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greatcalgarian
Well-Known Member
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/special/iraq/Washington D.C., 18 December 2003 - Newly declassified documents posted today on the Web by the National Security Archive show the British Embassy in Baghdad recommending Saddam Hussein to London in 1969 as a "presentable young man" with an "engaging smile," "with whom, if only one could see more of him, it would be possible to do business."
U.S. documents published in today's Saddam Hussein Sourcebook quote Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in 1975 telling the Iraqi foreign minister "we do not think there is a basic clash of national interests between Iraq and the United States" (the Iraqi disagreed), and that Israeli influence on U.S. policy would diminish given "our new electoral law" which means "the influence of some who financed the elections before isn't so great."
The newly declassified briefing notes for special envoy Donald Rumsfeld's second trip to Baghdad in March 1984 reveal Rumsfeld's instructions to reinforce the message of U.S. interest in improved relations "at a pace of Iraq's own choosing," and to emphasize that U.S. criticism of Saddam's chemical weapons use versus Iran was not meant as a pro-Iranian or anti-Iraq gesture. Saturday, December 20, marks the 20th anniversary of Rumsfeld's famous handshake meeting with Saddam Hussein in Baghdad.
When the U.S. Senate passed economic sanctions on Iraq in 1988 for using poison gas against the Kurds, U.S. ambassador April Glaspie reported that the U.S. construction company Bechtel planned to employ "non-U.S. suppliers of technology and continue to do business in Iraq," according to a CONFIDENTIAL State Department cable. In April 2003, Bechtel landed the largest U.S. Agency for International Development contract to date for infrastructure repair work in Iraq, with an initial payment of $34.6 million and long-term value of up to $680 million.
So looking at past history being revealed, we should be clear on what direction President Bush is leading US in the Iraq situation.
WillieHutch
Member
installing our version of democracy is a tall order. i dont see how we can remove their regime and then just leave, but i also dont see how we can realistically expect for "our way" to work in their country. no matter our sensible our policy is, it will meet natural resistance because it is ours and not theirs.
delta0021
Member
One problem many people overlook today in Iraq is the timeframe we have to work with. I personally know many people who constantly protest the war anyway possible. I ask many of them this question; how long did you expect this war to take? Many people say things comparing it to the Gulf War in 1991, but they forget that most major wars take upwards of 5 years to win, and thats not considering the aftermath. Media coverage of this most certainly plays a major role. Another good thing to think about is that it took the United States well over 10 years to adopt a workable Constitution. So we cannot expect a nation who has never been familiar to Democracy to have this all wrapped up in 4 years. Now Im not arguing for or against this current war, all Im saying is that the U.S. public for the most part has lost the ability to see any long-term goals in this high-speed technological world we live in. I think many people feel we will be out of Iraq when Bush is out of office, but I am expecting to serve at least two tours over there after I ship out in 11 months. I highly doubt we will be able to exit Iraq until they have a military/police force up and running at 100%.
sprinkles
lets not forget about what the sanctions were all about and what is still going on. here is a bit of history and you can find all of this on bbc and aljezeera.
the entire middle class of iraq was destroyed and and we know what this means for a country
thousands of people died and are still dying because they have no access to clean water
up to this very day, people have to go without electricty up to 20 hours in a day
as far as the depleated uranium goes, even the u.n. has been speaking up because of the contamination. torturing and raping, that is common knoweldge in any war and the scandal of abu g. pretty much said it all. pbs frontline did a good doc. on the torture and rape abuse going on up to this day.
michael and sprinkles
the voting and constitution being legit is laughable. washingtion and london hand picked who would run and when voting would be done. they also had their say in the constitution of iraq. so with this said, what makes either of you think for one minunte this is not a schame? look at the last two american presidental elections. many believe and can back up their beliefs that both elections were rigged.
bottom line is this, if what our "honest" leaders say is true and they indeed what to make iraq a democratic and free state, why have they desimated it to the point of no return? all of the money that was to go for rebuilding has not gone where it was suspose to go and is still unaccounted for. even our own solders were left high and dry. pbs frontline aslo had a great doc. on that one as well. one more thing, if what our "honest leaders" claim to be true, do you really think there would be a enemy to fight? even the avrage iraqi citizen has had enough and is sick and tired of our presence.
lets not forget about what the sanctions were all about and what is still going on. here is a bit of history and you can find all of this on bbc and aljezeera.
the entire middle class of iraq was destroyed and and we know what this means for a country
thousands of people died and are still dying because they have no access to clean water
up to this very day, people have to go without electricty up to 20 hours in a day
as far as the depleated uranium goes, even the u.n. has been speaking up because of the contamination. torturing and raping, that is common knoweldge in any war and the scandal of abu g. pretty much said it all. pbs frontline did a good doc. on the torture and rape abuse going on up to this day.
michael and sprinkles
the voting and constitution being legit is laughable. washingtion and london hand picked who would run and when voting would be done. they also had their say in the constitution of iraq. so with this said, what makes either of you think for one minunte this is not a schame? look at the last two american presidental elections. many believe and can back up their beliefs that both elections were rigged.
bottom line is this, if what our "honest" leaders say is true and they indeed what to make iraq a democratic and free state, why have they desimated it to the point of no return? all of the money that was to go for rebuilding has not gone where it was suspose to go and is still unaccounted for. even our own solders were left high and dry. pbs frontline aslo had a great doc. on that one as well. one more thing, if what our "honest leaders" claim to be true, do you really think there would be a enemy to fight? even the avrage iraqi citizen has had enough and is sick and tired of our presence.