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Yeah, well - I remember the mood pretty well. That was back when Questioning The President At Wartime was tantamount to high treason.
Yes there was a good deal of pressure on congress to go along but obviously we didn't have enooug troops to win the war. Rumsfeld's philosophy of winning the war using higher technology didn't quite work out. This will go down aas the only war to date where contractors out numbered soldiersand still do, maybe that was the plan from the beginning.
I blame congress along with Bush for not asking enough tough questions.
Considering the level of BS information that even this dumb ole hillbilly could see through with nothing more than an internet connection, Congress was not only remiss in its duties, it thrust its responsibility upon the Executive Branch.
I recall Sen. Byrd standing there holding his pocket copy of the US Constitution asking other members of Congress, 'Lets have a real discussion and talk about this, it is war we are talking about after all', and he was steamrolled and cast aside like a pair of dirty underwear.
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Originally Posted by Dane_in_LA
Yeah, well - I remember the mood pretty well. That was back when Questioning The President At Wartime was tantamount to high treason.
I too remember it well and I did question the reasoning and evidence and for the vast majority of my countrymen, I was seen and treated as a traitor.
Though all the winds of doctrine were let loose to play upon the earth, so Truth be in the field, we do ingloriously, by licensing and prohibiting, to misdoubt her strength. Let her and Falsehood grapple: who ever knew Truth put to the worse in a free and open encounter
Milton's concept of 'Letting truth and falsehood grapple' and the chips fall where they may was not only lost but the fevered pitch of visceral emotional reactionary sentiment was such it reminded me of a cattle stampede of lobotomized bovines.
I'm reminded by the following which is falsely attributed to Julius Caesar.
"Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind. And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded by patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader and gladly so. How do I know? For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar."
--Julius Caesar
However, regardless of who said it... yeah... exactly!
We removed a dictator and liberated people from tyranny so it doesn't matter if there were WMDs or not.
Too bad they didn't ask for it. If someone from Canada came to your house and said you were a bad person, killed you, burned your house down and left your family sitting next to a pile of ashes, would you feel this an acceptable thing to do if they did so under the premise that they removed a 'bad person'?
Yes there was a good deal of pressure on congress to go along but obviously we didn't have enooug troops to win the war.
If I may split a hair, here? The war went quite well. Which isn't too surprising, what with the world's sole superpower vs. a 4th-rate low-tech conscription military. Without WMD.
It was the occupation that was botched up beyond comprehension. Apparently the occupation plan was written on an Air Force One napkin and sounded "Enter Baghdad, get showered with flowers, be home in time for tea and medals" in its entirety. There was a window of opportunity after the invasion - perhaps 12 months - and it was squandered. Mistake piled on mistake, as competent people fled the assignment and young idealists took over, deciding that Iraq was a perfect sandbox for their experiments in social engineering.
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This will go down aas the only war to date where contractors out numbered soldiers and still do, maybe that was the plan from the beginning.
If I may split a hair, here? The war went quite well. Which isn't too surprising, what with the world's sole superpower vs. a 4th-rate low-tech conscription military. Without WMD.
It was the occupation that was botched up beyond comprehension. Apparently the occupation plan was written on an Air Force One napkin and sounded "Enter Baghdad, get showered with flowers, be home in time for tea and medals" in its entirety. There was a window of opportunity after the invasion - perhaps 12 months - and it was squandered. Mistake piled on mistake, as competent people fled the assignment and young idealists took over, deciding that Iraq was a perfect sandbox for their experiments in social engineering.
Mercenaries. <spit>
Very true. There WERE enough troops to win the war - just not enough to occupy the country properly.
And you are right, there was mistake after mistake.
Ken
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