Last week the GOP attacked Obama for the idea of talking to our enemies. But stop for a minute and think about what could have happened if we had talked to Saddam Hussein. What would have happened?
He would have left Iraq and there never would have been a war. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis would still have their homes. Thousands of Americans and Iraqis would still be alive. We wouldn't be $500 billion in debt. That's what would have happened.
CNN Link
So are we to believe that if we had just been a bit more patient Saddam Hussein would have left the country? Yes. Many sources reported that Bush was well aware that Hussein might be willing to go into exile to avoid the US invasion.
According to a transcript between Spain's Prime Minister and Bush, Hussein demanded only $1 billion dollars . . . of his own money.
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It wouldn't have cost the US tax payers anything. More importantly, the 4,000 service men and women that gave their lives would still be alive. Iraq might actually have a functioning government. Iran wouldn't be such a force in the region.
I'm willing to bet that less than 1% of Americans are aware of this story. Can you imagine the pain and anger of the families of those who gave their lives for this "war" if they knew that the "war" could have been avoided with some fairly simple negotiations?
Given McCain's recent attacks on Obama's willingness to meet with our enemies, it is time for this story to see the light of day. No longer can our nation . . correction . .. the world continue to operate in a manner dominated by fear and ignorance. The world is becoming a smaller and smaller place. We need to learn to live with one another. And while there are fights that may prove necessary . . . we should only engage in them once they have actually been proven to be, in fact, necessary.
The Iraq War was not necessary. Even if you accept the idea that there were WMD in the region - there weren't - we could have avoided the war. We could have avoided the death. . . if only we had tried to negotiate with our enemies.
Obama sees the wisdom in such activities.