“Were they better off with Saddam? Were WE better off with him there?”
Iraq under Saddam was a secular Muslim state between two theocratic Muslim countries - Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran. He served as a buffer between these theocratically and ethnically opposed nations. Removal of Saddam strengthened Iran which today essentially controls Iraq.
Since WWII U.S. Presidents have ignored the Constitution’s requirement for a formal declaration of war by Congress before the United States goes to war. During the over 75 years since the declared WWII, which we clearly won, here are the results of these non declared wars:
China in the 1940’s. We did not commit troops but did commit money and material. Our side, the Republic of China, lost control of the mainland to the communists and today retains control of only Taiwan which is today under threat of invasion by Communist China.
Korea from 1950-1953. A draw at best. The border between North and South Korea remains approximately at the 38th parallel. No unification of Korea was accomplished by either side. The North remains communist and now has nuclear weapons and delivery systems which threaten the US. Arguably our homeland is more vulnerable than it was when we went to war in 1950. Certainly we have expended billions of dollars since in military and economic aid to South Korea plus our troops are still stationed in South Korea. What do we have to show for this ongoing investment?
Vietnam in the 1960’s and 1970’. The US went to war supporting corrupt South Vietnam against the communist North Vietnam under the proposition that failing to do so would result in the other countries of south Asia falling to communism. After 50,000 dead American soldiers, over 150,000 wounded, and billions of dollars of borrowed money to prosecute the war, we abandoned South Vietnam and it fell to communist North Vietnam in 1975. The “Domino Theory” used to justify the war to the American public did not play out. After victory, North Vietnam focused on uniting the north and south and reeducating the people of the south. No other Asian nations fell to communism. Today united Vietnam is still communist but now a significant exporter of goods to the US. The war was a complete waste of blood and resources.
Middle Eastern Wars of the 1990’s and 2000’s. President George H.W. Bush hired out the US military as a mercenary army to drive Iraq out of Kuwait after it invaded Kuwait. The mission, funded by the Arab states, was successful in doing so with minimal loss of American lives. However the ruler of Iraq, Saddam Hussein was not removed and he continued to irritate the United States through the 1990’s.
After the 2001 terrorist attacks on US soil the United States invaded Afganistan to hunt down Osama Bin Lauden, the terrorist leader who allegedly planned the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Bin Lauden wasn’t found in Afghanistan. The United States pursed a war to remove the Taliban from power. For 18 years the United States maintained troops in Afghanistan, spent trillions of dollars on the military occupation and building infrastructure, and then left the country, handing over to the new Taliban government $80 billion in war material. A tremendous waste of blood and money.
The US also, without a declaration of war, invaded Iraq in 2003 and deposed Saddam Hussein as leader of the country. The rationale for the war was that Saddam Hussein had developed “weapons of mass destruction” which threatened the United States. After conquering the country, and the death of Saddam, US troops did not find weapons of mass destruction. The US attempted to rebuild Iraq, and “make it safe for democracy”. After years of fighting terrorists and insurgents in Iraq, the US pulled out in 2009. Today Iran effectively controls the country.
Now we are fighting a proxy war with Russia in Ukraine. We are sending billions of dollars in US military equipment, plus advisors to teach the Ukrainians to use the equipment. The US is engaging in economic warfare with Russia in the form of economic sanctions which the US has pressured other nations to impose. Why this war is in the strategic interest of the United States has not been explained to the American people. We are investing dollars that have to be borrowed and printed to thwart the Russian invasion of Ukraine at a time when 3 million people have illegally crossed the southern border of the United States in the past year and settled in our homeland. Meanwhile our action
The question American citizens should be asking is why we have been spending trillions of dollars and tens of thousands of American lives on undeclared foreign wars which have done nothing to improve the safety of the homeland. American citizens should also ask why the government is permitting and facilitating an invasion across our southern border which is fundamentally changing the nation.
A question for both democrats and republicans. A topic we SHOULD be able to agree on as a nation and throw all the bums out of office, which is why they work so hard to keep this country divided.