Canthe and Dilan Esper: Housecleaning issue first of all: See Michael Fumento's fine article on this "we created Saddam" mantra myth. <link> The other problem here is that unlike China, Darfur, and 50 other wretched places on the planet that one might argue could equally qualify for assistance both militarily and economically, Iraq has a different history with us. Much different, actually. As I said first of all ME the regional issue. Much at stake here. But things unfolded in Iraq in a way that separates it from Iran and North Korea as well, in addition to mere weapons concerns. And these nations, unlike Iraq, have not gotten into a recent conflict with the US only to have to do a "redo" on the Beyond this there was unfinished business in Iraq. Is this the unfolding in Iran? No. From Gulf I, the Persion Gulf War, Iraq I (whatever you like) we were told in 1990 that the UN "Mandate" of the internationalist flair for stopping Hussein from owning Kuwait held that we stop at the outskirts of Baghdad. we could not take Saddam. What was the other part of this deal that Bush one agreed to and Hussein was supposed to nod to? (thus the flyovers and other measures and UN sanctions and Food for Oil and other conditions, as well as monitoring until he threw the inspectors out). No WMDs. None Zilch. Those were the terms. Hussein violated that, or at least Hans Blix, the UN, the Republicans, many Democrats including both Clintons and many war critics, and David Kay and the Duelfer Report either said so, or indicated he planned to out wait and out wit the UN inspectors. It is and always was not also much bout weapons per se, but compliance. Iraq II is actually the unfinished business of Iraq I. Democrats at that time said that we could not take Hussein and the war must come to a grinding halt per UN Mandate, and are now groaning that because we never got Saddam in Round One, thus the redo in Iraq II, with much blood, trouble, and damage politically to everyone including Iraqis, etc, etc. Blah blah. What would our guest have for a job for a multi-trillion dollar multi-decade-in-the-making superpower high tech military like ours? Kick sand around while watching bags of rice being handed out in some Third World pest hole in the middle of yet another tribal war? The Camelot Dynasty of Clinton and Carter before his days, certainly took (and will take again) that tack. The other Clinton, Hillary (and yeah, the non Camelot guy--Obama too--if he's still around as of this writing) might have predictably just chimed in to declare the War in Iraq is lost and the surge is nothing. But, by Pete, she'll no doubt have you know that its fine to use our boys and girls with guns to help Darfur. What happens when or if the going gets tough over THERE? Like it did in the attempted but failed nabbing of Hadid in Somalia? More body draggings in the sweltering streets of Mogadishu then? Are we doomed to have thus "hyperpower" of ours be P-whipped by every rag tag warrior collection with RPGs number not more than 20,000 at most every time Moms Against Bad Things Happening and other Commanders In Grief get busy with politicians or camp out near the Bush Ranch? <link> Dilan--yes, Israel COULD fight most of this. True. But we need to keep an eye on things nontheless. Yes, oil has not shut off but contra the oligeneal arguments, it is NOT about oil. It is about humanitarianism even if that judgement turns out to be contradictory to other situations about the world, which I addressed above. Remember what I said above--the difference here is in how things unfolded. This is a matter of principle and some unfinished business. IIs this horrid? Yes--like General Sherman said when annihilating Atlanta back to the stone age, war is SUPPOSED to be. Is is expensive? YES. But as Mark Styen asked are we to NOW be knocked politically on our butts due to raghead warriors with homemade pipe bombs? ABSURDIST on its very face. Enter into all this the fact that contrary to many assumptions, it is NOT true that the terrorists did not "merely" get into Iraq due to our actions THERE or for smelling Yankee blood in the water. They got THERE, as Hitchens pointed out, due to our being in the war the liberals love to claim they love --the "real anti terror war" over in Afghanistan. So by this line of liberal thinking once we flush out--bird like--the loons in one area the fact that "IRAQ has NOTHING TO DO with the War on Terror" mantra would prevent us to laying chase?????