Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : GOPwinger Lies/Distortions/Omissions/Perversions of Truth -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: jttmab who wrote (67538)	5/31/2006 5:37:24 PM
From: one_less	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 173976

"But we're not going to leave now. And I can tell you exactly why we won't. Because it would look "bad". There is more to it. The new system is populated by people who were socialized under brutal oppression. Even though they 'get it' academically, their internal inculturation is at odds with a liberal democracy. It could take a couple of generations for the people to feel natural about it and start to thrive in such a system. We occupied Germany and Japan for at least 15 years after they accepted democracies. Patience is called for here. We just now added Clinton to our history text books. His history as president goes back to 1992. That is 14 years, not counting the campaign and his early years. There is a great deal of heart felt controversy over Clinton, no where near the heat related to feelings about Saddam. "The recent history books distributed in Iraq make no mention of Saddam Hussein. He isn't in their history!" Understandably. Give them time to establish themselves. The history of Saddam isn't likely to be lost, given the global knowledge banks we maintain in modern times. Even when we [this Administration or the next one] come to the conclusion that it is not winnable, we'll look for an exit strategy so we can say. "We won, the Iraqis lost." That would be really dumb of us. We can declare a victory over the regime of Saddam under the current status; from their it is an alliance between us and the Iraqis to establish themselves as an autonomous state. The only victory we can declare in Iraq is an ideological one. We can declare a win against the Al-Quaida insurgents when they are neutralized in Iraq but that is more like one battle than winning a war against terrorism, and it should never be thought of as beating the Iraqis. That would be a very bad diplomatic blunder. "And the Iraqis will suffer far more than they're suffering now." There is no end to suffering over there or here, for that matter. I choose to struggle for liberty and justice when picking my pot to stew in. It seems like the most worth while position to take, not without its rewards, and I recommend it.