Thursday, November 6, 2003
(Via Ocean Guy, via Amish Tech Support, via Instapundit /breath)
This is a doozy in an unlikely source, mainly because of the source...
Arab News - Revisionist Thoughts on the War on Iraq
At issue here is whether the Iraqi people have benefited from the overthrow of the Baathist regime and whether the American occupation will eventually benefit their country even more. I’m convinced — and berate me here from your patriotic bleachers, if you must — that what we have seen in the land between the Tigris and the Euphrates in recent months may turn out to be the most serendipitous event in its modern history.
One need offer no apology for saying that the supreme virtue of this war is that Saddam Hussein was gotten rid of. Period. The very man who had established arguably the closest approximation of a genuine fascist state in the Arab world, that sustained itself on fear, repression, genocide, cult of personality and wanton murder — a state whose law was that those who rule are the law...
Read on to the end.
Here's a Google on the author, Fawaz Turki.
Its entirely to early to determine the outcome. Stable goverments in the Middle East are highly desirable but they cannot be achieved solely through Military power. And the US has a dismal record in Middle East Foreign Policy. Why should it be any different this time.
The whole process is already destabalizing Saudia Arabia , the real villians, and empowering the Wahabis. This is where the recruits and the bulk of the funding for terrorism comes from. 15 out of the 19 hijackers were Saudi. Wahabism is a radical and dangerous branch of Islam.
Things could get much worse. And if the administration botches the deal up and they probably will We'd be worse off they we are.
The middle east is in the condition it is largely due to the failed policies of the US and Britain. We have followed policies upholding strongmen such as Saddam, the Al-Saud's, Zia in Pakistan, the Shah of Iran, ...
The Arabs, and Persians don't trust us because we have followed an opportunistic foreign policy totally devoid of the fundamental principles the US was founded on.
It will take decades and the cooperation of all the major players to introduce stable sustainable govermenta the middle east. And we have litte to no credibility in the Region.
The purpose of the war was to set up a democracy in Iraq. It was never about WMD's but that's how they sold it to the American people. And this is despicable.
The neo-cons are basically a pack of visionaries that will lie, steal and manipulate to see their vision through. Frankly I wouldn't trust these guys to mow my lawn much less trust them to look out for the best interests of the US.
They lied about the reasons for going to war. If they had taken the time to gain the support of the population and rounded up additional financing and troops the chances of having a favorable outcome would have been much higher.
They should have honestly put it before the American people.