The Iraq War

I am not a Bush supporter, nor am I his worst critic. But, my sympathies are strongly with the President in the matter of the Iraq war. Several damning revelations since the start of war, most notably the CIA's intelligence failure, have caused not only Americans but people around the world to question the decision. In fact, the Republican party paid a heavy price in the mid-term elections held in October 2006. With the perfect 20/20 hindsight that we all possess, we can now say the war was a mistake. Even Bush, in the inner recesses of his soul,  must agree.

But, what was it like in 2003? As the President of the most powerful nation on earth, but one that was attacked by terrorists on its own soil, with another rogue nation threatening to wipe you off the face of earth, what are your options? Sit back, relax and wait to see if Saddam makes a move? And if Saddam had nothing to hide, why was he so reluctant to allow UN inspections? Maybe, diplomacy was an option, but I doubt Saddam was interested in assuaging the anxities of the US. He probably relished being a thorn in Bush's posterior. So, I guess Bush decided to err on the side of caution.

Unfortunately for Bush, it turned out Saddam never had any WMDs. Or he somehow got rid of them. I am not familiar with the theory that the sole purpose of the war was to gain control of Iraq's oil resources. I wont comment on it, but I will say this: In this day and age, it is almost impossible to capture a sovereign nation and control its natural resources. Anyway, in my opinion, here's where the US faltered: after attacking Iraq and capturing Saddam, the US forces should have retreated. Bush has no right to use the taxpayer's money to try and establish democracy in Iraq. The US has done its part by liberating millions of Iraqis from the dictatorial rule of Saddam. Too bad if the Iraqis cant make something out of this. If the Iraqis dont have a leader that can unite all the warring factions and provide decisive leadership, then I guess they deserve to be caught in the throes of a civil war.