"Since 9/11, We've Had 4 Wars in the Middle East. They've All Been Disasters"--Kevin Drum

[KoKo]

Since 9/11, We've Had 4 Wars in the Middle East. They've All Been Disasters.

—By Kevin Drum
Tue Feb. 17, 2015 3:40 PM EST

So here's my scorecard for American military interventions since 2000:

Afghanistan: A disaster. It's arguable that Afghanistan is no worse off than it was in 2001, but after losing thousands of American lives and spending a trillion American dollars, it's no better off either.

Iraq: An even bigger disaster. Saddam Hussein was a uniquely vicious dictator, but even at that there's not much question that Iraq is worse off than it was in 2003. We got rid of Saddam, but got a dysfunctional sectarian government and ISIS in return.

Libya: Another disaster. We got rid of Muammar Qaddafi, but got a Somalia-level failed state in return.

Yemen: Yet another disaster. After years of drone warfare, Houthi rebels have taken over the government. This appears to be simultaneously a win for Iran, which backs the rebels, and al-Qaeda, which may benefit from the resulting chaos. That's quite a twofer.

Blame all this on whoever you want. George Bush for starting two wars with no real plan to prosecute either one properly. Or Barack Obama for withdrawing from Iraq too soon and failing to have any kind of postwar plan for Libya. Whatever. The question for hawks at this point is: what makes you think American military force has even the slightest chance of improving things in the Middle East? It's been nothing but disasters since 9/11, and there's no reason at all to think we've learned how to do things better in the intervening years. Bush started big wars, and Obama has started small ones, but the result has been the same.

I know, I know. If you're a liberal, I'm not telling you anything you don't already know. If you're a conservative, I'm being dangerously simplistic. But tell me: From the viewpoint of military action in the Middle East, what have we gotten better at over the past 14 years? What reason is there to believe that ever more military action will work out any better than it has before? In the past 50 years, has there been any case of the U.S. successfully training local troops to prosecute a war against insurgents?

Kevin Drum asks for Comments at:

http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2015/02/911-weve-had-four-wars-middle-east-theyve-all-been-disasters

[Fumesucker]

1. So many things are a matter of perspective

If you are a member of the MICC then the Middle East wars have been very very good to you, let the good times roll.

[woo me with science]

5. +100000 Blood for profit.

Neocons = neolibs.

[JEB]

2. The wars have paid for themselves and

we now have a surplus of rose petals. Freedumb is on the march. Freedumb isn't free. And any other of the stupid one liners the war mongers used to persuade the gullible public...argh. We are a nation that revels in killing.

[FiveGoodMen]

3. Those who start wars need to be destroyed.

[woo me with science]

4. K&R

[nationalize the fed]

7. Everyone likes to forget the 78 day bombing of Serbia- the First PNAC war

So it's 5 wars since 1999.

The US/NATO bombed news studios, trains, the Chinese Embassy (wrong address!), farmers, hospitals, bridges, dropped a cluster bomb on a marketplace and more...

Civilian casualties during Operation Allied Force
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civilian_casualties_during_Operation_Allied_Force
And ended up with Camp Bondsteel, the Gitmo of the Balkans

Clinton's "Defense" secretary William Cohen (Republican!) said there were "up to 100,000 Albanians in mass graves" so the bombing was "humanitarian". Even Kissinger said that the US "provoked" the war by adding to the Rambouillet accords at the last minute.



http://web.archive.org/web/20030210080835/http://www.newamericancentury.org/balkans.htm

[CJCRANE]

8. In religion there is the concept of "double truth": one story for the masses

and a deeper truth for the elites.

We're coming into an age where some of the proles are beginning to realize the story we've been told doesn't add up.

However, in general, we don't realize until after the disaster's happened. Then we wake up briefly before being led by the nose into the next disaster.

[grahamhgreen]

9. A disaster for Americans, a boon for big war.

[Octafish]

10. Truth.

A police action doesn't have the cachet.