Most of the commentary on this board regarding Iraq has left my head spinning with it's lack of reasoned analysis. Generally, posters seem to fall into two camps: Bush Bobble-head dolls, for whom any negative comment about Dubya and the war on terrorism is seen as unreasoned, and the Liberal Anti-Bush Poseurs for whom it is anathema to give Bush credit for anything. I've come up with a poll to see which one each of us is. I've tried to accurately reflect the more reasonable positions. My own is pretty close to #2.
#3 here. If you are going to send our soldiers into harm's way, you'd better justify it. Bush justified it with a series of lies. If, from the beginning, he had said "Saddam is a dictator and the world will be better off without him" instead of the "WMD" mantra that was used, I wouldn't have any problem with it.
i voted one, because im sure this is sarcasme. and it is anti bush, because i really got the feeling bush thinks like that quote.
I supported the war in Afghanistan and after 9/11 even thought about joining the armed services, but didn't think they would want a 31 year old computer geek. I thought Bush did a great job of rallying the country and the world to the war against terrorism and even thought that we might be able to use that good will to make some positive changes in other places in the world. Then came the Iraq fiasco. I was unsure of how we should proceed given that we had weapons inspectors in-country already. I thought we should allow them the time to do their jobs and that we should wait for the UN to find Iraq in breach of the treaty. After the SOTU address, I supported war on the basis of the WMDs that they claimed to know about beyond a shadow of doubt along with the claim that Saddam tried to acquire nuclear weapon materials. Now that both of the claims that I supported war on have proven to be false, misleading, or "technically accurate," I do not support how this administration led our country to war. I do not support how we snubbed the UN, and I do not like how we thumbed our noses at the entire world and then asked for their help in cleaning up our mess. This entire war (in Iraq) has showed very clearly how little experience and aptitude our President has with foreign affairs.
Interesting comments hillary made in a breakfast meeting with the editors of the Christian Science Monitor. I can't find the whole article on the monitor website, but there are excerpts here: http://www.christiansciencemonitor.com/2003/0925/p25s01-usmb.html and Fred Barnes has his own here: http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/003/157wjmhn.asp -- "The intelligence from Bush 1 to Clinton to Bush 2 was consistent" in concluding Saddam had chemical and biological weapons and was trying to develop a nuclear capability, Clinton said this morning. And Saddam's expulsion of weapons inspectors and "the behavior" of his regime "pointed to a continuing effort" to produce WMD, she added. The senator said she did her own "due diligence" by attending classified briefings on Capitol Hill and at the White House and Pentagon and also by consulting national security officials from the Clinton administration whom she trusts. "To a person, they all agreed with the consensus of the intelligence" that Saddam had WMD.
My response isn't really up there. I was torn on the war in Iraq. I couldn't see the point of it, and it was not justified to my satisfaction. And I even figured that Hussein was at least attempting to acquire WMDs if he hadn't already (not based on any reports I saw, just based on my opinion of the man and his history). But when the President decided the war was the course of action we were going to take, I supported it because he is the President, and I am a Republican. In the end, I can't justify how they went about making a case for this war. I think the world is better off without Saddam Hussein in power, but I don't think we necessarily went about it the right way. But, I am much more likely to support the President because he is of my political party and when he gets attacked, it's just a natural reaction for me to want to defend him, though I think I've done a fairly good job of not just agreeing with everything the President does because I do believe a lot of what this administration has done is wrong. But I admit I am not likely to vigorously point out the areas in which I find fault because he still is my President from my Party, even if I don't like him or don't agree with him.
Wow, that's really honest mr. paige, watch your back though, Bush is never wrong. I supported the war because removing people like Saddam is a good thing in my mind, I wish we would do it more often. I think we could have tried harder to get the UN to go with us, maybe if we hadn't tried the WMD angle, it might have been possible. Hell, if it was part of a broad based campaign to remove dictators and despots, it could have garnered support. I don't take death well though. When I watch a movie, and an innocent bystander gets killed during a shootout, I can't help but think "damn, poor guy, that wasn't fair." Now imagine how I feel when I see innocent kids with their limbs blown off and their whole family dead? Or the bodies of our own dead troops? I just can't put that kind of stuff out of my head. Of course, people die during wars, that's a given, I just wish we didn't have to go it alone. As for Bush, the Iraq thing doesn't even matter. His ideas are mostly opposite from mine, of course I dislike and can't wait to get him out of office. People who don't understand that are probably Republicans who have blocked out their feelings from 93 through 2000.
I voted #1 because it is closest to my feelings that Saddam was bad and getting rid of him was good, and I hope we continue this policy elsewhere (Iran, Syria, Rwanda, etc.) I don't think Bush is my lord and savior (he didn't even want nation building during his campaign) nor do I think we should or will attack France (irrelevent nuclrear armed nations who do mostly okay by their people should just be left to their mediocrity.)
hey basso I would like to just point out it's.... 40% Bush Bobble-head dolls 60% Liberal Anti-Bush Poseurs so far...
