Home Politics & Debate
If you need urgent support, call 999 or go to your nearest A&E. To contact our Crisis Messenger (open 24/7) text THEMIX to 85258.

What/How......

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
Would you have done about the Saddam situation had it been your decision.
How would you have gone about it?

Just interested as most people on this board appear to be Anti war.

Especially interested in Clandestine's p.o.v as he is quiet obviously anti war, yet after a few minutes of searching the forums, I have noticed that he is very adept at ripping up the various arguments for war, yet never seems to suggest alternatives.

BTW I suppose I'm pro war. i.e I think something had to be done about Saddam. However with him having such a flagrant disregard for the UN and all other nations and human rights I find it hard to buy 'the UN needed more time' arguments.
I'm wavering atm.. to many lies, handing out contracts to US firms etc...
Convince me!

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I was relatively antiwar until it started..

    Personally, and i dont know how viable such a thing would be, I would have assassinated Saddam, his family, his government and any infamous members of his armed forces.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I won't call myself "pro-war", but rather that I see the current war as a necissity.
    To be honest, it should have happened a long time ago.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Re: What/How......
    Originally posted by DB56K


    Especially interested in Clandestine's p.o.v as he is quiet obviously anti war, yet after a few minutes of searching the forums, I have noticed that he is very adept at ripping up the various arguments for war, yet never seems to suggest alternatives.


    I have to defend Clandestine here and say that this statement is not true...infact I think he had contributed a great deal of good argument to these boards over the last few weeks as have many others both pro and anti war. There are However a few people who post random thoughts that are backed up by no real argument and fail to present anything other than racism, mis-information, hearsay and propaganda.

    Anyway....I would have gone for assasination...but having said that If i was going to start a war I would have done it with the UNs backing.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Okay, in my infinite wisdom :rolleyes: I...

    would have lifted the UN sanctions a long, long time ago. I would have allowed the UN inspectors to continue their work, and I would have kept Iraq marginalised while supporting oppostion groups both at Iraq and abroad. Rather like in South Africa.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    You mean hes not anti war? :)
    Hmm I did only look for a few minutes as stated
    And I am sure he has put forward lots of good arguments, and yes he does dispute things very well. I was just wondering what his alternatives where...
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    DK, I personally feel that first and foremost any solution should have and must have been conditioned upon the majority will of the international community given that the jurisdiction over this matter was the exclusive perview of the UN, not the odd handful of nations amongst its membership.

    Secondly, I lament the failure of the original Bush admin (daddy Bush) failed to support a popular uprising, but that still in no way justifies saying that this invasion is a legitimate alternative.

    Id be more content politically, as Aladdin has preempted me in saying, if the sanctions (which had long been proven to only harm the population) had been removed, containment and inspections stepped up massively, and (in place of sanctions) having all of Saddam's personal assets ferretted out and seized by the UN to be used for the population.

    I would have welcomed a UN lead policing force sent in to bolster the inspectors effectively precluding any ability of Saddam to scramble Republican guard as all military areas would have been under UN control and oversight.

    Given this kind of containment the eventual arrest of Saddam himself could have been undertaken quietly with sufficient UN presence to ensure that indigenous political groups could have arisen to institute a legitimate populist governing structure.

    But all that is moot as we now have the long planned program by the Pentagon and the Bush admin to try to make this factious country over in their own image. Time will nevertheless show this plan to have been grossly misconceived and I have little doubt we will have an even greater mess both in Iraq and in the region in years if not decades to come.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Yeah, I admit, UN backing would have strengthened the pro-war case greatly.. However (correct me if I am wrong - I usually am) the UN seemed quiet happy not to discuss the Iraq issue untill America brough the issue up..
    Furthermore wasn't the aim of the Gulf War just to repel the invading forces not to drive all the way to Bhagdad (again correct me if I'm wrong) furthermore it is unlikely that this would of recieved as much support - aren't accusations of war for oil great!.

    Having all of Saddams assets used for the population would of been a great idea however I think that the force requiered to do that and containing the Republican Gaurd + Millitary assets would of been unlikely to happen considering how much difficulty he had with letting the inspectors in and would of likely caused a war and thus making your next point highly unlikely.

    I may be pro war but I seriously hope that the USA/UK kill saddamm remove his henchmen and get the hell out as fast as they can. I also dissaprove of American companies getting all of the business contracts. It doesn't help there relationship or image in already volatile part of the world.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by DB56K
    You mean hes not anti war? :)

    Nope ..thats not what I mean...I mean that your statement

    'I have noticed that he is very adept at ripping up the various arguments for war, yet never seems to suggest alternatives.'

    is inacurate..

    good post though!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Originally posted by Aladdin
    Okay, in my infinite wisdom :rolleyes: I...

    would have lifted the UN sanctions a long, long time ago. I would have allowed the UN inspectors to continue their work, and I would have kept Iraq marginalised while supporting oppostion groups both at Iraq and abroad. Rather like in South Africa.
    i agree with aladin. with inspectors. no fly zones and satelite imaging saddam was in no position to be attacking anyone. we had him very nicely contained. iraq should have been alowed to trade freely with the world ...with the exceptions on military and certain scientific hardware. the iraqi people would have been better off. saddam could have continued building his highways and palaces ...thats fuck all to do with us ...and i believe he would have been one of our best allies in the fight against alqueda. in baghdad you can gamble, drink whiskey in bars and see pretty women in short skirts, makeup and with all kinds of proffessional positions. osama hates the bastard even more than bush hates him. yes we know saddam is a first class cunt! there are hundreds of them around the world. do we go get them all and rebuild their countries and cultures in our image? i think not.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I read a good article somewhere about a diplomatic policy called "The Fatal Hug", basically it's the diplomatic form of the old saying "Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer". What happens is that UN would lift all sanctions off Iraq and give them lots of aid so that the USA are seen as the good guys and all faults in the regime cannot just be passed off as being blamed on the West. This was mooted as a way of preventing another September 11th, which occurred because a lot of people in the Arab world felt that they were being oppressed by the United States. If you remove the USA as a scapegoat for Arab ills the people will have to look closer to home to wonder why their rich nations only really benefit their leaders.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Would have gone with 'French ' route (basically what Al and Clan have said)

    Kevlar I think that idea would have been far more successful than what we have actually done.

    Sanctions I do believe have strengthened Saddams regime thge people see there poverty as extrenally enforced.......

    DB: Ask yourself why did the US bring up Iraq at this time as a matter of such urgency when they had been content to leave it for so many years?
Sign In or Register to comment.