Bruce, re: This gets us to the "war" in Iraq. My brother Ed believes that the opposition is indigenous; but in any event that the U.S. has no "right" to influence events in Iraq, even while every other nation and power in the world does exactly that.
You're about half right on both assertions. If by "influence events in Iraq" you mean the right to use blunt military force to do missionary work and help them see the light, then I don't believe we have that right. Maybe you'd be willing to set forth the broad outlines of a policy that you feel would be a fair standard for the world to use in undertaking such deadly military "influences."
If by "influence" you mean the right to use diplomatic, economic and peaceful means to "influence" events in Iraq, then I would agree that we have a limited right to do so. Please note which path we are currently pursuing, how well it is working and how grateful much of the world is for our missionary zeal.
As to whether the opposition is "indigenous," in my shades of gray world I know that there are some locals and some foreign jihadists working together in the insurgency. The estimates I've seen of the number of foreign fighters is not high but the level of their motivation may be very high. After all, if you travel to another country to insert yourself into a battle against armed soldiers with a high risk of fatalities, you are certainly highly motivated.
If you think such foreign fighters are the root of the problem, however, you are wrong. Even Rumsfeld has stopped referring to the insurgents as "dead enders and foreign terrorists." In addition, our government's estimates of the total numbers of fighters in the insurgency are rising.
As time passes there are numerous reports from our soldiers that the Iraqis seem to be viewing them with increasing distrust and even hatred. Polls reveal that the number of Iraqis who see us as liberators rather than occupiers has dropped from more than 50% immediately after the invasion to less than 5% now. Even our highest level spokesmen on the scene now say "of course no people like an occupying force."
If you think the Iraqi culture will tolerate "occupation" without an active "indigent" insurgency then you will have to ignore your own vast knowledge of history and discount the teachings of the majority faith of the Iraqis. Ed |
