There was no mandate to march on Baghdad, either in domestic politics or internationally. It would have involved occupying the country, which we were not prepared to do. Besides, we thought the internal opposition would take care of it. It failed, as did the "palace coup" attempt, but such things are always chancy.
It has not been US policy to support authoritarian regimes, per se. It has been US policy to deal with existing regimes, whatever their character, unless there were a perceived security threat. Even in the Middle East, Israel and Turkey are democracies, Egypt and Jordan are quasi- democratic, and we have encouraged greater political participation in regimes like the Saudi's.
The Wahhabi sect happened to be the sect that the Saudis followed. When the current dynasty succeeded Turkish rule, it was natural that it become official. They have discouraged competing sects, so it is not quite true that the schools can teach any old kind of fundamentalism.
"....a typical American lack of foresight, something that has been much commented on in this century...." Yeah, we are such dummies that we are the pre- eminent power in the world............. |
