FirmhandKY
Posts: 8948
Joined: 9/21/2004 Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: eihwaz quote:
ORIGINAL: FirmhandKY I've always said that the ultimate success or failure of the Iraq war couldn't be determined within a short span of time such as a few years, or perhaps even a few decades. Too much ideological and political hay to be made. What, in your view, do "success" and "failure" look like wrt the Iraq war? Why is a "long view" necessary to determine whether the war's outcome constitutes one or the other? A quick mental survey of wars involving the United States gives me the impression that the criteria for "success" and "failure" were pretty clear even before the respective conflict's end -- unless, perhaps, the rationale for the war was weak, false, or confused in the first place. So, can you provide historical examples of where the outcome -- in terms of success or failure -- of a war was ambiguous initially and only became apparent with time? Good post. Thank you. What, in your view, do "success" and "failure" look like wrt the Iraq war? Success for the Iraq war is general: 1. The removal of Hussein and the structure of his terrorist state, and 2. Changing the expectations and regional dialog about what is required/expected/possible when it comes to the type of governments that Arabic and Muslim peoples can entertain for themselves, to the favor of Western liberal democratic systems. Further success is if the US is able to then maintain ties with an ally in the region other than Israel to continue to have a positive impact in the region. Each of these is gist for a book or two, and are just bare summaries, but you can get the basic idea. Why is a "long view" necessary to determine whether the war's outcome constitutes one or the other? Very few analysis conducted in the heat of partisan anger are very accurate. A quick mental survey of wars involving the United States gives me the impression that the criteria for "success" and "failure" were pretty clear even before the respective conflict's end. Really? I think a large part of the problem in this case is the very partisan atmosphere that we are also discussing. Most of the partisans who were "anti-anything Bush" would give you a very short, concise description of the "failure" of anything associated with the Iraq war. A very narrow view, involving "WMD's", and ignoring all the other causes and reasons given. The "WMD excuse" for the war may have loommed large in many people's mind, but it was perhaps only the most newsworthy, and one that required the least amount of thought, but that doesn't mean it was the only, or even the most important reason for the war. So, can you provide historical examples of where the outcome -- in terms of success or failure -- of a war was ambiguous initially and only became apparent with time? How about the Revolutionary War? Firm
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