Just to bring everyone up to speed as to why we're in Iraq.
The war with Iraq goes back to Bush Sr.
It appears that Bush Sr. was intentionally baiting Saddam to invade Iraq. Dizzy (AKA April) Glaspie was appointed Ambassador to Iraq (huh?). She had ONE meeting w/ him in her 2 years there. Here is a transcript of the fateful exchange between Dizzy and Saddam.
July 26th, 1990
President Saddam Hussein:
"If we could keep the whole of the Shatt al Arab - our strategic goal in our war with Iran - we will make concessions (to the Kuwaitis). But if we are forced to choose between keeping half of the Shatt and the whole of Iraq (which, in Iraq's view, includes Kuwait), then we will give up all of the Shatt to defend our claims on Kuwait to keep the whole of Iraq in the shape we wish it to be. (pause) What is the United States' opinion on this?"
US Ambassador Glaspie:
"We have no opinion on your Arab-Arab conflicts, such as your dispute with Kuwait. Secretary (of State James) Baker has directed me to emphasise the instruction, first given to Iraq in the 1960s, that the Kuwait issue is not associated with America."
Then, two days before Saddam's invasion - July 31st - more bait by Bush Sr. 's administration to Saddam.
John Kelly, Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, testified to Congress:
"United States has no commitment to defend Kuwait and the US has no intention of defending Kuwait if it is attacked by Iraq."
A month later a journalist asked Glaspie:
"You knew Saddam was going to invade (Kuwait), but you didn't warn him not to. You didn't tell him America would defend Kuwait. You told him the opposite - that America was not associated with Kuwait.
Then another journalist:
"You encouraged this aggression - his invasion. What were you thinking?"
Glaspie finally answered:
"Obviously, I didn't think, and nobody else did, that the Iraqis were going to take all of Kuwait."
(Note: The operative word there is 'all')
So why would Bush Sr. invite Hussein into Kuwait? Just to get a war going? Who knows? But the invitation by Bush Sr. to attack Iraq is there - and undisputable.
Then we have Bush Jr....Here is a link, all supported by concrete facts showing Bush's single-minded determination to invade Iraq...well before 9/11.
http://www.downingstreetmemo.c...r=date&order_type=ASC
But Bush was facing a major dilemma. He certainly couldn't call up the National Guard just b/c Hussein wasn't abiding by the UN resolutions. He needed something BIG to happen... Some real good excuse to get troops located to the Middle East first. Well, we all know what happened...A miracle. 9/11 occurred. But was it really a miracle?
1) We know Bush's State Dept. had de facto stand-down orders to let [everyone] obtain traveling visas to the US thru Saudi Arabia. 15 of the terrorist had applications [thu Saudi Arabia] that should have been denied.
2) The FBI had de facto stand down orders on terrorist activities (cells) in this country.
Incidentally, there are hundreds of FBI counter-terrorism special agents. I sure would like to know what they were all doing between 1996 and 2001. I don't recall any arrests of theirs [regarding terrorism] making the headlines.
Oh, should mention the FBI's counter-terrorism budget was being stalled in Congress at the time of 9/11...
Bush's post 9/11 America: I had to sit next to a ten-year-old (blonde) girl at airport check-in. We had to remove our shoes, lift our bare feet and wait for a rotund black female to inspect the bottom of them.
Gotta Love this country fellas