I think most of us can agree that we had to take action and the reasons are legion. Again...I see this as a continuation of Desert Storm and not as a new war! Saddam had "agreed" to conditions that lead to our withdrawal and then violated these agreements. Containment was not working very well and a return to Iraq was therefore inevitable.What was not inevitable was our failure to properly address the chaos that occurred. While some chaos is to be expected,some confused this chaos with celebration.Certainly some of the chaos contained elements of a victory celebration but there were many who took advantage of the situation.

In conclusion,we were justified in our "return" to Iraq. Mistakes were made and to some extent,this is to be expected. I still believe we could have tried heavy bombardment of all strategic targets before returning ground troops to the region. This bombardment would not resemble what would normally be viewed as more containment. It would have been severely punitive and destructive,with no concern for nation building.Would this have been effective? We shall never know! What I do know is this,the American people grow weary of these "conflicts" and can little afford the nation building that follows. When ground troops are used the goal should be clearly defined and an exit strategy must be part of the overall plan.Some say.."We broke Iraq and now we have to fix it"...I say bullshit..Saddam and his evil regime broke Iraq and as in any war,you've got to want to succede.Policing the world is a noble and lofty goal but it's a very big job and cannot be acheived without the "sustained" cooperation of all who hold peace and democracy so dear.Some pay lip service to these ideals and it's time for them to stand up or shut-up!

__________________
"Destiny must be shaped and not left to mere chance."..Spencer Collins ..