I've got mixed feelings.
The war, if it was really, truly about WMDs, was fine. If there was a threat, we needed to get rid of it. However, I think Bush should have spent more time finding out if they were actually there. At least Saddam is gone. That was a huge benefit. As bad as the fighting still is over there, at least now there's a chance for peace over there. With Saddam in power, it would have never happened. However, we need a really good, effective plan to get out of there. I think if we just immediately withdrew all the troops the country would collapse and the 3000+ dead soldiers would be in vain. We can't just stay there indefinitely. It's just eating up time and money and lives. We need a concrete plan to get out of there, that involves setting up a strong government that can control the conflicts between the Sunnis, Shi'ites, etc. on their own. We should give them the knowledge and power to do it, then set them free.
But hey, what do I know. I'm only 18. Politics are still a mystery to me. This is just my $0.02.

There was peace for around 9 years prior to the 2003 invasion. The civil war there ended around 1994.

That's because they were ruled by a leader with an iron hand, he kill those that had a different opinion. We saw civil war break out in a number of USSR countries once their rule of fear ended.

Wow does that ever depend on your definition of "peace". Or more so what places you are discussing. There are portions of Baltimore MD that are "nice" then portions that contribute to the city having the highest per capita murder rate. So one could say Baltimore is peaceful while another couldn't wait to get out of the cesspool.

True. I meant peace as in "lack of war" or killing on a large scale. Some would say that parts of Los Angeles are war zones.

I don't recall any civil wars, except in Chechnya, and that one is still going on.

OK now Eric what do you think about Bush's latest war plan?

I think the only thing that will change is we will see more of these:

http://www.ukuleleman.net/uploaded_i...ins-769123.jpg

I don't think it will change anything in Iraq.

:iagree:

But does that mean we should just pull out? (Cut and run)

While US serviceman and woman dieing is sad, it is a cost they are willing to bare. When a serviceman signs up they are under the full understanding that they may be put in harms way for a ruling administration. And almost every soldier I speak with accepts this without question. People who didn't foresee the sight of caskets with flags draped on them were delusional and the loss of 3000 serviceman lives, while tragic, is the cost a nation must bare to secure its place. And a 3000 person loss over nearly 5 years of conflict in one area is a testimony to how well equipped US soldiers are. While I don't agree with the rational for the war, I do believe it was a necessary evil. There has never been a clearly defined conflict in the history of the world, so to assume decisions would be so clear now is asinine.