[bootman]

Interesting read.
I do remember all this, but some of our younger readers may not.


** American-Made: Saddam is a U.S. Creation **
America helped make a monster.
What to do with him--and what happens after he's gone--has haunted us for a quarter century.

http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports...ews/807688.asp

 

[fyrfytrhoges]

wouldn't it be a perfect world if we could all go back and rectify our mistakes before they happen, if this were clinton you know the dems spinsters would already have explained this all away. maybe we should hire some of those remote viewers or psychics to tell us who will be our enemies in another 50 years so we make sure we don't associate with them now.

 

[aeberbach]

Or maybe we should just stop handing out weapons, financing revolutions, just generally butting out for a change.

 

[fyrfytrhoges]

yeah your right, we should just put up a big fence around the country and all bury our heads in the sand, after all this country is the last remaining super power on the globe, oh oh, I'm being one of those arrogant Americans again......

 

[Sol_Zhen]

Meh. We still need to kick that ****** and his regime out of power.

 

[aeberbach]

What, you like your taxes being used to pay for arms for this decade's friend, next decade's terrorist? I say it's a waste of money even to bomb them - you can't kill them all, and the ones left alive just hate you even more. Makes no sense, unless you have shares in Raytheon or something.

 

[kerelybonto]

Good plan. If we cut down our military to the point that we can fend off Canadian or Mexican attack, cut foreign aid, maybe withdraw from the UN so we don't have to pay them millions every year -- we'd save a ****load of money. We could all buy an ice cream cone with it or something.

kerleybonto

 

[Sol_Zhen]

Annex Iraq as the 51st state and we can get gasoline cheaper than spring water. Wait… Gas is cheaper than spring water. What?

*chants “invade Poland Springs!”*

 

[DeeJayBump]

So is Osama.

Not only did the US intelligence community create Saddam, Qadafi, and Osama, but there is still an active hand in their actions.

But these are known facts, although not known by the average american who only cares about the newest survivor episode.

Question is, what do we do about it? I'm not in any remote way saying there's nothing we can do about these facts. I'm asking the members here what THEY think we should do.

 

[dparrish]

Here's what we should do:

1. Create a national energy policy which FORCES us to move significantly AWAY from the use of fossil fuels in the NEAR future. The technology is there, but this will not happen without government intervention. Many of our decisions regarding the Middle East have been "clouded" by our dependence on oil, a fact the Arab world is WELL aware of (although this doesn't excuse their terrorist behaviors). Yes, such a change will involve sacrifices in the short run, but the advantages to our society outweigh the difficulties, IMO.

2. Elect government officials who will do what is RIGHT, not what is expedient at the time for U.S. interests in a certain region.

3. Take a lesson from Star Trek--remember the Prime Directive.
We should NEVER make a decision to support a regime based on what purpose it serves us. We should support only those who support the democratic and moral principles that our country stands for. Of course, people/regimes DO change--we cannot predict the future--this is precisely why we must be cautious/careful in getting involved in someone else's "backyard".

4. Work for peace whenever possible, but when peace is NOT possible, go after our enemies with a relentlessness and fierceness that will let them know they had better leave us and our friends alone.

5. Realize that it's MUCH easier to write an article in hindsight than to actually be the government official making the decision

 

[Jeff Guidry]

Quote:

Originally posted by Sol_Zhen Annex Iraq as the 51st state and we can get gasoline cheaper than spring water. Wait… Gas is cheaper than spring water. What? *chants “invade Poland Springs!”*

HAW!

You are my hero Sol_Zhen.

 

[Jeff Guidry]

Quote:

Originally posted by DeeJayBump But these are known facts, although not known by the average american who only cares about the newest survivor episode.

Excellent point DeeJay. Their is a wealth of information available for anyone who is looking for it. I also submit that those that think that the cable news stations are actually 'informing' them better think again. They have a vested interest in keeping you tuned in, not in informing you.

Read. Read. And read some more.

 

[Jeff Guidry]

Quote:

Originally posted by dparrish Here's what we should do: 1. Create a national energy policy which FORCES us to move significantly AWAY from the use of fossil fuels in the NEAR future. The technology is there, but this will not happen without government intervention. Many of our decisions regarding the Middle East have been "clouded" by our dependence on oil, a fact the Arab world is WELL aware of (although this doesn't excuse their terrorist behaviors). Yes, such a change will involve sacrifices in the short run, but the advantages to our society outweigh the difficulties, IMO. 2. Elect government officials who will do what is RIGHT, not what is expedient at the time for U.S. interests in a certain region. 3. Take a lesson from Star Trek--remember the Prime Directive. We should NEVER make a decision to support a regime based on what purpose it serves us. We should support only those who support the democratic and moral principles that our country stands for. Of course, people/regimes DO change--we cannot predict the future--this is precisely why we must be cautious/careful in getting involved in someone else's "backyard". 4. Work for peace whenever possible, but when peace is NOT possible, go after our enemies with a relentlessness and fierceness that will let them know they had better leave us and our friends alone. 5. Realize that it's MUCH easier to write an article in hindsight than to actually be the government official making the decision

dparrish, your ideas make perfect sense, but they seem to leave out the elephant in the room: Israel. You must consider Israel in every consideration of US Mid-East foreign policy, not just oil.

 

[Jeff Guidry]

Quote:

Originally posted by fyrfytrhoges wouldn't it be a perfect world if we could all go back and rectify our mistakes before they happen, if this were clinton you know the dems spinsters would already have explained this all away. maybe we should hire some of those remote viewers or psychics to tell us who will be our enemies in another 50 years so we make sure we don't associate with them now.

This brings up a point that Kofi Annan spoke about recently. When we make foreign policy decisions, we must not only consider the immediate need of today and the next few years, but how our decisions will affect us 5 generations from now. So far, the US has indulged in very myopic and short sighted foreign policy, reacting rather than acting on event around the world. We are paying the price for that short-sightedness now. It is clear we cannot continue this way. What will happen next? Hopefully, intelligent thoughtful people like Colin Powell will help to forge a more sane and far-thinking foreign policy that keeps US strength intact, and also allows the rest of the world to reap the benefits of the great wealth and ideas that our democracy brings while keeping their own identities.

 

[redshifter]

just to add one thing to dparrish's list:

6. stop teaching their children in school that their enemies are not human, and teach them instead they can be proud of being muslim without strapping explosives to their bodies and blowing up innocent people. the hardest step here is getting people in the middle east to give up their old hatreds.