Do you believe the Iraq war is about terrorism or natural resources?

[adios]

Bin Laden turned anti US in the Gulf War when the Saudi government brought U.S. troops onto Saudi soil instead of enlisting folks like the mujahideen to protect the territory that contains some of the most holy places for Islam. So yes you do have good point and U.S. policy in the middle east has been disasterous in many ways over a long period of time IMO.

[mark_foley]

Our entire foreign policy in the middle east as been predicated on oil for the last 60 years.

[Vagos]

[ QUOTE ]
Vagos, I am glad you expanded on this topic.

What makes a "terror state"? For US planners, the form of government or the level of internal repression is not an issue. Rather, it is dependent on the level of obedience that a nation exibits toward the US's strategic goals.

Governments that allow the US unfettered access to their natural resouces in exchange for arms and political protection are considered allies, while nations which seek to use natural resources to alleviate suffering and poverty are attacked. The best example of this is the current propaganda war against Hugo Chavez for attempting to use his nation's oil wealth to advance the interests of the citizens of that country rather than US business interests.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yea, I basically agree with your point.

But in this case, I'm only referring to the situation with Iraq. Saddam was our ally. He had a pretty rosy situation for himself and his country. But then Iraq transformed into a nation that wanted to control the region and control the oil. His intentions would have been bad for our energy needs. His thirst for violence and power complicated and compromised our oil interests and turned Iraq into our enemy. Essentially, Iraq became a "terror" state to our government. Not always the case, but it was the case here I think.

At least, that's how I understand it. I could be mistaken.

[canis582]

Vagos, with the political discourse in our country it is difficult to understand anything.

adios, the planners we had during and after WW2 were gifted thinkers who managed to set the world up to serve our interets. Why has our system become so broken that we can't get lucid thinkers like George Kennan to run our State Department Planning Staff.

[adios]

[ QUOTE ]
adios, the planners we had during and after WW2 were gifted thinkers who managed to set the world up to serve our interets.

[/ QUOTE ]

CIA assassanations; intervention in other country's affairs including putting U.S. friendlies in power namely Iran, Guatamala, Chile, etc.; supporting religous despots in places like Saudi Arabia; the bogus domino theory in the cold war period; Vietnam; Bay of Pigs; supporting Iraq (yep supported Saddam vs. Iran in their war); supporting the Contras drug trafficing; failed sanctions against Iraq; etc. There's more but other than that everything went peachy.

[canis582]

Bogus domino theory was to control US public opinion.

Putting friendlies in power in resource rich nations is a good idea for our interests.
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Vietnam was kinda pointless, the sanctions in Iraq were a good warning to other nations that would disobey the US.

[Bill Haywood]

It's about empire.

Controlling Europe and Japan's oil means Washington has tremendous leverage over them (our biggest competitors).

Maintaining the imperial advantage of the state and the rich is not worth kids lives.

It's also about keeping access to cheap (relatively) oil, but I would be happy to pay more for gas rather than sacrifice other peoples kids. (Mine know better.)

[boracay]

[ QUOTE ]
I think it is about power and control, over american citizens. Terrorism is the excuse to make and keep americans afraid so the government can continue to sheer them like the sheep they are, and now they are praising them for it and insisting that it is necessary.

[/ QUOTE ]

i agree war on terror is about power and control over american citizens, but attack on iraq was about natural resources and geopolitics.

"A state of war only serves as an excuse for domestic tyranny." - Alexander Solzhenitsyn

"Every war when it comes, or before it comes, is represented not as a war but as an act of self-defense against a homicidal maniac." - George Orwell

"A highwayman is as much a robber when he plunders in a gang as when single; and a nation that makes an unjust war is only a great gang." - Benjamin Franklin

"Constant apprehension of war has the same tendency to render the head too large for the body. A standing military force with an overgrown executive will not long be safe companions to liberty." - Thomas Jefferson

[elwoodblues]

[ QUOTE ]
Do you believe the Iraq war is about terrorism or natural resources?

[/ QUOTE ]

All of the above (and many more.) To try to reduce what a war is about to 1 or 2 words is probably a mistake.

[zasterguava]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Do you believe the Iraq war is about terrorism or natural resources?

[/ QUOTE ]

All of the above (and many more.) To try to reduce what a war is about to 1 or 2 words is probably a mistake.

[/ QUOTE ]

Do you not see a contradiction in believing it is both of these. If the death of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi's is partly for oil then I struggle to see how in any way it can be about reducing terroism.