We Need to Win in Iraq

9/11 was the result of the containment of Iraq.

Where I disagree with the standard current position of the moderate left in the US is that they think that containment of Iraq was a success, and that continuing that policy was possible.

For me, prior to 9/11 a pull out of the region and let Saddam be was possible, if maybe not a desirable solution.

After 9/11 it was not, it would have signaled our military and moral defeat by the hands of religious fanatics, through terrorism, and I believe that many more attacks would have followed.

From my conversations with locals all over the Arab world, from Saudi, to Egypt to Iraq, a common belief is that their local secular tyrants are propped up by the US. They believe that if we fall so will Israel and their anti Islamic oppressors.

Also, I don't think that at this point abandoning Israel would help US with these guys. We are blamed for their losses in the various Arab/Israeli wars. I have talked to many educated Arabs who have told me that the only reason the Arabs lost was because the US put our troops dressed as Israelis into the war. They would continue to believe that we support Israel, even if we did.

I am going to vote for Ron Paul, and I hope his methods and ideas in foreign policy works, and I think we should cease to give Israel and Egypt the Billions.

And I think that a hands off policy in the middle east will eventually ease hatred of America.

But I don't think pulling troops out of Iraq will do us any good. I think winning there will do us ample good, it will do the region well, and the world in general.
And I think we can win.

Winning in Iraq would for me consist of a free market, a free press, and free elections. (no matter who wins that election the first two or three times).

A free Iraq would be a prosperous nation inevitably, and would be the envy of the region. Also, though religious extremism will undoubtedly be expressed, the majority of the masses would prevail I believe when these things with all their ugliness are exposed, just as anti racism prevailed in the US when the horrors of racism are exposed.