My take on Saddam's capture

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My take on Saddam's capture 12.14.03 (7:35 pm)   [edit] Few would argue that Saddam Hussein did not harm the Iraqi people, hinder liberty, or pose a threat to the world. Few still would argue that the capture of Hussein is not a victory. But is it a virtuous victory or shallow? President Bush deserves some credit for the capture of the former dictator. Note I said some. While it is a victory for the U.S., for the Iraqi citizens, for the global community, it is still not the end result of the war on terrorism. This war was based on unfounded circumstances and should not have happened. Capturing Saddam is a good thing and increases Bush's credibility. But I think that it would be an error to rely on this outcome as being evidence of the necessity of this war. I still criticize the Bush Administration for its policies regarding Iraq, despite the fact that Hussein has finally been captured. However, I am not going to deny Bush any credit for such a feat. Getting rid of Saddam does the world a favor- it just wasn't an action that should have been taken by the U.S. It was a mistake to attack Iraq, even though the outcome, as of now, is good. So, kudos to the soldiers who were instrumental in the capture of Saddam Hussein. We should not deny the Administration the credit deserved for putting an end to Hussein's reign, but let's not forget the true intentions of the war and let's not lose sight of the innapropriate policies of the Bush Administration.   posted by: WinstonSmith (reply) post date: 12.14.03 (4:44 pm) You are right that capturing Saddam will help Bush ... too bad, since Bush doesn't deserve any credit ... The US Military did it ... Saddam Hussein was a tyrant ... but there are other tyrants worse than Saddam Hussein LOVED by the neo-cons (Saudi Arabian Royal Family, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Chechnya, etc.) ... It is about OIL & contracts for cronies ... I hope that this good news does not divert American's attention from the destructiveness of Bush's foreign & domestic policies. posted by: WinstonSmith (reply) post date: 12.14.03 (4:45 pm) I meant to say: I agree with you that we should not lose sight of Bush's damaging policies ... :) posted by: DragonBait22 (reply) post date: 12.14.03 (4:47 pm) Reply to: WinstonSmith "I hope that this good news does not divert American's attention from the destructiveness of Bush's foreign & domestic policies." Undoubtedly, it will. As I said, we shouldn't try and take anything away from the good news of Saddam's capture, but it's still important that we don't lose sight of the bad. posted by: SamAdams (reply) post date: 12.14.03 (4:49 pm) Good blog ... I am loathe to give Bush credit since his regime badly mis-planned their illegal & immoral incursion causing unnecessary slaughter & massacre-- and maiming & injuring of tens of thousands ... However, I do think the US Military did a good job, despite being under the control of the neo-con "crazies". posted by: DragonBait22 (reply) post date: 12.14.03 (5:00 pm) Reply to: SamAdams Well, I think it's a good idea to give the Administration at least some credit if for no other reason than remaining credible ourselves. We may oppose the war, but we should celebrate the capture of Saddam. Certainly, the military truly deserves the credit and we have to remain critical of Bush's policies. I just think we lose some credibility if we don't acknowledge the good news of Hussein's capture. This is a time in which anyone hopeful in removing Bush from office would be wise to pick their battles. :) posted by: keysersoze (reply) post date: 12.14.03 (5:08 pm) "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." -Thomas Jefferson posted by: mOi (reply) post date: 12.15.03 (9:47 am) totally agree wt wut u wrote.This is how pple are supposed to think.;) posted by: JamesYerian (reply) post date: 12.19.03 (1:27 am) Well, we all know Bush had nothing to do with the capture-- this is Bill Clinton's military, remember? (I also don't seem to recall Bush taking personal credit for this-- he seems to have thanked the troops profusely). And I also wonder what you mean by "unfounded circumstances". What kind of circumstances did Bush not have a basis to go to war on? posted by: DragonBait22 (reply) post date: 12.19.03 (10:15 am) Reply to: JamesYerian My point wasn't that Bush is taking credit for capturing Saddam when he shouldn't be- of course he isn't claiming he did it personally. But, the public will see it as a triumph for Bush (as it is) and it will give credibility and justification to the cause of the Iraqi war. Which was based on unfounded circumstances. The Bush Administration claimed that the war was aimed at fighting terrorism (presumably against the US), which was supported by false claims of a link between Saddam and bin Laden. Next, there were the false claims of Iraq hoarding WMD, when Hans Blix, the chief UN weapons inspector, had stated that Iraq most likely destroyed their WMD in 1991, like they repeatedly said. Granted the UN's 17 Resolutions against Iraq and Hussein's lack of cooperation could have become grounds for a reasonable attack- but the US took unilateral action in a preemptive strike. That, to me, is just asking for trouble and is certainly not the right way to go. Saddam's capture, in the American public's eyes, is similar to a result that shows that the ends justified the means. Many who disagreed with Bush's actions in Iraq will be swayed to believe that it was right, as the end product, as of now, is certainly good. I don't mean to take anything away from Saddam's capture, my point is just that the means for this war are not justified by the capture of Saddam, even though many will see it that way. Your Name: Your Comment:

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