If Bush has his way, Iraq's next shock will be shock therapy

[dArKeR]

A quick shift to a market economy failed in former Soviet-bloc countries; in Iraq it could fail even more badly
By Joseph Stiglitz

Monday, Feb 16, 2004,Page 9

With one exception -- the actual military "victory," which looks increasingly Pyrrhic -- US President George W. Bush's Iraq adventure has been marked by repeated failures. Scant signs of weapons of mass destruction have been found, and, according to David Kay, the US' former chief arms inspector, the stockpiles either never existed or were destroyed years ago. So Bush simply ignored the data, gathered by former UN weapons inspector Hans Blix, and the evidence on which he based his case for war seems to have been largely fabricated.

Worse still, it is now clear that Bush never had a plan for when the war ended. Instead of moving toward peace and democracy, the situation in Iraq remains so dangerous that Paul Bremer, the American occupation leader, is using instability as his rationale for avoiding democratic elections this year.

Of course, the US tried to keep real order in some places, revealing a lot about what it truly valued in Iraq. When Baghdad fell, the oil ministry was quickly protected, while museums and hospitals were allowed to be looted.?

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/edit/archives/2004/02/16/2003098999

[buckeye1]

1. Bush has worn out the Army.

There will be no more adventures. No more Tuff guy USA. There was a much bigger footprint. The reputation is busted. It is a hard way to go.

The military might that was USA could only be supported by a strong economy. We wonder where that went. If you think USA is ok. Deal with change.