tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7321229718141307911.post2054728978274816006..comments2023-10-24T01:44:59.579-07:00Comments on Newshoggers Archive: A quiet brushing away of a horrific blunderRon Beasleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04442030471061531104noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7321229718141307911.post-37857755576244341362011-12-16T05:22:08.000-08:002011-12-16T05:22:08.000-08:00Underscoring your sentiments read what Rami Khouri...Underscoring your sentiments read what Rami Khouri says in Lebanon's Daily Star. Take a moment to check out the whole thing. It's not long.<br><a href="http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Columnist/2011/Dec-14/156809-praise-tunisia-not-the-iraqi-nightmare.ashx#axzz1gif8LWNt" rel="nofollow">http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Columnist/2011/Dec-14/156809-praise-tunisia-not-the-iraqi-nightmare.ashx#axzz1gif8LWNt</a><br><i>Somebody who has Obama�s ear should take him aside one day soon and let him know that in the Arab world, Iraq since the 2003 Anglo-American invasion has never been a model for anything other than perpetual chaos, fear, death and destruction. It is everything we want to avoid, and nothing we seek to emulate. Most Arabs � if not most human beings around the world � see the last nine years in Iraq as the epitome of neo-colonial Western invasions that deal with Arab societies as if they were modeling clay to be molded into images that are pleasing to simpletons and predators in London and Washington. Iraq is not a democratic model, it is a nightmare.</i><br>I suspect the president might be in agreement but is in no position to say so.<br>John Ballardhttp://profile.typepad.com/john_ballardnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7321229718141307911.post-76618812156417918922011-12-16T02:02:30.000-08:002011-12-16T02:02:30.000-08:00BJ -- somewhat OT, but I didn't want to derail...BJ -- somewhat OT, but I didn't want to derail the Hitchens thread, I finally got around to trying to answer you <a href="http://www.newshoggers.com/blog/2011/11/libya-and-the-left.html#comment-6a00d8345f80b469e20162fc3e2d73970d" rel="nofollow">and Doug M.</a>. It's in a <a href="http://crookedtimber.org/2011/12/15/open-thread-on-iraq/#comment-392462" rel="nofollow">Crooked Timber comment thread</a> on this very subject (the nominal end to the war in Iraq). Sorry it took so long -- it's been an insane semester, for reasons some of your commenters referenced obliquely last time around.<br>Michael B�b�http://www.michaelberube.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7321229718141307911.post-59803607144531463422011-12-15T11:32:08.000-08:002011-12-15T11:32:08.000-08:00I came of age during Vietnam. We now know that th...I came of age during Vietnam. We now know that those in charge knew that the war was unwindable early on and 10s of thousands of America's finest died after they came to that conclusion - some of them friends and relatives. The only punishment was history and that will be the same in the case of Iraq and Afghanistan. It's too bad we can't seem to learn from history.<br>Ron Beasleyhttp://profile.typepad.com/ronbeasnoreply@blogger.com