>What you feel "right now" simply cannot be a factor. The determination to go to war, right or wrong, must be made up front. And it cannot be changed halfway through. If a leader allows himself to be swayed by public opinion, then no war can ever be won, for it is seldom that a war is popular throughout its term.
Untrue; a war of choice needs to be thought of in economic terms -- not dollars and cents, necessarily, but in terms of opportunity costs and benefits.
If we lose 10,000 soldiers, spend $300,000,000,000, make the entire Middle East more unsafe for us, witness a civil war in Iraq, and end up pulling out with our tails between our legs, will this war have been worth it? I'd argue no, and you'd argue that it ain't gonna happen. So, that's where we stand, right? I think that we've more or less hit the end of this argument and will have to agree to disagree and observe what happens from here.
-Z |
