim-Il Sung, bad though they are really were not at his level.
Given the type of person he was, I really doubt the premise many anti-war advocates have presented, that he would have been a stabilizing if brutal presence in the region and would work to our advantage.
I do think he was all kinds of crazy and was committed to developing WMDS. The only reason he did not have them at the time was because of the devastation of the first Gulf War and the crippling sanctions that were imposed by the UN.
In 2002-2003 the sanctions were close to being eroded completely and Saddam was committed to having them lifted. It is a known fact he had all kinds of terrible WMD in the 1980s and definitely had the people who knew how to make them. If we did not invade, we would have to look forward to him continuing in power, or one of his hideous sons taking the reigns at some level.
Where would we be today if Al Gore became president or GWB felt less inclined to invade Iraq? Could we have brought Saddam to heal? I do somehow doubt it.
I do believe it was false, the notion that Saddam/Bin Laden were polar opposites and would never ally with eachother. The secular foundation of Saddam's regime had been crumbling for away for years, and many of his officers were Islamic extremists themselves. Most of ISIS' leadership is composed of former Baathist officers/security agents anyhow.
Any ideas?
On the surface it seems like a big mistake. Thousands (close to 1 million) Iraqis have died, trillions of dollars have been spent and the end result has been a ramshackled,decrepit semi democratic government coupled with ISIS, the worst organization on the planet.
Yet what would the alternative have been, leaving Hussein in power? The more I read, the less I am inclined to think the outcome would have been neutral, let alone good.
Saddam was probably the worst dictator/war criminal of my lifetime. He had used chemical weapons frequently, invaded and absorbed a sovereign nation and was a committed enemy of the United States. The Iranian Mullahs and Kim-Il Sung, bad though they are really were not at his level.
Given the type of person he was, I really doubt the premise many anti-war advocates have presented, that he would have been a stabilizing if brutal presence in the region and would work to our advantage.
I do think he was all kinds of crazy and was committed to developing WMDS. The only reason he did not have them at the time was because of the devastation of the first Gulf War and the crippling sanctions that were imposed by the UN.
In 2002-2003 the sanctions were close to being eroded completely and Saddam was committed to having them lifted. It is a known fact he had all kinds of terrible WMD in the 1980s and definitely had the people who knew how to make them. If we did not invade, we would have to look forward to him continuing in power, or one of his hideous sons taking the reigns at some level.
Where would we be today if Al Gore became president or GWB felt less inclined to invade Iraq? Could we have brought Saddam to heal? I do somehow doubt it.
I do believe it was false, the notion that Saddam/Bin Laden were polar opposites and would never ally with eachother. The secular foundation of Saddam's regime had been crumbling for away for years, and many of his officers were Islamic extremists themselves. Most of ISIS' leadership is composed of former Baathist officers/security agents anyhow.
Any ideas?
