I have to delve into politics because the stakes are so high for this election year. No president has ever been such an affront to my beliefs. I am a lifelong Democrat, but this goes way beyond that. No Republican has ever evoked the kind of outrage and disgust that I feel about George Bush.
Yes 9/11 changed the way we view the world, but we went way overboard. When the US launched a campaign into Afghanistan to hunt down Al-Qaeda no other countries complained, that was a reasonable response to catch the responsible parties. But it is clear today that there are no ties between Al-Qaeda and Iraq.
The successful overthrow of the Hussein government was no surprise. No country can stand up to the full force of the US military. What is astounding to me is the difference between what Bush administration expected in post-war Iraq and the actual result. The need for continued occupying forces and the inability to build a legitimate Iraqi government can only lead to two conclusions. 1: The Bush administration was hopelessly optimistic with their expectations. 2: The intelligence around Iraq was severely flawed. Both conclusions are true. I don't know anything about intelligence gathering but that's where the administration would of course like to place the blame. But clearly the intelligence community can not take all the blame for the decision to go to war.
The ramifications of the war in Iraq will last for generations. It could be worse than Vietnam in my mind. While the human casualties won't be as great, the effect on foreign policy will last indefinitely. The Vietnam war at least had the support of other other countries. Iraq will leave America alone and isolated both in Iraq and the future as well. The war in Iraq is only going to fuel the fires of extremism.
There are just so many things wrong with the justifications of the war with Iraq that it is embarassing. Everything about the Bush administration is horrifying to me. I still don't understand how Bush continues to lead in the polls. I am sad to be an American.
Yes 9/11 changed the way we view the world, but we went way overboard. When the US launched a campaign into Afghanistan to hunt down Al-Qaeda no other countries complained, that was a reasonable response to catch the responsible parties. But it is clear today that there are no ties between Al-Qaeda and Iraq.
The successful overthrow of the Hussein government was no surprise. No country can stand up to the full force of the US military. What is astounding to me is the difference between what Bush administration expected in post-war Iraq and the actual result. The need for continued occupying forces and the inability to build a legitimate Iraqi government can only lead to two conclusions. 1: The Bush administration was hopelessly optimistic with their expectations. 2: The intelligence around Iraq was severely flawed. Both conclusions are true. I don't know anything about intelligence gathering but that's where the administration would of course like to place the blame. But clearly the intelligence community can not take all the blame for the decision to go to war.
The ramifications of the war in Iraq will last for generations. It could be worse than Vietnam in my mind. While the human casualties won't be as great, the effect on foreign policy will last indefinitely. The Vietnam war at least had the support of other other countries. Iraq will leave America alone and isolated both in Iraq and the future as well. The war in Iraq is only going to fuel the fires of extremism.
There are just so many things wrong with the justifications of the war with Iraq that it is embarassing. Everything about the Bush administration is horrifying to me. I still don't understand how Bush continues to lead in the polls. I am sad to be an American.
posted by Hubert at 9/16/2004 01:08:00 AM
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It just boggles my mind that anyone, much less nearly half the country, thinks the current administration is anything other than horrible.