Guardian: Nowhere to run

[unhappycamper]

After what has been described as the most foolish war in over 2,000 years, is there a way out of Iraq for President Bush, asks Brian Whitaker

Tuesday November 29, 2005

There is a remarkable article in the latest issue of the American Jewish weekly, Forward. It calls for President Bush to be impeached and put on trial "for misleading the American people, and launching the most foolish war since Emperor Augustus in 9 BC sent his legions into Germany and lost them".

To describe Iraq as the most foolish war of the last 2,014 years is a sweeping statement, but the writer is well qualified to know.

He is Martin van Creveld, a professor at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and one of the world's foremost military historians. Several of his books have influenced modern military theory and he is the only non-American author on the US Army's list of required reading for officers.

Professor van Creveld has previously drawn parallels between Iraq and Vietnam, and pointed out that almost all countries that have tried to fight similar wars during the last 60 years or so have ended up losing. Why President Bush "nevertheless decided to go to war escapes me and will no doubt preoccupy historians to come," he told one interviewer.

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[joeybee12]

1. Thanks for posting this...I read it earlier this morning...

...very good summary of the phucked-up situation we have created, which is now a no-win situation.

[peace frog]

2. The link is appreciated

Thanks!

[Burning Water]

3. I'm not here

to tell you that the war in Iraq is not foolish. The facts speak for themselves. But to call it "the most foolish war in 2000 years" seems to me to be the height of arrogance. There is so much that even the best historians do not know about the events of the last 2000 years. Can he think it more foolish than WW1 or WW2? Especially from the German point of view? The truthful answer to that question brings the man's judgment into doubt.

It's best not to let the political heat of the moment cloud our judgment. Mankind's nature hasn't changed any in the last 2000 years. What makes * any more foolish than the numerous tin-pot dictators that have led their countries into war and ruin before? He just happens to be the present source of anxiety, and he is not unique.

[readmylips]

4. Some one foolish is a moron and stupid person...fortunate son..

that is little bush junior.

[Burning Water]

5. Yes, we all know that.

But I don't consider it evidence of the premise. There have been other "fortunate sons" in history.

[bemildred]

6. Does seem to be a bit of hyperbole.

"Most foolish war" is a very competitive category.

Still, it's a real contender, and it will take a long time to evaluate the consequences.

[Burning Water]

7. Yes, I think you are correct n/t

[cliss]

8. Well, if you were to point a gun at the war planners,

and force them to tell you the real reasons for invading Iraq, they would give you this answer:

1) We did it to secure the oil. The U.S. is desperately dependent on foreign oil. Iraq has the world's #2 supply.

2) We set up a police station in Iraq. We needed to spy on the Middle East and be the dominant power in the region. That's what the 14 bases are for. The ME is becoming less stable, and we need to keep things from falling apart. Iraq was the weakest link. We moved in there because it was the easiest, strategically. Plus, we could get our U.S. troops out of Saudi Arabia, which was a huge Al Qaida recruiting tool.

3) We wanted to carve up Iraq like a side of beef hanging in a butcher shop. We were going to open it up for any and all bidders, like Kentucky Fried Chicken, the Marriott, Holiday Inn Baghdad, even Taco Bell. There was lots of business to be made there.

4) We had to keep the military-industrial machinery going. We had CACI, Titan, Lockheed-Martin, Boeing, Mc Donnell Douglas, Halliburton, the list goes on and on. Wars are big business. They were, in fact, the driving force behind this.
*************
These are all pragmatic, practical reasons for going into Iraq. Some might call them selfish, self-centered. So the REASONS were not the bad part. It was the EXECUTION that failed. They just couldn't pull it off. It was too big of a project, and I think they all realize that now. In fact, they probably knew it in the summer of 2003 when the insurgency was out of control.

[Burning Water]

9. I'm not disagreeing,

I simply think to call it the most foolish war for the last 2000 years is the statement of a non-serious person.

[Stockholm]

10. DU should try and get the permission to post the article in its entirety

http://www.forward.com/articles/6936