Iran Supplying Weapons to Iraq?

The big issue that isn't being discussed is Israel. That is the primary reason why terrorists hate us. Not because of our way of life -- because we support Israel, and Israel dominates the region.

I think that simplifies the "war on terrorism." A lot of people tend to talk about "the terrorists" as though they are a single entity, with a single set of gripes, and a single strategy. That oversimplification is IMO, well.....simply wrong.

There are certainly terrorists whose main gripe with the U.S. is its support of Israel. There are other terrorists who are upset with other aspects of U.S. foreign policy (e.g., stationing troops in the Middle East).

There are also, however, a great deal of other terrorists who in fact find Western culture demonic. If you listen to a great number of Islamic radicals, they will tell you that democracy is evil because the only law that should govern is the law of the Koran. The American way of life is the epitome of everything that is wrong with democracy - it is hedonistic, materialistic, sexual, etc.

There are other terrorists who actually want to establish a caliphate extending from Spain in the Northeast (which was once ruled by the Moors - Muslims) to all of Africa in the South and much of Southeast Asia (which has large Muslim populations). This single "kingdom" would ruled by ayatollahs who strictly follow the Koran.

My only point is that there are a lot of different terrorist groups. They do not all agree on a single objective or ideology. In fact, that is why you see so many terrorist groups killing one another. So, it's wrong to say that U.S. foreign policy drives all terrorists. U.S. foreign policy may motivate some terrorists, but not all. And while I hate to agree with G.W., he's right when he says that some terrorists "hate us for our way of life."

DISCLAIMER: The vast majority of Muslims are peace-loving and decent. In talking about various "terrorist groups" above, I am obviously only referring to the violent minority.

I would definately be in some agreement with you. Are saying that is a good thing, or a bad thing?

I'd say it is probably good and bad.

The real reason I mentioned it was because of the following:
1. We will NEVER stop supporting Israel.
2. The terrorists will ALWAYS hate us as long as we support Israel.

Therefore, there is NO possible diplomatic solution. So, the only logical solution is to kill all the terrorists, but that is impossible. It is a lose-lose situation.

hog1 good post. i am the type of person that would rather hear nothing, then hear a bunch of lies. most of the American public cant handle the truth( sound familiar?) but instead of lying, how about just keeping quiet, not lying and trying to trick people?

I agree, I don't like being treated like a sheep either, but I cannot deny that Americans have given the Govt reason not to tell us the truth in all circumstances. Maybe nothing is better than something HTTR

I'd say it is probably good and bad.

The real reason I mentioned it was because of the following:
1. We will NEVER stop supporting Israel.
2. The terrorists will ALWAYS hate us as long as we support Israel.

Therefore, there is NO possible diplomatic solution. So, the only logical solution is to kill all the terrorists, but that is impossible. It is a lose-lose situation.
I agree with you, we support Israel=they hate us. Can't stop terrorism, but chasing there ass's all over the world has kept their heads (and no more 9-11, so far) down....................IMO

It's not like the government "lying" to the people is anything new. Politicians, even well-intentioned ones, have always had to "sell" their policies to the public.

Did Bush "lie" about the WMDs? In my opinion he did not. Just about every intelligence agency around the world agreed that Iraq had them (including the French and Russian intelligence services). Did Bush mislead the American public about how much evidence there was of the WMDs? Yes, but that was not in bad-faith as everyone thought the WMDs were there but the evidence was not solid.

For me, the interesting question about our entry into Iraq was not whether Bush lied about WMDs, it is whether even if Iraq did have WMDs should we have gone into Iraq. IMO we should not have and Bush was simply wrong.

As for what to do today, I think the whole WMD issue is water under the bridge. Everyone knows it was a mistake to go into Iraq, that Bush lied or misled us, and that we cannot undo what has already taken place. The issue today should be, "How are we going to fix this mess?"

1. You can't stop determined people. One of the greatest things about mankind is it's ability to adapt.
2. You can't win a global war. It's absurd that some think the US could win "the global war on terror."
3. If you keep telling people what they can or can't do they'll eventually give you the finger and do as they please.
4. The greatest threat to us isn't from dirty bombs or military hardware but rather from biological weapons. You can't stop people from cooking up a virus in some remote location.
5. If you aren't talking to people then you don't know who and what you are dealing with.
6. Power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely.

It's not like the government "lying" to the people is anything new. Politicians, even well-intentioned ones, have always had to "sell" their policies to the public.

Did Bush "lie" about the WMDs? In my opinion he did not. Just about every intelligence agency around the world agreed that Iraq had them (including the French and Russian intelligence services). Did Bush mislead the American public about how much evidence there was of the WMDs? Yes, but that was not in bad-faith as everyone thought the WMDs were there but the evidence was not solid.

For me, the interesting question about our entry into Iraq was not whether Bush lied about WMDs, it is whether even if Iraq did have WMDs should we have gone into Iraq. IMO we should not have and Bush was simply wrong.

As for what to do today, I think the whole WMD issue is water under the bridge. Everyone knows it was a mistake to go into Iraq, that Bush lied or misled us, and that we cannot undo what has already taken place. The issue today should be, "How are we going to fix this mess?"
I think that the timing was bad but I think at some point in time we would have to face this problem in Iraq. Its tough to tell. If left to go as he pleased could we have been just waiting for ticking tomb bomb? One thing we do know that he was willing to envade another country so is it that hard to believe that he would never attack us? Not a military type attack but more of a sucker punch type of attack. I guess that one we will never know which is not a bad thing. Is Iran another one that if left to do as they please will never attack us? I just think that one of these nut jobs will want to go down in history as one that attacked the most powerful nation in the world and not just in the form of a terrorist type attack.

I could never see Iran attacking America without attacking Israel first. IMO, if Iran has aspirations to attack anyone, it will be Israel. They just know that if they do so, America will be bombing their asses into oblivion. But, I do think they are prepared for that. Also, most of their important bases are underneath mountains. I'm not sure if we have bombs that can penetrate mountains. So, I am not sure if we could destroy their most precious military infrastructure without going in on the ground.

i dont its if we have the weaponary, i think its if we have someone that has enough "balls" to do it

I could never see Iran attacking America without attacking Israel first. IMO, if Iran has aspirations to attack anyone, it will be Israel. They just know that if they do so, America will be bombing their asses into oblivion. But, I do think they are prepared for that. Also, most of their important bases are underneath mountains. I'm not sure if we have bombs that can penetrate mountains. So, I am not sure if we could destroy their most precious military infrastructure without going in on the ground.
Yes I believe that we do have bombs that can penetrate the ground before they go off but how deep they go I don't know. I do know we have some that will go down a cave then go off and just fry people and not other things. I'm not sure if Israel is attacked by Iran we would get invloved because they have the weapons to defend their self. Now if it was a multiple of other country's we may but I think that would be the last thing we do because it could esculate into something much bigger.