Well, I didn’t expect to cry first thing this morning, but here we are. What a powerful reminder that, for all the troubles and worries we have currently in America, I’m still incredibly blessed.
As a Military parent with a son about to leave on his second Deployment, I am processing your article.
I watched the 60 Minutes stories on 3/19/23, about the buildup by the US Navy to China's growing Navy. We all take it for granted, but the US Navy protects shipping lanes and free trade on a daily basis. We just don't see it from our computers and phones safely delivered in ships and planes from factories in China. Once in a while, some Pirates decide to steal from a ship, and we send in a US SEAL team and then make a Tom Hanks Hollywood movie to send a message - Don't Be a Pirate.
The buildup of "Drone Warfare" from the 60 Minutes story is concerning to me. Once you take away the humanity of "direct connection" to your targets, where is the pull-back? Right now I am commenting on a screen to a writer. Would I say the same thing if I was having morning coffee with you? My son is about to Deploy to literally the other side of the world, live in the culture, feel the people. If he is doing these war games in the basement of a US Military base on US soil, it is a different experience.
The entire COVID lockdown, take the shot, or else - was really really bad for humanity. We need to BE with humans, not turn them into robots that shoot at each other with Drones and untested "Vaccines".
I worked with 3 Afghan women (in the USA), during the Afghanistan war, and I just have no real idea what you have gone through from a one to one human experience. Thanks for posting your article, and Team Bari for their "Journalistic Curiosity" to look at issues from different perspectives.
Thank you for this post, it’s much appreciated. It may not seem like it at times, but millions of us support our troops, please let your son know that. Please thank him for his service. And thank you for your service. Because for sure the families of military serve and sacrifice too.
Your analogy on drones and vaccines was, if you’ll pardon the pun, right on target. You are so right about the punitive and utterly unnecessary lockdowns and forced vaccines.
Thanks for your writing. I do think that is not meeting in person with others it's what's been dividing america (and also the Israelis and Palestinians, (I'm Israeli, originally)).
I gather that Thalidomide was also tested. What wasn't tested or known were the longer-term effects which come about later from Covid--after it's too late to do anything about them. There's a reason that properly designed and tested pharmaceuticals take so long to go from conception to market. All that was scandalously and needlessly short-circuited by people who grotesquely lied about and misrepresented the actual dangers and risks of "waiting" to learn WTF the vaccine was all about.
I am pregnant and have been recommended the Covid booster by just about every healthcare professional I have seen. I have not taken it and I do not plan to. After I left my latest obstetrician appointment at the hospital, I saw a flyer by the elevator doors looking for pregnant women who were getting the Covid booster to be part of a study on the effects of the booster.
Everyone keeps telling me that the booster is "well tested and effective" and yet I can see physical proof that they are looking for guinea pigs RIGHT NOW. How "well tested" can something be if they are still actively researching whether it provides any immunity at all?
Thank you for your and your son's service. Remote-controlled drones, missiles and satellites are the future of warfare. The U.S. Navy relies on aircraft carriers, which are huge power-projection platforms with phenomenal military capability. They are also huge, expensive targets. Chinese recon satellites can locate them, and Chinese long-range hypersonic missiles can sink them. We are going to have to transition away from manned aircraft to more drones, cruise missiles launched from submarines or at distance from bombers, anti-missile and anti-satellite capability. I hope we have them before your son has to use them.
"Having the chance to make others laugh—potential persecution for doing so notwithstanding—is better than a life entirely devoid of humor." - Weird how this has seemingly gone full circle where we are now trying to incarcerate someone in the US for making memes. Yes, humor if directed at the opposition, is now considered election interference and is being prosecuted as if it were a real crime. To spend $2B to bring freedom to a group of people only to rob the very citizens you gave the bill to for that freedom - now that is a turn of the wheel that almost no one could have seen coming.
Make no mistake - a regime that acts like this is the enemy of the people. The sooner we all wake up to that fact, the better. No decent people propose a "ministry of truth." No decent people call half of America "white supremacist terrorists." No decent people exult in the mutilation of children, the negation of our borders and the endless stream of lies and enforced behavior. No decent people hound people from our military or civic life for refusing to take a worthless and dangerous vaccine. These people are not your friends.
While the dictatorship I lived under was brutal and terrifying, it was nothing like living under Saddam Hussein or the war that followed.
The left curses us as a brutal police state. These morons have no idea what a brutal police state is. The author of this article knows how lucky he is to live here and is grateful to the US. I'm grateful that I was born here and I am a US citizen. How come the left doesn't feel that way? I don't hate the US military. I'm proud of the years I spent in the US Army.
With the Socialists in power, I fear for this country. Biden tried and was successful for a while to rule this country by decree until the Supremes declared his decrees unconstitutional. The states run by Socialists ruled by decree forcing masks and people to stay inside. That sounds like dictatorship to me.
I have said this before. If the US is such a brutal police state, oppressive, shit hole, how come tens of thousands of people are clambering to get in? Maybe one of the left wing nut cases on this BBS can explain that to me.
Are we perfect? No! But we are a damned site better than most.
I wish to God that the Socialists who curse this country would leave and move to a workers' paradise like China, Cuba or North Korea or at least get a hammer and sickle tattooed on their chest.
I hear you, especially your support for our soldiers. But what do you say about the great number of self-proclaimed patriots who now support Russia? That's where the hammer and sickle began.
Jury selection has started for the trial of a meme-maker who was arrested by the Feds in 2021 (Ricky Vaughn) for election interference in the 2016 GE. You aren't gonna believe this, but he was Pro-Trump.
Read up on the guy. He really did do something pretty crappy. Tried to convince people it was possible to vote for Hilary using social media and apparently more than four thousand fell for it.
We have some creeps on our side and he is apparently one of them.
He is an a-hole, but that’s not what’s at stake. Besides this being the literal definition of satire, the law is not being applied equally. AGAIN.
If he is deserving of 10 YEARS in jail for influencing 4,000 votes- now do Facebook, Google, the FBI and the entire Democratic Congress. MILLIONS of votes affected in 2016 and 2020, yet no indictments. Nothing will come of the Twitter files. College kid making memes? 10 years in jail.
"satire- the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues." Checked every box of the definition.
It’s easy to be cynical about the failure of US policies overseas, but it’s because of articles like this that remind me that America is, despite all our faults, still a force for good.
A friend of mine is an Afghanistan veteran (for those who know, he was with 3/6 when they pushed Marjah). I asked him how he felt about the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.
“We brought freedom to a generation of Afghans. That’s worth a lot.”
Yes. I live in Europe part of the year, and I can tell you I hear constantly and directly that they count on the strength of America. Not to be bullies but to be a force worthy and strong enough to hold peace.
While they continue their minuscule contributions and keep their roads paved and transportation reliable and pristine. I would greatly appreciate it if someone would pay my monthly Mortage!!
We fund NATO. The European countries have NEVER(as I understand it) paid what they are obligated to which I believe is 2% of GDP. They are free riders which of course they like. They fund things for THEIR people and WE pay for their defense. Good deal if you can get it. Does that help?
Someone called NATO military welfare. The evil Donald Trump pressured these free loaders to pay their fair share. They screamed to high heaven and the Dem/Soc cursed him for it.
After Putin invaded the Ukraine the NATO countries are soiling their nickers and trying to militarily catch up. Germany increased their defense budget.
Ah, yes, that helps, thank you. That is most certainly true as well. It is complex for us, and it’s also the reason half the country elected Donald Trump. This plainly exposes the corruption of our world leaders at the expense of those most expendable to them. That corruption resulted in the author of this article having to flee his home country to survive.
And now they've lost their freedom. What's that worth? My mom would famously remind us that "the road to hell is paved with good intentions." Most of the idiocy dreamed by progressives is the product of "good intentions." Being good without being smart and self-interested is worth nothing.
They are not “irrational” Lonesomepolecat, wish that they were, we could rout them more easily. No, they are cold, calculating infiltrators into the minds of our youth, the path of least resistance, and they are organized. It’s not hard to see this when you look out. Let’s take Ibram X Kendi who is calling for a Department of Anti-Racism, as he is making millions from his fascist and fallacious ideas. He’s not stupid, and there are many more like him at the highest echelons right now.
Agreed. Many are just poorly informed since the whole mainstream world reflects their own opinions to them, but others are quite calculating and not grounded in any genuine moral reality no matter how they come across. But even the "useful idiots" are not honest and have no problem using any tactic to squelch those who do not agree.
I don't disagree at all. For the most part, the idea of bringing "freedom" and "democracy" to countries overseas has been a colossal failure. However, that doesn't mean that we can't try to glean some good from it (even when the endeavor never should have been embarked upon in the first place).
The countries in the Middle East have always been ruled for thousands years by brutal dictators. They have no idea or traditions of what a democracy is.
We, the English speaking peoples, have a thousand year old history, bathed in blood, of gradual democratic evolution based on Anglo-Saxon law. We know no other way. Most other countries haven't a clue.
So when some moron politician says we are going to bring democracy to a country, I roll my eyes and scoff.
I've been reading that the Rule of Law worked fairly well for a time under the Ottomans, but that eventually elites and corruption developed, it went down hill and eventually they were unable to defend themselves against outside threats.
I do too. For the same reason. Democracy must be grown. But this author gives me hope that maybe we at least ignited a spark for those willing to nurture the flame.
Again, I don't disagree at all. Bringing "democracy" to Middle East was also like trying to bring "liberalism" and "women's rights" to Afghanistan. It was a pipe dream.
What I'm trying to say is that even foreign policy blunders can still yield something good. In other words, just because x = false doesn't necessarily mean that x^-1 = true.
Not to be redundant since I said this above, but one of the best things we can do is bring true information to people under repressed regimes. And ultimately the internet assists hugely because these people see freedom in other countries and they want it.
True, but systems of government need more than information to change. Consensual government is a Western tradition because of a long history of events and key figures that helped to make that possible. We can't simply tell the good people of [insert country here] about freedom and democracy and expect everyone to be voting next year... and invading them doesn't seem to work either.
I agree with your friend. I spent the better part of 5 years there, met my husband there even. I worked side by side with Afghans (men and women) who had a similar outlook as this author about the US invasion of Afghanistan. Thankfully, they mostly all made it to the States or the UK before the shameful withdrawal or being picked off by the Taliban/AQ/name your terrorist group, but they knew true violence -- for speaking the wrong thing or listening to the wrong music or not covering their entire body. I see these spoiled, disgusting toddlers at Stanford, crying about not feeling safe because someone doesn’t agree with their completely batshit crazy views on gender and race and it makes me burn with rage. I can’t imagine how the author and refugees like my Afghan friends feel seeing that kind of insanity. The world is truly upside down.
A very encouraging story since the whole campaign seemed such a huge waste.
The existence of these many repressive regimes in the mideast and elsewhere is so tragic and it would be great if we could do more about it, though I looked up "Radio Sawa" and this and other US gov't entities do a good job by broadcasting independent content into these repressed areas.
As US citizens I think we ought to make more effort to de-escalate our own polarization because the truth is the rest of the world needs us, and we have enormous power to help.
There is a lot of talk today about “nepo babies” that inherit familial wealth and are therefore born with a leg-up over everyone else.
As Americans, we are ALL nepo babies of freedom and individual liberty...which likely explains why so many citizens don’t appreciate what we have here.
I disagree to an extent. American privileges are born from the intelligence and ethics of the people who came before us. They're not coincidental, not unjust and not undeserved.
We just stopped giving any credit to the people who created those privileges for us, as we continue to elect people who are destroying the privileges of future generations.
Iraq war was one of the largest mistakes of US politics in last 30 years. Bush and Cheney have done more damage to US during their time than any enemy ever did. They completely degraded US image abroad, it costed us trillions of $$$, caused god knows how many Iraqis dead, and 1000s of US soldiers who died fighting pointless war all based on lie.
I honestly hope, that one day, we in US will put Bush and large part of his administration on trial for lies and crimes that they committed not only against Iraq, but also for treason against USA, at least doing so, we would wash part of the shame that those people have caused.
We sadly cant change past, but for me, one moment of 2016 elections I will treasure as long as I live, when Trump humiliated that POS of Jeb Bush, when Jeb tried to defend his idiot brothers record in Iraq. For many it was "Emperor has no clothes" moment, when it finally destroyed any political aspirations of Bush family for decades to come.
And for author saying, that Iraq war was not that big mistake, I am sorry, but I deeply disagree, from US perspective, it was horrendous terrible mistake, we lost 4500 solders based on lie, we lost trillions of $$$ that we don't have and didn't achieve anything. And Iraq is worse of on any metric that it was before war. It is easy to look at it positively if you are Iraqi in US, but why dont we get some opinion of what Iraqis in Iraq thing about what happend.
Two things can be true at the same time. The Iraq war removed the evil of Saddam Hussein and his regime, and gave Iraqis a chance at freedom and self government, which I hope they achieve some day. Those are good things. But America started this war based on lies and for reasons that simply aren’t legitimate for the world’s only superpower. The costs of the war simply cannot be justified. So the war was also a huge mistake and immoral. 20 years later we can only hope that the author’s vision of liberty eventually comes to pass as the legacy of America’s unjustifiable war.
I get your point but Bush wasn't guilty of treason. Just incredible stupidity. I often say to friends that if you'd been at a party and met Bush, the local insurance guy, would you really switch to him from your existing insurance broker? Would you? And yet we elected him twice because the two clowns he ran against were even worse.
And now look at the senile imbecile we're stuck with.
I don’t think it is true that Iraq is worse off in every metric than it was before the war. Life expectancy increased by 5-6 years. There have been multiple competitive elections, GDP per capita is 5 times higher.
Of course that came at a high cost with 500k Iraqis lost.
Was it worth it for them? I don’t know, only Iraqis can answer that question.
I disagree. The mistake was not in the aims and success of the war -- but in the terrible mismanagement and lack of planning for what came after winning the war. The vacuum left without Sadaam’s iron fist led to sectarian violence and the US becoming a police force of last resort, until we finally had enough and left. Unfortunately, the other bad guy in the neighborhood, Iran, is filling the vacuum as it spreads its evil around the Middle East.
I agree. No plan for after victory. Honestly, I don't blame the military. Their sole mission is to kill people and break things. After that, the politicians are supposed to do their jobs.
Well written and noted, but I must disagree here. It wasn’t a complete failure, though I would agree it wasn’t handled the best way, that is certain. Lots of mistakes and arrogance. But, as you say, your perspective is American, and cannot compare to someone with direct experience and such poignant loss. Both are valid, however. I live in Europe part of the year and can tell you I hear constantly and directly that they count on the strength of America. Not to be bullies but to be a force worthy and strong enough to hold peace. That’s what we are about, and we must hold our leadership accountable to do so.
Raziel! For once I (for the most part) agree with you..
I side with Bruce in that it wasn't treasonous but perhaps something equally as bad: a potent, egregious combination of rank stupidity, hubris, and falsehoods which revealed to the rest of the world and the nation itself the real intentions of the US government in 2003 - it's use of the terrorist attacks of two years earlier as cover to do what it wanted to do all along, to dismember Saddam.
I'm sorry, but what lies was the invasion based on? That Saddam had WMD's? Being wrong about something isn't a lie. Clearly, the Bush Administration was guilty of confirmation bias and of ignoring intelligence information that didn't match what they believed, but that's not a lie. In fact, Saddam Hussein intentionally perpetuated the possibility that he had WMDs, not because he wanted to thumb his nose at the West, but because he wanted to deter Iran. I have yet, after 20 years, seen any credible evidence that Bush Administration knew Iraq had abandoned its WMD program, but lied about it to justify an invasion.
Thank you for this excellent article. It breaks my heart to learn of the actions of Saddam's sons, there are moments when I feel so clueless about the freedoms and safety I enjoy.
The real question is where would the world be if Saddam had been left in charge? Yes, I was surprised when he hid in a hole in the ground. We were led to believe that he had a nuclear proof bunker.
Welcome to America. I am glad you are here. Please continue to remind us of what we stand to lose if we are careless and unwilling to speak up.
There's a certain validity or at least a reasonable case for such a view. I'm not at all certain I'd argue against it. At the same time, however, what's perhaps true of Iraq's circumstances isn't necessarily also the case everywhere and with all bloody tyrants.
If one lives in Omaha, a gang problem in Boise might not be one's greatest concern. But a mobster-run New York City (this is a _hypothetical_ example, people) just might be of such consequence for the greater nation that, yes, it ought to concern the people of Omaha and Boise hardly less than the people of Bedford Stuyvesant and Bronxville.
Things must be judged according to their justly appraised true circumstances.
I agree. He would have remained a minor irritant, a murdering, brutish oaf, manufacturing and using nerve gas on his own population. He was a horrible disgusting man. But that can be said for almost ever leader in the Middle East. The Gulf nations are prosperous and look clean and shiny but underneath all of that they are still brutish. Females have little or no rights and they are still throwing homo sexuals off rooftops.
Regardless of ones opinion of the Iraq war and what one thinks of Bush Cheney et al, there is always the contrast between what America is and stands for ( its values and beliefs) and the very stark contrast with the beliefs and values of the rest of the world. We may make mistakes but let us hope and pray that we never make the mistake of forsaking those beliefs and values. Unfortunately as most of us know who read these articles in TFP, it is those beliefs and values that are under attack today, particularly those who have made clear their disdain for the Constitution itself which embodies those values and beliefs.
A corrupt leader who enjoys ill-gotten riches; who oppresses and routinely lies to his people. A dissolute son who is protected from prosecution; free to carry on with this own debauchery and corruption. A retinue of hangers on and miscreants. A comical flack who lies for the leader.
Hmmmm......sound familiar?
And, no, the nation building fiasco was not a good idea. Breaking Saddam's toys - his military - and neutering him could have been done at a fraction of the cost. And America's treasure - its young soldiers and borrowings = were needlessly squandered in a "war" that was completely the doing of the Iraqi ingrates, who erupted in a frenzy of murdering each other and our soldiers. So, no. If you want liberty, fight for it. Don't ask others to do it for you. We might soon enough learn that lesson here at home.
Excellent post. As we saw recently, one leader used one missile to take out the Leading Terrorist Qassem Soleimani. In addition, that same leader neutered Iran and Russia by using economic leverage in the form of unleashing American energy. This Desert Storm vet was also asking why we weren't drilling at home rather than sending 600K guys and equipment to push a dictator out to avoid dictatorial control of the worlds oil supply...
No, it isn't, Lee. There are degrees of authoritarianism--everything from what we know to what the contemporary PRC Chinese and Russians know, to say nothing of other blighted parts of the world. Scott D's point is apt when considered as I think he intended it to be understood--though I grant he's the best placed to elaborate that : in a thorough authoritarian regime, many comments here would not be allowed and their authors would be subject to arrest and punishment. That's my take on his point. There are today plenty of things Americans are afraid to state openly in front of people with whom they work --for fear of being denounced as a racist or sexist or "homophobe" and, without a hearing, being dismissed from their employment. (In North Korea, everyone is free to adore Kim Jong Un. Big deal.) Freedoms are relative and they're far greater--though very seriously impinged here, though much of that is by self-imposed popular stupidity--here than in just about any other place in the world outside of parts of Scandinavia.
Right now, in the U.S. , authoritarian madness is most at home and most dangerous by far on and from the political Left.
That really depends on who you are and what you need to or want to say. There are people in the U.S. today who've lost their jobs--and then their savings and then their homes--and now live by the mercy and grace of their nearest relatives, if they have any left, or they've become part of the street-dwelling homeless. Either way, they've become homeless. They committed the sin of transgressing one of today's taboo topics-- or, by their comment, they discovered a new one--it's a growth industry here.
Do you--I've asked this before of others in other forums--seriously contend that you feel absolutely free to express here in this forum any and every opinion you hold? There's nothing which you have to hedge, equivocate about, leave out, put in terribly strained terms so that you're quite sure that some fragile flower's feelings shall not be injured? Those are real questions. I'm still waiting to hear someone who contends that we're completely free to say whatever we please in internet forums to offer an honest and serious answer. Up to now, I've only got shuck and jive joking or bullshit or, most often, nothing at all, in reply. (end of added part)
For how long that shall be the case--neither you nor I can say. (See my revised, added comments above.) What was safe to say openly _yesterday_, last week, last month, is not a very interesting question compared to what shall be safe to say today and tomorrow.
Ask Glenn Greenwald, Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning AND Julian Assange (thank you!, TeeJae!) where they're living today and whether what they have to say is just as safe for them to say or write from within the U.S. as it is from within Brazil or from within Putin's Russia? The moral is that what one is free to say aloud or write openly is largely dependent on where one happens to live and work.
'Do you... feel absolutely free to express here in this forum any and every opinion you hold? There's nothing which you have to hedge, equivocate about, leave out, put in terribly strained terms so that you're quite sure that some fragile flower's feelings shall not be injured?'
Yes, absolutely. Tempered by civility and politeness, of which I hope I express, I say what I think.
There are quire a few commenters here that not only say what they think, but will drive a screwdriver into an open wound and go ad hominem. I don't need to mention names (you are not one of them..). So I don't think we here on this substack nor the hundreds of others out there have to worry. It's a war of words out there, and here.
Having said that, there is a major free speech issue in this country, in academia, the arts, government, commerce - which is why I'm here. People do self censor for fear of being ostracized.
To see so much of it coming from the progressive left gives me no solace - they give moderate liberals such as myself a bad name. I condemn them, what they have fomented and the bias ingrained in young minds and the institutions who cater to them, due to conformity to the prevailing winds.
That the right appears to answer them by doing the same thing (book banning in Florida schools..) just compounds the problem.
What you said before is true. It is all relative. We may be more free than others, but not totally free. The realist (and cynic) in me would say that it has been that way for a very very long time..
The world is usually not black and white, yes or no, them or the others. The answer usually is a blend, in its own balance, more than just two sides, each side, with its own weight.
I do not understand how he can say he is optimistic for Iraq to ever be a "free" country, like he is experiencing in the west. I do not see that EVER happening. I do understand that he is lucky... he got out, and that is why he feels that the war was not a mistake - he escaped. Good for him. Not so good for America and the loss of blood and treasure.
I, from experiences of watching my wife and her friends always say, those who understand liberty and freedom best are those who have gained it. America is still the best.
Great story and I also hope one day you can go back and see your homeland. From a father who had sons in Iraq and Afghanistan, I can say, stories about goodness and people who have gained a better life from the wars make it a little more bearable. Unfortunately, as like my experiences in the Vietnam War, our politicians from both sides manage to continue screwing things up.
But at least we have the right and freedom to say they are idiots and mostly self-serving fools and continue to suck up and waste more and more money without being jailed, tortured, and killed for speaking the truth.
Reading Will Selber’s account of his experiences during the war (linked at the end of the article) makes it clear that the barbarism of the Hussein regime was matched, if not exceeded, by the barbarism of the insurgency and civil war that followed. History is still being written so there may come a day when the US invasion is seen as the first step on a path towards a free and modern Iraq but it certainly doesn’t look that way right now.
Well, I didn’t expect to cry first thing this morning, but here we are. What a powerful reminder that, for all the troubles and worries we have currently in America, I’m still incredibly blessed.
You must love punishment. It’s going to take a few more disasters like Iraq before you will learn.
As a Military parent with a son about to leave on his second Deployment, I am processing your article.
I watched the 60 Minutes stories on 3/19/23, about the buildup by the US Navy to China's growing Navy. We all take it for granted, but the US Navy protects shipping lanes and free trade on a daily basis. We just don't see it from our computers and phones safely delivered in ships and planes from factories in China. Once in a while, some Pirates decide to steal from a ship, and we send in a US SEAL team and then make a Tom Hanks Hollywood movie to send a message - Don't Be a Pirate.
The buildup of "Drone Warfare" from the 60 Minutes story is concerning to me. Once you take away the humanity of "direct connection" to your targets, where is the pull-back? Right now I am commenting on a screen to a writer. Would I say the same thing if I was having morning coffee with you? My son is about to Deploy to literally the other side of the world, live in the culture, feel the people. If he is doing these war games in the basement of a US Military base on US soil, it is a different experience.
The entire COVID lockdown, take the shot, or else - was really really bad for humanity. We need to BE with humans, not turn them into robots that shoot at each other with Drones and untested "Vaccines".
I worked with 3 Afghan women (in the USA), during the Afghanistan war, and I just have no real idea what you have gone through from a one to one human experience. Thanks for posting your article, and Team Bari for their "Journalistic Curiosity" to look at issues from different perspectives.
Beautifully said, thank you. Best wishes and heartfelt appreciation and love to your son as he serves all of us and our country.
Thank you for this post, it’s much appreciated. It may not seem like it at times, but millions of us support our troops, please let your son know that. Please thank him for his service. And thank you for your service. Because for sure the families of military serve and sacrifice too.
Your analogy on drones and vaccines was, if you’ll pardon the pun, right on target. You are so right about the punitive and utterly unnecessary lockdowns and forced vaccines.
Thanks for your writing. I do think that is not meeting in person with others it's what's been dividing america (and also the Israelis and Palestinians, (I'm Israeli, originally)).
The vaccines were tested though...
"The vaccines were tested though..."
I gather that Thalidomide was also tested. What wasn't tested or known were the longer-term effects which come about later from Covid--after it's too late to do anything about them. There's a reason that properly designed and tested pharmaceuticals take so long to go from conception to market. All that was scandalously and needlessly short-circuited by people who grotesquely lied about and misrepresented the actual dangers and risks of "waiting" to learn WTF the vaccine was all about.
"tested" my ass.
I am pregnant and have been recommended the Covid booster by just about every healthcare professional I have seen. I have not taken it and I do not plan to. After I left my latest obstetrician appointment at the hospital, I saw a flyer by the elevator doors looking for pregnant women who were getting the Covid booster to be part of a study on the effects of the booster.
Everyone keeps telling me that the booster is "well tested and effective" and yet I can see physical proof that they are looking for guinea pigs RIGHT NOW. How "well tested" can something be if they are still actively researching whether it provides any immunity at all?
Not really, they didn't go through phase 1, 2 or 3 testing. They were dumped on the market and administered to the general public.
I was told everyone who took the vaccine would be dead by this time.
Yeah they were tested alright ON US!
I have a different view on vaccines - it’s a long read - https://outsidein51.substack.com/p/pro-vaccine-safety-in-2023-where
Thank you for your and your son's service. Remote-controlled drones, missiles and satellites are the future of warfare. The U.S. Navy relies on aircraft carriers, which are huge power-projection platforms with phenomenal military capability. They are also huge, expensive targets. Chinese recon satellites can locate them, and Chinese long-range hypersonic missiles can sink them. We are going to have to transition away from manned aircraft to more drones, cruise missiles launched from submarines or at distance from bombers, anti-missile and anti-satellite capability. I hope we have them before your son has to use them.
An excellent post wish the current administration could read it!
"Having the chance to make others laugh—potential persecution for doing so notwithstanding—is better than a life entirely devoid of humor." - Weird how this has seemingly gone full circle where we are now trying to incarcerate someone in the US for making memes. Yes, humor if directed at the opposition, is now considered election interference and is being prosecuted as if it were a real crime. To spend $2B to bring freedom to a group of people only to rob the very citizens you gave the bill to for that freedom - now that is a turn of the wheel that almost no one could have seen coming.
Make no mistake - a regime that acts like this is the enemy of the people. The sooner we all wake up to that fact, the better. No decent people propose a "ministry of truth." No decent people call half of America "white supremacist terrorists." No decent people exult in the mutilation of children, the negation of our borders and the endless stream of lies and enforced behavior. No decent people hound people from our military or civic life for refusing to take a worthless and dangerous vaccine. These people are not your friends.
While the dictatorship I lived under was brutal and terrifying, it was nothing like living under Saddam Hussein or the war that followed.
The left curses us as a brutal police state. These morons have no idea what a brutal police state is. The author of this article knows how lucky he is to live here and is grateful to the US. I'm grateful that I was born here and I am a US citizen. How come the left doesn't feel that way? I don't hate the US military. I'm proud of the years I spent in the US Army.
With the Socialists in power, I fear for this country. Biden tried and was successful for a while to rule this country by decree until the Supremes declared his decrees unconstitutional. The states run by Socialists ruled by decree forcing masks and people to stay inside. That sounds like dictatorship to me.
I have said this before. If the US is such a brutal police state, oppressive, shit hole, how come tens of thousands of people are clambering to get in? Maybe one of the left wing nut cases on this BBS can explain that to me.
Are we perfect? No! But we are a damned site better than most.
I wish to God that the Socialists who curse this country would leave and move to a workers' paradise like China, Cuba or North Korea or at least get a hammer and sickle tattooed on their chest.
Yes, nonsense about how the U.S. is a police state is so utterly ridiculous. How can people who assert that be taken seriously?
Anyone who calls us a police state is a vicious ignoramuses.
And anyone who thinks we can't become one is worse. Sorry Cat, but a politicized FBI is more like the Stasi than people think.
I hear you, especially your support for our soldiers. But what do you say about the great number of self-proclaimed patriots who now support Russia? That's where the hammer and sickle began.
The people who do not want to stop Putin have never read a history book. Read Churchill's "The Gathering Storm".
Hmmm...not so black and white when your own government suppresses speech and acts like a bunch of fascists.
Yes. Agree. Always easier when comparing to the lowest common denominator.
1. Who is calling half the country "white supremacist terrorist."
2. Who is exhulting in the mutilation of children and how many of these children are there?
3. Who has eliminated the U.S. border?
4. How many people have been around the world have been killed by the dangerous vaccine?
It's the absurdity on it's face about the meme being an offense. Then you read this and ask, what happened to us? Where are we headed?
Just curious, who is being prosecuted and for what?
Jury selection has started for the trial of a meme-maker who was arrested by the Feds in 2021 (Ricky Vaughn) for election interference in the 2016 GE. You aren't gonna believe this, but he was Pro-Trump.
Read up on the guy. He really did do something pretty crappy. Tried to convince people it was possible to vote for Hilary using social media and apparently more than four thousand fell for it.
We have some creeps on our side and he is apparently one of them.
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/social-media-influencer-charged-election-interference-stemming-voter-disinformation-campaign
Lol. "Some."
He is an a-hole, but that’s not what’s at stake. Besides this being the literal definition of satire, the law is not being applied equally. AGAIN.
If he is deserving of 10 YEARS in jail for influencing 4,000 votes- now do Facebook, Google, the FBI and the entire Democratic Congress. MILLIONS of votes affected in 2016 and 2020, yet no indictments. Nothing will come of the Twitter files. College kid making memes? 10 years in jail.
Yes, 10 year sentence is a joke. Maybe six months. I know we must protect voting and all that, but in this lenient day and age 6 months is plenty
The major influencers of the elections have Democratic Privilege and will never face justice, ie-equal application of the law.
His actions were not satire. No different from Burkman and Wohl.
Nothing will come of the "Twitter Files" because there was nothing there to begin with.
"satire- the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues." Checked every box of the definition.
It’s easy to be cynical about the failure of US policies overseas, but it’s because of articles like this that remind me that America is, despite all our faults, still a force for good.
A friend of mine is an Afghanistan veteran (for those who know, he was with 3/6 when they pushed Marjah). I asked him how he felt about the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.
“We brought freedom to a generation of Afghans. That’s worth a lot.”
Yes. I live in Europe part of the year, and I can tell you I hear constantly and directly that they count on the strength of America. Not to be bullies but to be a force worthy and strong enough to hold peace.
While they continue their minuscule contributions and keep their roads paved and transportation reliable and pristine. I would greatly appreciate it if someone would pay my monthly Mortage!!
Not sure I understand any word of your response.
We fund NATO. The European countries have NEVER(as I understand it) paid what they are obligated to which I believe is 2% of GDP. They are free riders which of course they like. They fund things for THEIR people and WE pay for their defense. Good deal if you can get it. Does that help?
Someone called NATO military welfare. The evil Donald Trump pressured these free loaders to pay their fair share. They screamed to high heaven and the Dem/Soc cursed him for it.
After Putin invaded the Ukraine the NATO countries are soiling their nickers and trying to militarily catch up. Germany increased their defense budget.
It is best to be prepared than to play catch up.
Ah, yes, that helps, thank you. That is most certainly true as well. It is complex for us, and it’s also the reason half the country elected Donald Trump. This plainly exposes the corruption of our world leaders at the expense of those most expendable to them. That corruption resulted in the author of this article having to flee his home country to survive.
If Europe had to pay for its own defense their healthcare wouldn’t last five years and their infrastructure would be in shambles.
And now they've lost their freedom. What's that worth? My mom would famously remind us that "the road to hell is paved with good intentions." Most of the idiocy dreamed by progressives is the product of "good intentions." Being good without being smart and self-interested is worth nothing.
Like the terms liberals, progressives are misnomers. I prefer irrational fanatics.
They are not “irrational” Lonesomepolecat, wish that they were, we could rout them more easily. No, they are cold, calculating infiltrators into the minds of our youth, the path of least resistance, and they are organized. It’s not hard to see this when you look out. Let’s take Ibram X Kendi who is calling for a Department of Anti-Racism, as he is making millions from his fascist and fallacious ideas. He’s not stupid, and there are many more like him at the highest echelons right now.
Agreed. Many are just poorly informed since the whole mainstream world reflects their own opinions to them, but others are quite calculating and not grounded in any genuine moral reality no matter how they come across. But even the "useful idiots" are not honest and have no problem using any tactic to squelch those who do not agree.
I don't disagree at all. For the most part, the idea of bringing "freedom" and "democracy" to countries overseas has been a colossal failure. However, that doesn't mean that we can't try to glean some good from it (even when the endeavor never should have been embarked upon in the first place).
The countries in the Middle East have always been ruled for thousands years by brutal dictators. They have no idea or traditions of what a democracy is.
We, the English speaking peoples, have a thousand year old history, bathed in blood, of gradual democratic evolution based on Anglo-Saxon law. We know no other way. Most other countries haven't a clue.
So when some moron politician says we are going to bring democracy to a country, I roll my eyes and scoff.
I've been reading that the Rule of Law worked fairly well for a time under the Ottomans, but that eventually elites and corruption developed, it went down hill and eventually they were unable to defend themselves against outside threats.
I do too. For the same reason. Democracy must be grown. But this author gives me hope that maybe we at least ignited a spark for those willing to nurture the flame.
Again, I don't disagree at all. Bringing "democracy" to Middle East was also like trying to bring "liberalism" and "women's rights" to Afghanistan. It was a pipe dream.
What I'm trying to say is that even foreign policy blunders can still yield something good. In other words, just because x = false doesn't necessarily mean that x^-1 = true.
Sorry, I'm a math major lol.
Not to be redundant since I said this above, but one of the best things we can do is bring true information to people under repressed regimes. And ultimately the internet assists hugely because these people see freedom in other countries and they want it.
True, but systems of government need more than information to change. Consensual government is a Western tradition because of a long history of events and key figures that helped to make that possible. We can't simply tell the good people of [insert country here] about freedom and democracy and expect everyone to be voting next year... and invading them doesn't seem to work either.
I agree with your friend. I spent the better part of 5 years there, met my husband there even. I worked side by side with Afghans (men and women) who had a similar outlook as this author about the US invasion of Afghanistan. Thankfully, they mostly all made it to the States or the UK before the shameful withdrawal or being picked off by the Taliban/AQ/name your terrorist group, but they knew true violence -- for speaking the wrong thing or listening to the wrong music or not covering their entire body. I see these spoiled, disgusting toddlers at Stanford, crying about not feeling safe because someone doesn’t agree with their completely batshit crazy views on gender and race and it makes me burn with rage. I can’t imagine how the author and refugees like my Afghan friends feel seeing that kind of insanity. The world is truly upside down.
The world is upside down alright. When has it not been?
A very encouraging story since the whole campaign seemed such a huge waste.
The existence of these many repressive regimes in the mideast and elsewhere is so tragic and it would be great if we could do more about it, though I looked up "Radio Sawa" and this and other US gov't entities do a good job by broadcasting independent content into these repressed areas.
As US citizens I think we ought to make more effort to de-escalate our own polarization because the truth is the rest of the world needs us, and we have enormous power to help.
There is a lot of talk today about “nepo babies” that inherit familial wealth and are therefore born with a leg-up over everyone else.
As Americans, we are ALL nepo babies of freedom and individual liberty...which likely explains why so many citizens don’t appreciate what we have here.
I disagree to an extent. American privileges are born from the intelligence and ethics of the people who came before us. They're not coincidental, not unjust and not undeserved.
We just stopped giving any credit to the people who created those privileges for us, as we continue to elect people who are destroying the privileges of future generations.
American privilege.
Good point.
Iraq war was one of the largest mistakes of US politics in last 30 years. Bush and Cheney have done more damage to US during their time than any enemy ever did. They completely degraded US image abroad, it costed us trillions of $$$, caused god knows how many Iraqis dead, and 1000s of US soldiers who died fighting pointless war all based on lie.
I honestly hope, that one day, we in US will put Bush and large part of his administration on trial for lies and crimes that they committed not only against Iraq, but also for treason against USA, at least doing so, we would wash part of the shame that those people have caused.
We sadly cant change past, but for me, one moment of 2016 elections I will treasure as long as I live, when Trump humiliated that POS of Jeb Bush, when Jeb tried to defend his idiot brothers record in Iraq. For many it was "Emperor has no clothes" moment, when it finally destroyed any political aspirations of Bush family for decades to come.
And for author saying, that Iraq war was not that big mistake, I am sorry, but I deeply disagree, from US perspective, it was horrendous terrible mistake, we lost 4500 solders based on lie, we lost trillions of $$$ that we don't have and didn't achieve anything. And Iraq is worse of on any metric that it was before war. It is easy to look at it positively if you are Iraqi in US, but why dont we get some opinion of what Iraqis in Iraq thing about what happend.
Two things can be true at the same time. The Iraq war removed the evil of Saddam Hussein and his regime, and gave Iraqis a chance at freedom and self government, which I hope they achieve some day. Those are good things. But America started this war based on lies and for reasons that simply aren’t legitimate for the world’s only superpower. The costs of the war simply cannot be justified. So the war was also a huge mistake and immoral. 20 years later we can only hope that the author’s vision of liberty eventually comes to pass as the legacy of America’s unjustifiable war.
I get your point but Bush wasn't guilty of treason. Just incredible stupidity. I often say to friends that if you'd been at a party and met Bush, the local insurance guy, would you really switch to him from your existing insurance broker? Would you? And yet we elected him twice because the two clowns he ran against were even worse.
And now look at the senile imbecile we're stuck with.
We're talking about the Cheney Presidency right?
I saw it too.
Ha ha
Agree with your first three paragraphs. The rest is open to question I'd say.
Agree with some of your points not others.
But, serious question - what do you make of Eisenhower's farewell address?
Don’t forget the 1000’s or more legs, arms,etc left in IRAQ. Vaporized.
I don’t think it is true that Iraq is worse off in every metric than it was before the war. Life expectancy increased by 5-6 years. There have been multiple competitive elections, GDP per capita is 5 times higher.
Of course that came at a high cost with 500k Iraqis lost.
Was it worth it for them? I don’t know, only Iraqis can answer that question.
Was it worth it for the US? Almost certainly not.
I disagree. The mistake was not in the aims and success of the war -- but in the terrible mismanagement and lack of planning for what came after winning the war. The vacuum left without Sadaam’s iron fist led to sectarian violence and the US becoming a police force of last resort, until we finally had enough and left. Unfortunately, the other bad guy in the neighborhood, Iran, is filling the vacuum as it spreads its evil around the Middle East.
I agree. No plan for after victory. Honestly, I don't blame the military. Their sole mission is to kill people and break things. After that, the politicians are supposed to do their jobs.
Iran is also badly divided. Hopefully, that regime will not last much longer.
Well written and noted, but I must disagree here. It wasn’t a complete failure, though I would agree it wasn’t handled the best way, that is certain. Lots of mistakes and arrogance. But, as you say, your perspective is American, and cannot compare to someone with direct experience and such poignant loss. Both are valid, however. I live in Europe part of the year and can tell you I hear constantly and directly that they count on the strength of America. Not to be bullies but to be a force worthy and strong enough to hold peace. That’s what we are about, and we must hold our leadership accountable to do so.
Nice that they "count on us." How about picking up some of the burden. It can't always be our dollars and - far more important - our sons.
They do pay and we can argue all day about fair share and all the details but that misses the point.
Most of them have militaries that would be trounced by the NYPD. Not sure what point I missed. That they expect us to protect them?
We set ourselves up to protect them. We can roll that back if we choose, and I don’t debate we shouldn’t by some measure, but we invented the game.
We sure did!
Raziel! For once I (for the most part) agree with you..
I side with Bruce in that it wasn't treasonous but perhaps something equally as bad: a potent, egregious combination of rank stupidity, hubris, and falsehoods which revealed to the rest of the world and the nation itself the real intentions of the US government in 2003 - it's use of the terrorist attacks of two years earlier as cover to do what it wanted to do all along, to dismember Saddam.
Bush/Cheney destroyed America's brand.
I'm sorry, but what lies was the invasion based on? That Saddam had WMD's? Being wrong about something isn't a lie. Clearly, the Bush Administration was guilty of confirmation bias and of ignoring intelligence information that didn't match what they believed, but that's not a lie. In fact, Saddam Hussein intentionally perpetuated the possibility that he had WMDs, not because he wanted to thumb his nose at the West, but because he wanted to deter Iran. I have yet, after 20 years, seen any credible evidence that Bush Administration knew Iraq had abandoned its WMD program, but lied about it to justify an invasion.
Thank you for this excellent article. It breaks my heart to learn of the actions of Saddam's sons, there are moments when I feel so clueless about the freedoms and safety I enjoy.
The real question is where would the world be if Saddam had been left in charge? Yes, I was surprised when he hid in a hole in the ground. We were led to believe that he had a nuclear proof bunker.
Welcome to America. I am glad you are here. Please continue to remind us of what we stand to lose if we are careless and unwilling to speak up.
Saddam being left in charge would make NO DIFFERENCE to America or Americans. None
There's a certain validity or at least a reasonable case for such a view. I'm not at all certain I'd argue against it. At the same time, however, what's perhaps true of Iraq's circumstances isn't necessarily also the case everywhere and with all bloody tyrants.
If one lives in Omaha, a gang problem in Boise might not be one's greatest concern. But a mobster-run New York City (this is a _hypothetical_ example, people) just might be of such consequence for the greater nation that, yes, it ought to concern the people of Omaha and Boise hardly less than the people of Bedford Stuyvesant and Bronxville.
Things must be judged according to their justly appraised true circumstances.
I think you have hot that nail on the head, particularly regarding New York influences.
I agree. He would have remained a minor irritant, a murdering, brutish oaf, manufacturing and using nerve gas on his own population. He was a horrible disgusting man. But that can be said for almost ever leader in the Middle East. The Gulf nations are prosperous and look clean and shiny but underneath all of that they are still brutish. Females have little or no rights and they are still throwing homo sexuals off rooftops.
Thank you for this perspective.
Regardless of ones opinion of the Iraq war and what one thinks of Bush Cheney et al, there is always the contrast between what America is and stands for ( its values and beliefs) and the very stark contrast with the beliefs and values of the rest of the world. We may make mistakes but let us hope and pray that we never make the mistake of forsaking those beliefs and values. Unfortunately as most of us know who read these articles in TFP, it is those beliefs and values that are under attack today, particularly those who have made clear their disdain for the Constitution itself which embodies those values and beliefs.
Amen brother. Very well stated.
A corrupt leader who enjoys ill-gotten riches; who oppresses and routinely lies to his people. A dissolute son who is protected from prosecution; free to carry on with this own debauchery and corruption. A retinue of hangers on and miscreants. A comical flack who lies for the leader.
Hmmmm......sound familiar?
And, no, the nation building fiasco was not a good idea. Breaking Saddam's toys - his military - and neutering him could have been done at a fraction of the cost. And America's treasure - its young soldiers and borrowings = were needlessly squandered in a "war" that was completely the doing of the Iraqi ingrates, who erupted in a frenzy of murdering each other and our soldiers. So, no. If you want liberty, fight for it. Don't ask others to do it for you. We might soon enough learn that lesson here at home.
Excellent post. As we saw recently, one leader used one missile to take out the Leading Terrorist Qassem Soleimani. In addition, that same leader neutered Iran and Russia by using economic leverage in the form of unleashing American energy. This Desert Storm vet was also asking why we weren't drilling at home rather than sending 600K guys and equipment to push a dictator out to avoid dictatorial control of the worlds oil supply...
"It is hard to express what it means, if you have lived under an authoritarian regime, to experience freedom."
As we slide deeper and deeper into the former, should we experience the latter in my lifetime, I'll let you know how it feels.
If we truly lived under the former, you wouldn't even be able to write your comment
Guess again.
A nuance many of the ones here ranting about the upcoming authoritarian apocalypse forget..
No, it isn't, Lee. There are degrees of authoritarianism--everything from what we know to what the contemporary PRC Chinese and Russians know, to say nothing of other blighted parts of the world. Scott D's point is apt when considered as I think he intended it to be understood--though I grant he's the best placed to elaborate that : in a thorough authoritarian regime, many comments here would not be allowed and their authors would be subject to arrest and punishment. That's my take on his point. There are today plenty of things Americans are afraid to state openly in front of people with whom they work --for fear of being denounced as a racist or sexist or "homophobe" and, without a hearing, being dismissed from their employment. (In North Korea, everyone is free to adore Kim Jong Un. Big deal.) Freedoms are relative and they're far greater--though very seriously impinged here, though much of that is by self-imposed popular stupidity--here than in just about any other place in the world outside of parts of Scandinavia.
Right now, in the U.S. , authoritarian madness is most at home and most dangerous by far on and from the political Left.
That's right. And you're still free to say it.
..."And you're still free to say it."
(Edited to add)
That really depends on who you are and what you need to or want to say. There are people in the U.S. today who've lost their jobs--and then their savings and then their homes--and now live by the mercy and grace of their nearest relatives, if they have any left, or they've become part of the street-dwelling homeless. Either way, they've become homeless. They committed the sin of transgressing one of today's taboo topics-- or, by their comment, they discovered a new one--it's a growth industry here.
Do you--I've asked this before of others in other forums--seriously contend that you feel absolutely free to express here in this forum any and every opinion you hold? There's nothing which you have to hedge, equivocate about, leave out, put in terribly strained terms so that you're quite sure that some fragile flower's feelings shall not be injured? Those are real questions. I'm still waiting to hear someone who contends that we're completely free to say whatever we please in internet forums to offer an honest and serious answer. Up to now, I've only got shuck and jive joking or bullshit or, most often, nothing at all, in reply. (end of added part)
For how long that shall be the case--neither you nor I can say. (See my revised, added comments above.) What was safe to say openly _yesterday_, last week, last month, is not a very interesting question compared to what shall be safe to say today and tomorrow.
Ask Glenn Greenwald, Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning AND Julian Assange (thank you!, TeeJae!) where they're living today and whether what they have to say is just as safe for them to say or write from within the U.S. as it is from within Brazil or from within Putin's Russia? The moral is that what one is free to say aloud or write openly is largely dependent on where one happens to live and work.
Don't forget Assange.
'Do you... feel absolutely free to express here in this forum any and every opinion you hold? There's nothing which you have to hedge, equivocate about, leave out, put in terribly strained terms so that you're quite sure that some fragile flower's feelings shall not be injured?'
Yes, absolutely. Tempered by civility and politeness, of which I hope I express, I say what I think.
There are quire a few commenters here that not only say what they think, but will drive a screwdriver into an open wound and go ad hominem. I don't need to mention names (you are not one of them..). So I don't think we here on this substack nor the hundreds of others out there have to worry. It's a war of words out there, and here.
Having said that, there is a major free speech issue in this country, in academia, the arts, government, commerce - which is why I'm here. People do self censor for fear of being ostracized.
To see so much of it coming from the progressive left gives me no solace - they give moderate liberals such as myself a bad name. I condemn them, what they have fomented and the bias ingrained in young minds and the institutions who cater to them, due to conformity to the prevailing winds.
That the right appears to answer them by doing the same thing (book banning in Florida schools..) just compounds the problem.
What you said before is true. It is all relative. We may be more free than others, but not totally free. The realist (and cynic) in me would say that it has been that way for a very very long time..
Let's take what we have and run with it...
The world is usually not black and white, yes or no, them or the others. The answer usually is a blend, in its own balance, more than just two sides, each side, with its own weight.
Thank you for this perspective.
I do not understand how he can say he is optimistic for Iraq to ever be a "free" country, like he is experiencing in the west. I do not see that EVER happening. I do understand that he is lucky... he got out, and that is why he feels that the war was not a mistake - he escaped. Good for him. Not so good for America and the loss of blood and treasure.
Anyone else see parallels between how the author describes living under Saddam and what the woke left is trying to achieve?
Persecution for wrong think?
Listening to unapproved media?
Humor?
Saying the wrong thing?
Projection.
I, from experiences of watching my wife and her friends always say, those who understand liberty and freedom best are those who have gained it. America is still the best.
Great story and I also hope one day you can go back and see your homeland. From a father who had sons in Iraq and Afghanistan, I can say, stories about goodness and people who have gained a better life from the wars make it a little more bearable. Unfortunately, as like my experiences in the Vietnam War, our politicians from both sides manage to continue screwing things up.
But at least we have the right and freedom to say they are idiots and mostly self-serving fools and continue to suck up and waste more and more money without being jailed, tortured, and killed for speaking the truth.
Reading Will Selber’s account of his experiences during the war (linked at the end of the article) makes it clear that the barbarism of the Hussein regime was matched, if not exceeded, by the barbarism of the insurgency and civil war that followed. History is still being written so there may come a day when the US invasion is seen as the first step on a path towards a free and modern Iraq but it certainly doesn’t look that way right now.