"The overall U.S. death toll in Iraq rose to 4,000 after four soldiers were killed in a roadside bombing in Baghdad, a grim milestone that is likely to fuel calls for the withdrawal of American forces as the war enters its sixth year.

The White House said it was "a sober moment." President Bush received a lengthy update on the war and aides said he was likely to embrace recommendations for a pause in troop withdrawals beyond those already scheduled." I got this from msnbc, it's so sad. God Bless America.

This is what bothers me.  The present Administration got us into the Iraq War by claiming Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, which he did not have at the time.  Before the war, we were told the coalition forces would be greeted as liberators, and although many Iraqis did so, most clearly see us as invaders/occupiers.  The White House told Congress the war would basically pay for itself or be inexpensive....it's now costing us trillions of dollars and 4,000 men and women have been killed.

Here's the punchline: When Vice President Dick Cheney was reminded by an ABC reporter that two thirds of the American people are against the war, his reply was, "So?"

bettyblue said:

This is what bothers me.  The present Administration got us into the Iraq War by claiming Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, which he did not have at the time.  Before the war, we were told the coalition forces would be greeted as liberators, and although many Iraqis did so, most clearly see us as invaders/occupiers.  The White House told Congress the war would basically pay for itself or be inexpensive....it's now costing us trillions of dollars and 4,000 men and women have been killed.

Here's the punchline: When Vice President Dick Cheney was reminded by an ABC reporter that two thirds of the American people are against the war, his reply was, "So?"

This is why I really hope Obama wins. He will take us out of the war while Hillary supports it. I think its time all our troups come home and just leave Iraq alone. Its their own country, we helped them and rid them of Saddam I think thats enough.

jdizzle said:

bettyblue said:

This is what bothers me.  The present Administration got us into the Iraq War by claiming Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, which he did not have at the time.  Before the war, we were told the coalition forces would be greeted as liberators, and although many Iraqis did so, most clearly see us as invaders/occupiers.  The White House told Congress the war would basically pay for itself or be inexpensive....it's now costing us trillions of dollars and 4,000 men and women have been killed.

Here's the punchline: When Vice President Dick Cheney was reminded by an ABC reporter that two thirds of the American people are against the war, his reply was, "So?"

This is why I really hope Obama wins. He will take us out of the war while Hillary supports it. I think its time all our troups come home and just leave Iraq alone. Its their own country, we helped them and rid them of Saddam I think thats enough.

 

While bringing the troops home soon is a nice "feel-good" campaign promise, I doubt that any President, from either party, can simply say to 140,000 men and women (plus all their equipment), "Okay, pack up....we're leaving."   It's not quite that easy; the Iraqi insurgents and Al Qaeda people now shooting at us and blowing up things on the road aren't going to simply let us drive out the way we came in without shooting at us, and we can't fly the soldiers and Marines out without their tanks, Bradleys, humvees, trucks and other heavy equipment.

Also, yes, it's their country, but leaving in a hurry will create a bloodbath...and the argument for "just leaving them alone" is not exactly morally defensible...especially since it was our invasion that tore the country apart in the first place.

 

fardreamer said:

jdizzle said:

bettyblue said:

This is what bothers me.  The present Administration got us into the Iraq War by claiming Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, which he did not have at the time.  Before the war, we were told the coalition forces would be greeted as liberators, and although many Iraqis did so, most clearly see us as invaders/occupiers.  The White House told Congress the war would basically pay for itself or be inexpensive....it's now costing us trillions of dollars and 4,000 men and women have been killed.

Here's the punchline: When Vice President Dick Cheney was reminded by an ABC reporter that two thirds of the American people are against the war, his reply was, "So?"

This is why I really hope Obama wins. He will take us out of the war while Hillary supports it. I think its time all our troups come home and just leave Iraq alone. Its their own country, we helped them and rid them of Saddam I think thats enough.

 

While bringing the troops home soon is a nice "feel-good" campaign promise, I doubt that any President, from either party, can simply say to 140,000 men and women (plus all their equipment), "Okay, pack up....we're leaving."   It's not quite that easy; the Iraqi insurgents and Al Qaeda people now shooting at us and blowing up things on the road aren't going to simply let us drive out the way we came in without shooting at us, and we can't fly the soldiers and Marines out without their tanks, Bradleys, humvees, trucks and other heavy equipment.

Also, yes, it's their country, but leaving in a hurry will create a bloodbath...and the argument for "just leaving them alone" is not exactly morally defensible...especially since it was our invasion that tore the country apart in the first place.

 

I think they could find a smart tactic in leaving and not causing a bunch of problems. Like an agreement through both countries. I'm sure theyre not just goign to pack up wave goodbye and leave.

The problem, though, isn't saying to the Iraqi government, "Hey, guys, we've done our bit for King and Country; we're outta here. Let's sign a withdrawal agreement."  It's not the Iraqi government we're at war with, it's the Al Qaeda people and anti-government forces we're fighting with.

I don't think most people understand the psychology of the enemy we're fighting.  These terrorists or jihadists (holy warriors) aren't going to simply watch us pack up our equipment and drive/fly it out and wave goodbye....they will shoot at us till they feel they drove us out of Iraq.

inthelight said: "The overall U.S. death toll in Iraq rose to 4,000 after four soldiers were killed in a roadside bombing in Baghdad, a grim milestone that is likely to fuel calls for the withdrawal of American forces as the war enters its sixth year.

The White House said it was "a sober moment." President Bush received a lengthy update on the war and aides said he was likely to embrace recommendations for a pause in troop withdrawals beyond those already scheduled." I got this from msnbc, it's so sad. God Bless America.

One of the sad things about how the world has changed since World War II, other than the fact that wars are still fought, is how we now rely on a very small all-volunteer military force which has to fight two wars at the same time - one a very unpopular war in Iraq, the other a neglected but necessary one in Afghanistan. Our armed forces are so small in comparison to the 18 million-soldier Army of World War II that we agonize over a casualty figure that is a drop in a bucket compared to other wars in our past.

This figure - 4,000-plus servicemen and women - isn't trivial. It isn't for the families, friends, and entire communities that lost them.  Indeed, the entire nation is poorer for having lost them, particularly in a war that shouldn't have been started in the first place.

Yet, I want to ask a rhetorical question: Do you think this society, the way it is now, could have fought World War II with today's attitudes?  What would we think of battles like Pearl Harbor, where we lost 2,413 Americans killed in two and a half hours? Or the Battle of Normandy, where almost as many men were lost in one day as haved been lost in five years in Iraq?  Would we now also be against that war, too?