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Politics : Liberalism: Do You Agree We've Had Enough of It? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Proud_Infidel who wrote (803)	12/7/2004 9:34:04 AM
From: cirrus	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 224660

Muslims and Christians lived side by side in Bosnian neighborhoods for decades without confrontation until Milosovic triggered a genocidal hate campaign carried out by his minions. The potential far worse bloodbath was averted when Milosovic was removed without the loss of a single American soldier, and the situation remains calm years later with only a small contingent (4,500) of American troops - troops whose deployment George Bush criticized during the 2000 campaign but wisely chose to continue. The situation in Bosnia remains calm and there is good reason to believe it can remain so. Iraq, with the Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites inhabiting three essentially distinct geographical areas, has been held together only by Saddam's (Sunni) brutal repression of the Kurds and Shiites. The presence of 140,000 American soldiers for nearly two years hasn't brought peace. Indeed, the violence has escalated to levels even more severe than during the initial invasion. This is far, far more different than Bosnia. At some point we will need to rethink the situation and admit that this wasn't in the initial plan for Iraq. The Kurds have long desired independence. The Shiites and Sunnis don't get along. America is in essence, fighting an Iraqi civil war. Qquestions remain involving America's strategic interest. Is a unified Iraq or Iraq split in three better for America? Will the Shiites join with Iran? Will the Sunnis re-arm and invade the Shiite territory? Will any of the three be able to create WMD on their own? What will Turkey's reaction be to and independent Kurdistan? However, these are issues that should be in the back of our minds as we recall the National Intelligence Estimate prepared for President Bush that suggested that civil war in Iraq was a very strong probability. To get back to your point, Iraq and Bosnia are quite different. Consistency is not always virtue - or appropriate. So we should split the Christians and Muslims up in Bosnia too? Consistency would demand this.