Iraq War--Ten Years Later

Ten years ago on the this day, US forces launched, what was called a pre-emptive, invasion of Saddam Hussein's Iraq.  President Bush was on the TV telling Iraqis that "the moment of their liberation had arrived."  He also stated the invasion was happening because Iraq was actively pursing research and acquiring "Weapons of Mass Destruction" (WMDs) and was allied to al-Qeida.

Secretary of State Colin Powell went before the United Nations in 2002 and told the world that Iraq was seeking yellow cake uranium in Niger to make nuclear weapons.  He also stated that al-Qieda and Iraq were meeting to coordinate attacks on the United States.

Worst of all, many of us here in the US--including me--fell for it.

The Iraqis were never in Niger, there was one low level contact between Hussein's people and Bin Laden's that never amounted to anything, and we never found any weapon of mass destruction.  A couple of mobile weapons labs, true, but they did not seem to have been used for anything.

We were lied to and the nation was plunged into a divisive, futile, and inconclusive war that left 4,488 servicemen dead, thousands wounded,. God knows how many Iraqis dead and wounded, Iran as the major power in the region, and a distrust in our government that may never leave.

President Obama promised to end the war but instead tried to extend it. Post-Hussein Iraq would not allow American soldiers to stay beyond December 31, 2011 in the original agreement signed with the preceding Bush administration so the war was going to end on way or the other.

Combined with Afghanistan, launched in 2001, these wars might be christened the Moslem Wars by future historians.  What did they accomplish?

Not much.

The Middle East is in turmoil like it usually is, we have a national security apparatus call Homeland Security that resembles the KGB but twice as big and twice as incompetent, as passengers lining up in airports are essentially stripped searched by the TSA, and the FBI engages in active profiling as millions of illegal immigrants walk over the southern border to have US politicians beg them for money and votes.   Those same politicians make millions from the wars and security apparatus and the population of America loses hope in democracy.  And let's not forget the out of control debt these ill conceived adventure put us in.

Was it worth it?  It might be too early to tell but so far it is looking like a big NO.

At least one positive thing will come out of this.

The United States won't be going to war anytime soon.

We're too broke.