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That's why it's time to consider a more serious option: invading Burma. Some observers, including former USAID director Andrew Natsios, have called on the U.S. to unilaterally begin air drops to the Burmese people regardless of what the junta says. The Bush Administration has so far rejected the idea — "I can't imagine us going in without the permission of the Myanmar government," Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday

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Originally posted by Reaverman:
Nothing to gain from it. Just a lot of poor people, and now, rubble. Not a very sound investment. Not to mention we don't have the resources for another invasion and occupation.

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Originally posted by Reaverman:
Nothing to gain from it.

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Originally posted by citizen:
Besides, America's foreign image could really use another [strike]imperial war[/strike] action for freedom.

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Originally posted by Reaverman:
Not the best time for opening up yet another front in the Third World War.

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Originally posted by citizen:
Oh, go on, it'll be really funny.

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Originally posted by chrisisall:
Cit, why do you hate Australia?

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Originally posted by citizen:
Koalas.

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Originally posted by rue:
Yeah, better off giving the money to rich businessmen.

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"Global warming - it's not a fact, it just isn't ."

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Originally posted by rue:
No, mostly the workers money, taken by the owners.

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"Global warming - it's not a fact, it just isn't ."

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Originally posted by rue:
No, mostly the workers money, taken by the owners.

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Originally posted by AURaptor:
The Gov't doesn't OWN us at all.

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Originally posted by PirateCat:
Kinda like English troops in Ireland. Right. Oh don't say that. That's offensive to English people. America killed John Lennon. Another creep. Lets see how many times in the last century did Great Britain save western civilization. Hmmm left Africa in wonderful condition. England is full of puffs. The royal whores with muslim babies. They're just great. I can't wait till jolly ole england has that civil war with its imigrants. Please help America. Please send ships, food, and guns. KISS OFF BRITS LUV OBAMA.

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Originally posted by citizen:
Hey, least we never needed the French to win a war for us.

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Originally posted by citizen:
Come on now, sure there's no Oil, but shit loads of rice!

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Originally posted by HavocMan:

Burma is a side show because that region of the globe is not critical to global economics.

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Give things in Iraq a few years - it'll all shake out for the best.

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Originally posted by Hero:

Invading Burma and restoring those industries would be worthwhile.

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Originally posted by chrisisall:

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Originally posted by HavocMan:

Give things in Iraq a few years - it'll all shake out for the best.

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Tell that to the dead (sorry, nix that), husband-less & parent-less peeps over there. If you can manage one every couple hours it would only take a year.

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Saddam would have plunged the region into complete chaos & war ... again and AGAIN. How many died in the Iran/Iraq war? How many Iraqi citizens were murderd at his hands over the past few decades? How many Israeli citizens did he murder indirectly by paying off the families of Palestinian terrorists? The guy had to go.

With us so heavily involved in the region, these things have come to an end. So, while the loss of life during OIL/OIF - any life - is tragic, in the long run the US has done, and will continue to do, the right thing over there ... to the best of our ability. We ain't perfect, but we are wayyyyy better 'n most.

Besides - who else is gonna handle the job at this point? The UN?

Let's be Bad Guys...

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Originally posted by HavocMan:
Needed the French? LMAO - does anyone really believe that the colonies won their freedom as a result of French assistance? The French may have sped things up a bit, but that's it. We'd have beaten the Brits eventually on our own. The logistics of the whole thing would have just worn the Brits down. Too bad it had to come to war at all.

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Although the situation in Iraq is pretty rough now, things there are certainly improving ... they can only get better, hmmmm.

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Give things in Iraq a few years - it'll all shake out for the best.

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As for the UN ... just stay away, please.

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Hey, least we never needed the French to win a war for us.

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Originally posted by HavocMan:
Saddam would have plunged the region into complete chaos & war ... again and AGAIN.

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How many died in the Iran/Iraq war?

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How many Iraqi citizens were murderd at his hands over the past few decades?

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With us so heavily involved in the region, these things have come to an end.

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Besides - who else is gonna handle the job at this point? The UN?

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Originally posted by HavocMan:
Needed the French? LMAO - does anyone really believe that the colonies won their freedom as a result of French assistance? The French may have sped things up a bit, but that's it. We'd have beaten the Brits eventually on our own. The logistics of the whole thing would have just worn the Brits down. Too bad it had to come to war at all.

Burma is a side show because that region of the globe is not critical to global economics.

Stabilization of the global economy is why the U.S. is involved so deeply in the Middle East region of the globe. You all knew that ... right?

Although the situation in Iraq is pretty rough now, things there are certainly improving ... they can only get better, hmmmm.

Give things in Iraq a few years - it'll all shake out for the best.

As for the UN ... just stay away, please.


Let's be Bad Guys...

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Originally posted by HavocMan:


Saddam would have plunged the region into complete chaos & war

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Biped.

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Originally posted by chrisisall:

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Originally posted by HavocMan:


Saddam would have plunged the region into complete chaos & war

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So glad BushCo. could step in with immediate peace & stability then....

Biped.

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Invading Burma and restoring those industries would be worthwhile.

Also Naval and Air Force bases in Burma would support ongoing operation in the Gulf as well as be perfectly placed to support operations against China.

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Originally posted by Jongsstraw:
Hate to say it, but we did need French assistance during the Revolution. They had ships and they had money. We didn't have either.

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Saddam would have plunged the region into complete chaos & war ... again and AGAIN.

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How many died in the Iran/Iraq war? How many Iraqi citizens were murderd at his hands over the past few decades?

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How many Israeli citizens did he murder indirectly by paying off the families of Palestinian terrorists?

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Originally posted by Kwicko:
I could just as easily ask how many Palestinians "we" murdered indirectly by paying off Israeli "terrorists", so that argument has no real merit.

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Originally posted by HavocMan:
How many Iraqi citizens were murderd at his hands over the past few decades?

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Originally posted by BigDamnNobody:
Enter RWED at your own risk for sure. You never know when you will be put upon by a rabid pack of Hyenas.

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How many died in the Iran/Iraq war? How many Iraqi citizens were murdered at his hands over the past few decades?
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Fewer than the number of Iraqis who've been murdered since the US-led invasion.

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Originally posted by HavocMan:
Let's see - dog pile and personal insults. Why am I not surprised?

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The French ... Their assistance during the American Rev War was important, but not necessary. The colonies would have eventually become independent. It would have taken longer - as I mentioned in my first post in this thread. Maybe alot longer. Glad it went the way it did.

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Iraq ... What we are doing in Iraq now is working. American, coalition and Iraqi casualties are trending downward.

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The level of IED activity is down. The Iraqi gov is exercising control over more & more of the nation.

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Sunni & Shia are working together with IA forces against terrorist threats. This is all true. Check around. It's easy to find the truth if you look a little - I won't do your research for you.

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Your statements about the casualty levels are simply incorrect. The number for the Iran/Iraq war is generally quoted at 1 to 1.5 million. The numbers for the current conflict are far below that - 90K Iraqi deaths is the number that is generally accepted.

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Equating Israeli defense of their nation with Palestinian terrorist attacks is beneath further comment.

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Also - Just find a Soldier or Marine and ask them how things are going in Iraq. I'll tell you what you'll hear ... It's a crappy job that they are doing, but the situation now is much improved over their last deployment. Do they think things are headed in the right direction now? YES. Do they wish they were home instead? You bet! Are they on good terms with the overwhelming majority of Iraqi folks? Yep! Are the Good Guys winning? Yep (The Good Guys are us, by the way.)

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My name is Donald Hudson Jr. I have been serving our country’s military actively for the last three years. I am currently deployed to Baghdad on Forward Operating Base Loyalty, where I have been for the last four and a half months.

I came here as part of the first wave of this so called "troop surge", but so far it has effectively done nothing to quell insurgent violence. I have seen the rise in violence between the Sunni and Shiite. This country is in the middle of a civil war that has been on going since the seventh century.

Why are we here when this country still to date does not want us here? Why does our president’s personal agenda consume him so much, that he can not pay attention to what is really going on here?

Let me tell you a story. On May 10, I was out on a convoy mission to move barriers from a market to a joint security station. It was no different from any other night, except the improvised explosive device that hit our convoy this time, actually pierced through the armor of one of our trucks. The truck was immediately engulfed in flames, the driver lost control and wrecked the truck into one of the buildings lining the street. I was the driver of the lead truck in our convoy; the fifth out of six was the one that got hit. All I could hear over the radio was a friend from the sixth truck screaming that the fifth truck was burning up real bad, and that they needed fire extinguishers real bad. So I turned my truck around and drove through concrete barriers to get to the burning truck as quickly as I could. I stopped 30 meters short of the burning truck, got out and ripped my fire extinguisher out of its holder, and ran to the truck. I ran past another friend of mine on the way to the burning truck, he was screaming something but I could not make it out. I opened the driver’s door to the truck and was immediately overcome by the flames. I sprayed the extinguisher into the door, and then I saw my roommate’s leg. He was the gunner of that truck. His leg was across the driver’s seat that was on fire and the rest of his body was further in the truck. My fire extinguisher died and I climbed into the truck to attempt to save him. I got to where his head was, in the back passenger-side seat. I grabbed his shoulders and attempted to pull him from the truck out the driver’s door. I finally got him out of the truck head first. His face had been badly burned. His leg was horribly wounded. We placed him on a spine board and did our best to attempt "Buddy Aid". We heard him trying to gasp for air. He had a pulse and was breathing, but was not responsive. He was placed into a truck and rushed to the "Green Zone", where he died within the hour. His name was Michael K. Frank. He was 36 years old. He was a great friend of mine and a mentor to most of us younger soldiers here.

Now I am still here in this country wondering why, and having to pick up the pieces of what is left of my friend in our room. I would just like to know what is the true reason we are here? This country poses no threat to our own. So why must we waste the lives of good men on a country that does not give a damn about itself? Most of my friends here share my views, but do not have the courage to say anything.

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The intelligence organizations of every nation involved were convinced that Hussein had WMD's.

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It's clear that I'm not going to change any minds here. It's also clear that I'm in the overwhelming minority. What should also be clear is that I'm not about to alter my positions on anything.

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It's not easy being right all the time...and I speak from experience.

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So, lets just agree to disagree.

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Originally posted by HavocMan:

As for going in the first place ... in retrospect, we should have gone in harder and with more.

The intelligence organizations of every nation involved were convinced that Hussein had WMD's.

So, we went. To risk otherwise could have been catastrophic.

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90K Iraqi deaths is the number that is generally accepted.

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Equating Israeli defense of their nation with Palestinian terrorist attacks is beneath further comment.

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Also - Just find a Soldier or Marine and ask them how things are going in Iraq. I'll tell you what you'll hear ... It's a crappy job that they are doing, but the situation now is much improved over their last deployment. Do they think things are headed in the right direction now? YES. Do they wish they were home instead? You bet! Are they on good terms with the overwhelming majority of Iraqi folks? Yep! Are the Good Guys winning? Yep (The Good Guys are us, by the way.)

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As for going in the first place ... in retrospect, we should have gone in harder and with more. We should not have completely disbanded the Iraqi Army. We should not have De-Bathified the nation so rapidly. The intelligence organizations of every nation involved were convinced that Hussein had WMD's. All were concerned that he would sell or give them away to Jihadists...that would be bad. So, we went. To risk otherwise could have been catastrophic.

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The intelligence organizations of every nation involved were convinced that Hussein had WMD's.

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It's clear that I'm not going to change any minds here. It's also clear that I'm in the overwhelming minority. What should also be clear is that I'm not about to alter my positions on anything.

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It's not easy being right all the time...and I speak from experience.

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So, lets just agree to disagree. This will be my last post in this thread.

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Originally posted by Kwicko:
What most people (or at least most Republicans and Neo-Cons) can't figure out, to this day, is that Saddam and Osama are about as ideologically close to each other as Hitler and the Pope - they might both claim to believe in sort of the same god, but that's about the end of it.

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Don't think for a moment that France did anything for us out of pure altruism.

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Originally posted by Fremdfirma:

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Don't think for a moment that France did anything for us out of pure altruism.

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Maybe not then, but ask the question of where the Statue of Liberty came from...

As long as it's there, I tend to refrain from bashing the French so much.

-F

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