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After 911 it became apparent that the old policy of not really engaging in the Middle East was not operative. Even Oil never got the USA off the dime in trying to resolve ME problems. It took a direct attack on US soil that threatened the Global economy by creating a crisis of Liquidity that caused the US and world to sit up and take notice.

It seems that Nobody with the exception of Sadam and various Palesteinians were dancing around with glee at the fall of the WTC. Everybody recognized the dire implications to the Status Quo in the world. Even Kadafi and Arafat didn't like what they saw. That a real bunch of crazy religious fanatics were on a Jihad to topple not only America but as a result the Global economy and that menat them as well.

The Afgan operation was handled with a deft hand, a few Special Ops Troops and Intel Operatives were able to trounce the Taliban in quick order. Of Supream importance was the Alliance that the US made with Pakistan...it was a case of using a carot instead of a stick. Musaref has virtually put not only his regime but his life on the line in supporting the USA, for the Taliban was a creature of his own intel service.

Sadam was a trickier proposition, which we handled in a throughly Bureaucratic fashion, with a heavy hand and like the scarcrow in the Wizard of OZ without a brain. Sadam was laughing at our sanctions, becuase he had bought the UN and French off. Perhaps a limited invasion of appropraiting his oil fields in the South would have served the US better, under the humanitarian guise of protecting the *****es and setting up a *****e government in the South. We were doing virtually the same thing with the Kurds in the North, giving them airprotection to stop Sadam from conducting mikitary ops against them. Thus deprived of Oil revenue and territory in the South and North it would be only a matter of time for Sadam to be ousted. and if not a little help could have been applied. That is a plan that would have served the US well in Iraq.
t T

The Dems claim of losing the focus on Al Qadea and Osma is spurious since virtually every intel service is cooperating in hunting for these fanatics. The Syrians and Kadafi have provided info on them. The real war against Al Qadea is a quiet one, where the battles rarily make the paper. Perhaps becaue our resources are heavily invested in Iraq we are giving shorter shift to Afgan and that is a tragedy. Yet ever trying to unify as independent a people as the Afgans is a daunting proposition.

The real threat is a resurgent Iran yearning for regional superpower status and to gain that a bomb is the real coming of age status symbol. The real thing that one has to take away from this is that the Arabs or Sunis don't like the idea of a hegemonic Iranian (*****e) theocracy as their neighbors. perhaps the Israelie restraint in dealing with Hezabolla was that their Arab neighbors in Jordan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia told them to lay low and they would side with Israel if push come t shove with Iran. Yet their regimes have to play to their street.

Iraq poses a special problem, we broke it and we now own it at least until we glue the place back together. We in most likely hood will have to be the glue for decades, to provide a wet blanket as it were to keep a smoldering fire from beocming a blaze that could engulf the whole region in war. Which would sound the death knell for the Global economy in that the price of oil would undoubtably jump well over $100 a barrel conservativily speaking. Not only that but the price would become highly voliatile on a daily if not houly basis according to the events of the day. Perhaps the most likely scenerio is that the next Presidentof the US will say to some Iraqie your running the place now, just keep a lid on it. The we can draw down our troop levels to around 40,000 or so.