The end of the Iraq War has finally occurred, in the sense of combat operations! 🙂
After seven years, five months, the third longest war in US History, after Vietnam and the ongoing Afghanistan War, the American government is leaving that country at a time when political turmoil is worse than it is in this nation, and one wonders what has been gained! 🙁
We have spent $700 billion, lost 4, 415 men and women, and over 32,000 wounded, many severely in physical and mental ways! 🙁
The war was based on false intelligence, manipulation of the truth, bad motivations, and effects many of which are not yet known! 🙁
It seems to many that the winner has been the nation of Iran, which no longer has to worry about its neighbor being a counter balance to them, and Iran remains a much greater threat now than it has ever been! 🙁
The question arises as to whether Israel will decide that Iran is a threat with its development of nuclear capability, and will therefore, decide to intervene militarily as it did in Iraq in 1981 and Syria in 2007!
And the question will arise as to how the United States will deal with such an eventuality, and whether we will decide we must intervene in any conflict that occurs, and how that will affect the whole Middle East!
So while celebrating the end of the combat mission in Iraq, we must remain sober as to the effects it has had, and will continue to have in the future! 🙁
The Middle East dyanmic would be tremendously different today had we not falsely removed Saddom from power. I do not believe that he was a good man because we can all agree he is a blood thirsty dictator that harmed his people and acted belligerently in the international community.
However, Saddam’s presence was a equalizing force in Mideast politics because, as you mentioned, He gave Iran something to fear along its own borders considering the history of the relationship between both nations. The fact that the Bush administration thrust us into a war on flase pretentions seems to be a non issue and I take ISSUE with it because it seems administration received a “Get Out of Jail” free card when they were gulity of falsifying intelligence and the extend of the “Security” threat Iraq posed in the War On terror. All the War did was give more power and tax payer dollars to the Military Establishment, ignore shady behavior in the way Blackwater and Haliburton conducted themselves with Government contracts.
Obama receives so much flak everytime he sneezes in the wrong direction, yet The Bush Adminsitration acted callously and with little regard to the Men and Women in the Military by using them for political benefit. I applaud Obama for taking concrete steps towards correcting this mistake yet the repercussions will have an effect for years and years to come
I was typing without paying attention to the errors and for those I apologize since there are many and a couple words used incorrectly