Ninerfan1 Wrote:Quote:the rest will not fall in line...
Yeah, Libya proves that to be true huh? :rolleyes:
Quote:I will see if I can locate Bush's specific quotes tying Iraq to 9/11. I can't search for them right now, i'm at work.
I can save you the trouble and tell you that you'll never find a single quote to back up your claim. But you go ahead and search. It's your time.
Quote:But nowhere near as bad as it is now, especially in the middle east.
And you base this on......what exactly? Was the USS Cole bombed before we went into Iraq? Were our embassies bombed before we went into Iraq? Was the WTC bombed the first time and attacked on 9/11 before we went into Iraq? Was the Marine barracks in Beirut bombed before we went into Iraq?
It's absolutely ridiculous to claim that anti-american sentiment over there is worse than it was before Iraq. I'm of the opinion that there aren't degrees of hate. Islamic facists have always hated us, and they always will, whether we're in Iraq or not.
Quote:We have made it harder for moderate middle eastern allies/leaders to work with us, all the while whipping up anti-American hatreds into a frenzy and creating more potential terrorists than Osama could have asked for.
Yeah. Pakistan has really had trouble working with us since we went into Iraq.
:rolleyes:
We'll wait and see what happens with Libya... My guess is that he senses a big pay day, and would prefer normalized relations w/ the US and foreign $$$$ to ravening lunatic fanatics. I don't see many others following in his footsteps, but hey - ya never know. I'm sure Iran any day now is going to put up their hands, say WE SURRENDER, BRING ON BRITNEY SPEARS BABEEEEEE!!!
As for the US sentiment in the US being worse - by far - after the Iraq invasion... well, sorry to say, it's simply the truth.
Here's a portion of an article in Christian Science Monitor:
(the link if you would like to read the entire article):
<a href='http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0902/p06s02-wome.html' target='_blank'>http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0902/p06s02-wome.html</a>
A June poll by Zogby International in six Arab countries showed that America's already-limited esteem in the Arab world has plummeted since the invasion of Iraq. Just two years ago, Zogby found that 76 percent of Egyptians had an unfavorable impression of the US. Today, that number is 98 percent.
Though lowest in Egypt, there are similar declines throughout the region, which analysts say will cut deeply into America's ability to pursue it's objectives here. Even though governments in the region aren't generally democratic, they still have to take into account popular opinion when forming their policies towards the US. The source of most frustration appears to be US policy towards Palestinians and the invasion of Iraq.
And, yeah, ask Pakistan what an easy time they are having working w/ the US. Musharraf has had, what 2 or 3?, assasination attempts since he hooked up w/ the US in the search for Bin Laden and attack on the Taliban, and THAT was not as unpopular as the Iraq war!! How many middle eastern leaders will stick their necks out to help the US??
As for Bush tying 9/11 to Iraq.. .here are a few quotes I found with a quick internet search. Feel free to search for more if you are inclined:
"The battle of Iraq is one victory in a war on terror that began on September the 11, 2001 -- and still goes on"
"The liberation of Iraq is a crucial advance in the campaign against terror. "
"The regime has aided, trained and harbored terrorists, including operatives of al Qaeda. "
"Saddam Hussein has longstanding, direct and continuing ties to terrorist networks. Senior members of Iraq intelligence and al Qaeda have met at least eight times since the early 1990s. "
"He's a threat because he is dealing with Al Qaida. "