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Edited by Diplomat: 3/26/2013 7:48:22 PM
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Former Australian Foreign Minister: "The Iraq War Was Justified"

I Agree

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I Disagre

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Alexander Downer, the Australian foreign minister from 1996-2007, recently penned an article on The Diplomat, an international relations news site focusing on the Asian-Pacific region, about why the United States was just in its invasion of Iraq in 2003. It's a fairly interesting read, mainly because he voices an opinion that is widely disputed by the majority of the world. For the majority of people, the only justification for going to war with the Iraqi regime was the WMD issue, however this is hardly the case. Hussein committed multiple human rights violations, breached numerous UN laws, and worked with terrorists (though not A.Q.). More than enough justification for forcefully revoking Iraqi sovereignty. Granted, that doesn't mean I agree with the invasion. I feel as if our interests were not benefited from the invasion. I mean, we have the justification to invade dozens of countries, but do we? No, because we only have limited resources to be allocated for actions that serve to benefit us. Anyways, it's a good read nonetheless. There is one thing I'd like to highlight: [quote]The fall of Saddam's dictatorship sent a clear message to the world: extreme cruelty coupled with bellicose threats to neighbors won't be appeased. Since those fateful days in 2003, several dictatorships in the Arab world have gone: in Libya, Egypt, Tunisia and Yemen as well as Iraq.[/quote] There are a lot of I.R. scholars who think that the Arab Spring wouldn't have occurred without the Iraq War. [url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-21752819]Iraq War 10 Years On: In Numbers[/url]* *Provided by Lonepaul2441

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  • HAHAHAHAHA The war in Iraq was so pointless. Can't believe that idiot actually said it was.

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    • It was justified.

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    • GWB the Hero!

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    • Hell no, America ruined Iraq. With Saddam you were able to go out safely without the worry if a bomb was going to explode, now they go off everyday.

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      • Edited by HurtfulTurkey: 3/26/2013 8:44:28 PM
        Of course it was justified, but it was a cluster-blam!- in execution. We know for a fact that Saddam had chemical weapons and that he was using them against his own people, but obviously he would have gotten rid of them before the invasion. We found Scud launchers but no missiles. We have videos and bodies attesting the use of chemical weapons. But they just weren't there anymore, because he'd have to have been an idiot to keep them around. The war was justified, but it was just a shitty operation. Coalition forces thought they were hot shit because they managed to steamroll the Gulf War, but we had very few resounding successes in the war. Though one of which, the second battle of Fallujah, is probably the most badass war story ever.

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        • [quote]The fall of Saddam's dictatorship sent a clear message to the world: extreme cruelty coupled with bellicose threats to neighbors won't be appeased.[/quote]Oh, well this is just lovely. Dictators of the world, rejoice! You are permitted to either treat your people with extreme cruelty, OR you may make bellicose threats to your neighbors! Do either one freely! Just do not combine the two. Especially if you have oil. MT, you fail to see the problem. We weren't sold the Iraq invasion because "Saddam is a mean guy that threatens his neighbors", we were told we're going to Iraq because of one thing: WMDs. Guess what? It was a lie. Hence the outrage. All the shit that follows -- the "Saddam was a tyrant who killed his people" and "the Iraqis are better off without him" and all that other after the fact rationalization was just that: rationalization after the fact. One can easily see how much bullshit this is when one just looks at, oh I don't know, the rest of the damn Mid East -- tyrants, tyrants, everywhere. Hell, we support some of them -- take a look at Bahrain, and what they did (rather, what they had the Saudis do) to their people when they dared protest in the streets. That's our version of human rights? Of freedom? No, we are better than that. Also, look at Syria. Syrian forces have lobbed artillery at Israel and Turkey in this conflict -- not mere bellicose threats, but actual aggression! -- and what do we do? Nothing. Look at Sudan, how many were killed there? Oh, I guess they didn't threaten any neighbors though, so they get a pass, right? Such hollow -blam!-ing rationale. Pathetic. The reason we were told was a lie, or at best was due to numerous failures by our supposedly smartest people. This is absolutely a good reason to be outraged.

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        • Something you should look at to help answer that question. Also put this link in your OP.

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          • So a bloody war was worth inciting rebellion? I don't think so. If citizens wish to rebel, they will.

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