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Originally Posted by theknife
meanwhile, post-war germany and japan are completely irrelevant comparisons. both had been industrialized, relatively well-educated societies with experience in democracy prior to WW2 - iraq is a tribal, relatively undeveloped society whose primary religion is incompatible with democracy.
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I'll have to disagree with this entire paragraph. It takes a relatively high level of industrial sophistication to efficiently harvest crude oil and process it into usable chemicals, not to mention a large workforce of college educated geological engineers. Iraq has a very high literacy rate, and prior to Hussein's war with Iran, and his invasion of Kuwait which led to UN sanctions against him, Iraq had a very strong economy like all OPEC nations had. Iraq does have it's tribal and nomadic traditions, but then America has Amish and Mennonites and they don't represent the majority either. While Iraq has been under the rule of one monarch or an other since it's present borders were drawn this doesn't preclude them from governing themselves. Islam is far from incompatible with Democracy and I give you Turkey as an example.
If you think the cost of this war should be measured only in American deaths then so be it. I think if you study previous wars we've fought in the past you'll find that the price we're paying now is relatively cheap, and it's costing Iraq much, much more than us. They once had a great army of brave soldiers, but because their leader lacked the conviction to train, dicipline, and properly arm them, their lives have been a terrible waste. Had they been better prepared we wouldn't have considered an invasion and they'd still be alive today. They died in vain fighiting our soldiers, but they died so their nation could be free. And the death of an Iraqi soldier is as great a sacrifice as the death of an American soldier. How dare you cheapen their sacrifice and the price they've paid by measuring this war
only in American deaths? Iraq is paying the greatest cost for their former dictator's greed and lust for power. Never forget that.