We HAVE remain there, because we physically tore the country down and apart, as opposed to just replacing a gov't. We did this without a plan (I think now WE are more "shocked and awed')for rebuilding and obviously, without a plan considering complete, historic perspective. This administration went to war (undeclared) under one mission (WMD), which all of a sudden became a major call from Iraqis to free them from Hussein, AND to become a democracy (I missed the President's speech on that request). This time, we did it under the aegis of creating an unsolicited US "democratic" territory, aka a democratic Iraq. We are now obligated to rebuild, restore, and maintain it (I guess, until we decide it is free/safe, whatever). However, we must understand that this democracy is going to be according to their culture/customs, as they see it, as well it should be!!! We will see if the US admin means what it says or if it means, "You have to do it MY way."

actually... the plan to reconstruct Iraq was dropped in January 2006. Sooo... pretty much we just destroyed Iraq and walked out. <<<<<no even worser, somehow for no reason U.S. troops still remain there "to create a democracy in Iraq".

"We have a responsibility to the rest of the free world to fight terrorism where it lives"

>>>I've always thought that occupying countries CAUSES terrorism. It sure worked for the colonists when they were trying to get rid of King George.

[b]Good Evening All[b]
Some of the above questionaire are good topics for the citizenry to discuss.
That is the essence of democratic freedom. That the people peacefully(?) persuadetheir fellow citizens in matters important to them.
That is a curiously WESTERN ideological element. Historically, Mankind has NOT been an individualistic, enlightened and economically vibrant civilization.
In fact, it has inarguably been a brutal, disease-ridden, and tyrranical
succession of tribes, aristocrats, and clerics that have stolen and decieved the vast billions of human souls that have ever lived.
..Pretty cynical, and brutally honest, no?
The more recent ( three centuries)examples of civilization have confirmed the european model as superior to the aboriginal, and primitive tribal religious
systems as the slavish and stagnant degradation of human free wills they were ( and ARE ).
America was a "state-of-the-art" idealistic revolution.. ( as opposed to the french revolution, which inspired the rest of histories bloodbaths.).. It was not perfect, and it was a difficult persuasion to convince Englishmen ( and that is what the colonists were) to be NON aristocrat.. to actually embrace individualist capitalism.
To every day wake with optimism.
THAT has been the beacon AMerica always had, and even today, when there are too many habits , and responsibilities ( Someonehas to be the
Keeper of Order. Success gets you to the head of the class, and breeds resentment, jealousy, and coveting from the less industrious, or the plain immoral. In the big, historical, picture..( the one where individual leaders, or corporate scandals, or even lechery are forgotten and unnoticed) the conflict between Islam, The Oriental Asian civilization, AND the African population will ALL go through the social WRENCHING a democratic reformation will require.
You have said.. Who are we Americans ( or European/Christians) to dictate to the rest of humanity?
BECAUSE our values don't allow us to leave a tormenter of others to stay in power. Realpoliticks may have led us to some ugly deals, and many have come to be grave errors.. ( For example, allowing the Turkish extermination of the Armenian people TWICE in twenty years, and not stamping out the virulent islamic-anti-western idealogy that spawned it.).. ( Which would have required a crusade.. against a moral enemy.)
That is what the power seekers of the Islamic civilization seek.. They have been courted by Soviet training since the beginning of the Comintern, and while the Baathists of Hussein were merely Stalinist Police-State dictators, using every 1984 tactic to maintain a violent anti-western/Israel "Reich", they and ALL other militant groups use indignant outrage to fuel young and decieved "poor". ( The world's population that has been growing because of western pharmacology.)
It has been a curious weakness of our open democratic"judeo-christian"
civilization that we are disabled by guilt about our own inconsistencies.
The enemy has learned to hamstring us this way. And looking at the first confrontation in Korea.. you see the pattern of the anti-capitalist/ socialist "revolution" that leads to bloody war.
Limited in scope and with no hope of stamping out the cause of the conflict. ( In this case, it is the basic inherent militancy and tyrranny of fundamental
islam that is antagonistic to Jewish existence, and european independence
NOT the other way around.)
This Latest explosion in the Euro-Islamic struggle was seen in the '20's, and was lit in 1973 when ALL the Arab states,( all virulently pro-soviet, Pan-Arabic
nationalist socialism ) plotted and acted to strangle the West, and crush Israel . They assembled more firepower than the Western Front, and Hussein cut the oil, and they attacked on Yom Kippur.
Israel's greatest Ally, Friend, and Rescuer was America, and Richard Nixon.
We already forget how critical that vicious little war was. It set the wider boundary of the struggle.
Now the USA was the target.
Remember Iran? Maybe the reasons for re-stabilizing the region NOW could be tied to Carters failure THEN..
ANd when Clinton declared the US' official policy was "Regime-change" in Iraq in 1997-98, it didn't go away, just because Bill DIDN'T HAVE any core values to defend..( like America)..
The same strategic concerns of an unstable/unfriendly Iraq/Iran that prompted a friendship with the Saudis ( a grave error)AND the elimination of an ex-soviet puppet THEN became a real symbolic goal after Sept 11.
Considering that there really WAS celebration throughout the islamic world, this was just one more good reason to illustrate to the world ( and to ourselves!!!!) that we will not be cowed and that nuclear, CHEMICAL, and BIOLOGICAL weapons will not be in the hands of a non-league team.
Its just better for humanity in the long run, that irrational collectivists/clerics really shouldn't be in charge of anything.
Consider the movie "New Jack City".
I have carried on , but I will field a debate.