Iraq war has worsened steadily

With the first presidential debate revolving around the themes of foreign policy and national security, America must think critically about the war in Iraq, in addition to the election. The debate highlighted key differences between the two candidates and discussed differences of opinion on the future of the war.

The evidence is mounting that President Bush has misled the American public and he has misled the American troops in Iraq by mistaking the war for what is not. He has misled the international community, destroyed the bonds of alliances and forced American troops to go it alone. He has misguided American national security so America is no safer today than it was before.

The president is quick to label the war in Iraq a success story despite mounting casualties and unaffordable financial costs. When speaking before the United Nations in September, the president made the war sound rosy and fine. The president has refused to admit his mistakes or change his policies despite criticisms even from leading Republicans.

Last week, Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel said, "I don't think we're, winning. The fact is, we're in trouble. We're in deep trouble in Iraq." Hagel fully realizes the dire need to change the course in Iraq. Yet despite criticism, Bush has decided to stay the path of continued violence, which does not lead to a safer and more stable Iraq.

America can be proud of ending the regime of a brutal dictator. Nevertheless, America should not be proud of why the war was started, how the war is being fought and the false principles the war is being based on.

To this day, weapons of mass destruction have not been found and no evidence of a nuclear threat is evident. No link between Saddam Hussein and al Qaeda was existent. Bush insists we went to war to make America a safer place. Yet after going to war to destroy the imminent threat of weapons of mass destruction and links to terrorist groups, the war in Iraq has only succeeded in making America an even less safe place.

Nearly 20 percent of Iraq is labeled as being so insecure that these regions of the country are marked as "no-go zones" for American troops, presumably because the casualty level would be unbearable. In the process, these regions of the country have become prime training grounds for terrorist groups like al Qaeda.

Furthermore, America has ignored the true and imminent threat of the War on Terror: Osama bin Laden. By doing so, the president has confused the War on Terror with the war in Iraq. They are not one and the same. Because of this confusion, bin Laden has been allowed to escape repeatedly. Instead of committing the full force and effort of the American military to his capture, the president has outsourced the job to Afghan warlords.

The war in Iraq has forced America to stretch the military so thin that Afghanistan still remains a nation of instability, where the Taliban and al Qaeda still operate. Yet, the president maintains the world is a safer place.

In the process, the president has offended our allies and made enemies of our friends. Citizens around the world increasingly view America in a negative light. If America wants to be safer, the president must lead in a way that creates friends instead of making enemies throughout the world.

Because of an illogical focus on Iraq, the administration has ignored even greater threats to American security, such as the possible development of nuclear weapons by both Iran and North Korea. Additionally, the administration has done little to secure nuclear material throughout the world in order to prevent terrorist cells from obtaining an operable and usable nuclear device.

Bush must realize America is not safer because of the war in Iraq. In fact, America is less safe because of the rush to judgment that this administration has made. A doctrine of preemption is a very dangerous policy for American security, but it is made even more precarious by rash and rushed judgments justified via falsified information and American exceptionalism.

In August, American troops suffered 863 casualties. The war in Iraq has seen over 1,000 American deaths in addition to the 7,000 troops wounded in action. With rising casualties and the president refusing to outline a timetable for a foreseeable end, the war in Iraq has become a slippery quagmire for which there is no easy end.

Regarding the reconstruction work debacle, Republican Sen. Richard Lugar, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said, "This is the incompetence in the administration." The general population may not want to deem this administration as incompetent. However, a clear majority of people believe the administration was misleading and has failed in its original mission.

As the Vietnam War began to rage, the band The Animals released the song "Sky Pilot," which contains lyrics that are perhaps appropriate to this time and place:

"You're soldiers of God, you must understand/The fate of your country is in your young hands/May God give you strength, do your job real well/If it all was worth it, only time it will tell."

It is the youth of America, our generation, who has been forced to bear the blood, sweat and toil of war. Soldiers have performed well in light of the obstacles before them. Whether or not this mission was worth the loss is now up to history. Now that we are in Iraq, we cannot abandon ship. But, we can change the leadership of this country in November so that the misgivings of the Bush administration are reversed.

Over a year and a half has passed since the president suited up and proclaimed "Mission Accomplished." Clearly, the mission to make America a safer place was never accomplished because we are fighting the wrong mission, the wrong country, the wrong time, the wrong place and the wrong way. America is only left wondering, how much longer?

Sources:

http://www.truthout.org/docs_04/092904Y.shtml