what do you think about the war in iraq and why?
541398
I support the war because I support freedom and democracy. If the U.S. were to initially retreat from Iraq now, chaos will inevitable consume everyone in a global standard. \n\nBecause terorists are a large group of people who seek to kill those who do not believe in their faith, something should be done NOW instead LATER. Who knows, we could have all faced something worse on 9/11. Unless people want their own bus stops to be bombed, then we should all support the war efforts.\n\nOne last thing; people can support the war but not the government or the president. Though I am a Bush-supporter; this does NOT mean that liberals have to like Bush or accord with him if they support the War on Terror.
66960
Things that make you think a little about Iraq.\n> There were 39 combat related killings in January 2005. In the fair city of Detroit there were 35 murders in the month of January 2005. That's just one American city, about as deadly as the entire war-torn country of Iraq.. \n> When some one says that President Bush shouldn't have started this war, state the following: \n a. FDR led us into World War II. \n b. Germany never attacked us; Japan did. From \n 1941-1945, 450,000 lives were lost ..an average of  112,500 per year. \n c. Truman finished that war and started one in Korea. North Korea never attacked us. From 1950-1953, 55,000 lives were lost ..an \naverage of 18,334 per year. \n d. John F. Kennedy started the Vietnam conflict in 1962. Vietnam never attacked us. \n e. Johnson turned Vietnam into a quagmire. From \n1965-1975, 58,000 lives were lost an average of 5,800 per year. \n f. Clinton went to war in Bosnia without UN or French consent. Bosnia never attacked us. He was offered Osama bin Laden's head on a  platter three times by Sudan and did nothing. Osama has attacked us on multiple occasions.  \n g. In the years since terrorists attacked us, President Bush has liberated two countries, crushed the Taliban, crippled; al-Qaida, put nuclear inspectors in Libya, Iran, and, North Korea without firing a shot, and captured a terrorist who slaughtered 300,000 of his own people. \n> \nThe Democrats are complaining about how long the war is taking. But It took less time to take Iraq than it took Janet Reno to take the Branch Davidian compound. That was a 51-day operation. \n We've been looking for evidence for chemical weapons in Iraq for less time than it took Hillary Clinton to find the Rose Law Firm billing records. \nIt took less time for the 3rd Infantry Division and the Marines to destroy the Medina Republican Guard than it took Ted Kennedy to call the police after his Oldsmobile sank at Chappaquiddick. \n It took less time to take Iraq than it took to ount the votes in Florida!!!! \n> If you can read this, thank a teacher. \n> If you are reading it in English thank a Veteran.
194479
NO. I have friends and family who are in Iraq in the military and my father in law just got back from Iraq as a civilian bomb dog handler. Each of them has told me how saddened and sickened they are by the media portrayal of only negative things from the war. Each of them has told me about how they can see positive changes in Iraq and how much better the living conditions are over there now and how they have started schools and brought order back in many places. I don't think that is a waste of time. It is hard for us who have people we love over there and I am sure we would like to see them all come home safely and not have to be at war -- but the efforts made my our troops in Iraq are not a waste of time.
1072742
I honestly think the Military have been too patient for too long. Glad Im not Prime Minister as I would have levelled the place long ago.\n\nI realise war is not fair but the Iraqi people play upon our humanity very unfairly. We have been trying to help them against their own government/leaders and give them the freedom, education, rights, basics and respect that any human deserves and they repay our soldiers/troops with women and children acting as innocent civillians with bombs strapped to their chests and suicide bomb us. Thats just total bullsh*t! Those people are nothing but savages. Its not worth risking our troops lives for them.\n\nI would have either given all the Iraqi, Iranian, Afghanistan and any other nutty Muslim based country heaps of guns and ammunition and let them shoot themselves to death till theres only one left standing and go in and put that one out of its misery or just press the button that levels the area altogether.\n\nWhat a complete waste of time, money and human life this war has caused us (our Government, our troops, our families and our loss of loved ones!)
917178
I don't like what Bush has done to this country.  I have no idea what is behind the war in Iraq.  No one does.  every reason he put forth has been proved to be bogus.  When the wmd's turned out not to be there, he had another reason.  and when that wasn't right, he had another reason, and so on.  We have a right to know.
1013439
Yes, I am effing weary about you guys dying.  I don't believe that Iraq was the biggest threat prior to 9/11 and that Rumsfeld and Cheney lied to us to make us believe that.  I feel that your life is being put at risk to fight a war that should have never started-we should have stayed in Afghanistan and found bin Laden.  We should have kept you there looking well after Tora Bora.  And I feel that Iraq wouldn't have as many al-Qaeda living within its borders had we not invaded in the first place.  I don't think that we can set a time table, unfortunately, we have created chaos within the country of Iraq, and we have to stay there until we fix our mistakes.  Unfortunately, putting your life and others at risk.
262358
Oh Well, this is a tough one. \n\nAlthough I would like to believe that the current Iraqi situation could sustain itself, I must be realistic in my assesment of the situation. I believe that Iraq will fall apart due to the collapse and absence of a powerful cental government. Saddam was tough, but he held the country together. I think we're gonna end up having to deal with THREE NEW Iraqi states (Northern Kurds, Central Sunnis and Southern Shiites) and I just don't like the sound of that, why deal with three when we there was only one?\n\nBesides, the Shiites in the South will most likely control the larger sum of Iraq's Oil cause that's where it's concentrated. \n\nI still believe, contrary to popular belief, that Saddam could have been dealt with differently, either through micro surgery, or through hard-core diplomacy until he crumbled on his own, this all out invasion is just costing us ridiculous ammounts of money and rubbing our global reputation in the dirt. \n\nThe world is changing, we're loosing favour with hundreds of millions of people, and I just don't want that for my country, a country that I love.
180248
Please notice that it is Iraq with Q not K.\nI am sure that this war will be finished as soon as things get setteled.\nThere's one more thing, personally I don't consider it as war against Iraq, it is war against terrorism, which is a part of the battle for freedom and democracy.
156433
I have mixed feelings.  I definately think that the Iraq situation is totally out of control.  But, I think he handled 9/11 pretty well.  No matter how much he tries to connect the two, in my mind they are totally separate things.  I don't think he is to blame for New Orleans (like some people out there do).  I'm glad that Saddam Hussein is out of power, but, sometimes I wonder if the cost of bringing him to justice is too high.  \n\np.s.  I hate it when people just use entirely emotion-based arguments when discussing politics, like when people say, "I hate Bush!  He's so stupid!  etc. etc. etc."  There is a way to discuss ideas about politics and government without losing your cool.  This is also why I hate CNN and FoxNews and all of those other sensationalistic news channels.
1029720
Oh wait, you forgot about the Iraq war.\n\nBTW, no one wins in a war.
13816
I think that Iraq was on Mr. Bush's mind the day he took office.  On day one he put a target on Saddam's head and was ready to use any excuse to finish his daddy's job.\n\nHis father, however, knew the consequeces of a march on Bahgdad.  That is why we stopped short of Saddam in 91, we had a clean victory and Sr. quit while he was ahead.\n\nJr., however, wanted blood.  He was convinced that Saddam would one day become the next great tyrant.  Like Johnson in 64, Bush was ready to pounce at the first sign of any agression.  The perfect reason to declare open-ended war fell into his lap on an early september monday morning.\n\nIt has been reported that just hours after the planes hit Bush was heard asking his advisors if Iraq was involved.  He was asking very leading questions of his advisors, including donald rumsfeld, who both wanted to pin 9/11 on Saddam before the towers even hit the ground.\n\nBut some would say they were smart, they went for the easy win first.  They needed to prove to the public that America could lead a successful nation-building war.  Of course I wouldn't call Afghanistan rebuilt when 95% of their economy is from the sale of opiates (I am against prohibition, but Bush isn't).  Even today, after the supposed elections and overthrow of the taliban, the only way an afghan woman can make any kind of living is to work in the opium fields.\n\nWe all saw the buildup for war.  He and his messengers (condie, rumsfeld, right wing puppet congressmen) had us all believing that we were about to be nuked.  The sad thing is that the public at large bought right into it.  I must say he even got me wondering just what Mr. Saddam had up his sleeve.  I suppose that's why I was rather exited to watch the war on tv, I just wanted to see what this guy had.  I watched the sabre rattling in the weeks leading up to 'shock and awe'.  It was entertaining to watch these two morons square off.  I thought Saddam would have had more of a back bone though.  I expected to see a tienemen square scecne in Bahgdad, but right away I could tell once we entered the capitol that something was wrong.\n\nIf Bush had been right, I have no doubt that Saddam would have used those weapons on American soldiers.  But they never existed.  Just like the second attack at the gulf of Tonkin.  It never happened.  LBJ however did not lie himself, rather his advisors lied to him.  True, Johnson was willing and ready to pounce should a tit-for-tat oppertunity present itself.  He believed the second attack on a stranded US cruiser was just such an oppertunity.  His advisors knew of his willingness to decalre war and fed him intel that would lead him in that direction.  LBJ wanted to look strong on defence and strong against communism going into a tough 1964 election.  He knew that he would be judged to the standard of 'what would JFK have done?' in the public eye.  Once he had blindly acceped the attack as truth and declared war, it wasn't long before the conflict spiraled out of his control.  "For all I know, they're shooting at whales" Johnson said the next year about the war that was now out of his control.\n\nThe rhetoric leading upto Iraq was different.  The intel was 'misread' by everyone in the aministration, so either everyone is lieing or everyone is that dumb.  I think they were seeing what they wanted to see.  As soon as any intel came accross that would give a glimmer of hope to uniting the country behind a war surfaced, they took it as fact because they wanted to.  It suited their political end.\n\nI believe that this intel was also pressured out of the cia and nsa from the white house.  Bush pushed so hard for 'actionable intel' that people eventually told him what he wanted to hear.  This still continues as they try to quell the uprising.  The president is so desperate for information on both insurgents and al-queida (sp?) that he is willing to turn his back on the rest of
1150501
I don't like the idea of war but who are we to say anything about it.\n\n The brave men and women who are there or who was there are the only ones who should have a voice in it.  And sir my son was one of them Marines over there and he was hurt But he wants to go back cause he says the people over there needs them so I stand behind our military not our government or any bleeding heart person who wasn't there!!!!
364704
Do you think the war in Iraq is a mistake?\n\nUm, YES!
271246
The war in Iraq ended a few years ago.  Saddam and his army were defeated quickly.  Troops stayed behind to help a fledgling country with security (from insurgents and terrorists) until they were strong enough to protect themselves.  The media is doing a good job of cutting down our president and military for that, and making it look like we are at war.
257171
I knew it was going to be a mess before we went in there. The problem is politics. If we leave now it will strengthen the resolve of terrorists. It's psychological warfare, and unfortunately the weapons used are human lives. Its a no win situation. We have to find the lesser of two evils and run with it. I personally feel we have, but I feel we could be doing more to prepare the Iraqis to take care of their own.
793272
A big problem with Iraq, is it a lose-lose situation.  We stay, we kill more Iraqis and more American and coalition troops and still have a mess.  We leave, they have a bigger civil war than they have now.  \n\nReally, I would like to see Bush and the Democrats come to some agreement about what to do there.  They always want to play the blame game and the blame game, while fun for politicians, is deadly for our troops and the Iraqi population.
521529
Ive seen the loose change video. I still support the USA. I admit I must play devils advocate to both sides. I don't believe either. Not the "official story", or "loose change."\nI believe its more likely a combination of the two. Somewhere in between both side's agenda. I think that the government probably has a pretty legitimate reason for falsifying some of the information, but doesn't do well in the cover up department. While much of the rest is just over-speculation driven by conspiracy theorists. \nI think that the war in Iraq is good for our military, but bad for that region. I think that it was implemented under the guise of the search for WMD, but was actually for military position for the long time troublesome Iran & palestine. \n\nTo win a war you need 2 things for certain, power and position. The USA has the power, but lacked the position.\nIraq is that position. Seems clear to me. I do not feel sorry for those who serve the military, they made that choice full well knowing what the outcome could be. I do feel sorry for the Iraqies though, but believe still that the aftermath could be truly liberating for their population. \nOnly time will tell. \nThe only thing that is certain is that the US Federal Government is overwhelmingly corrupt. \nWe have a broken system at home. Therefore we should think incredibly hard about pusshing our system onto other nations.