Reply #6: Recommended. It's thought-provoking. Critique:

[Jack Rabbit]

First of all, you appear to be embracing the Powell Doctrine. There's nothing wrong with that. If the US must go to war, which is far less often than some would have us believe, that's how it is to be done. A direct attempt was made during the invasion of Iraq in 2003 to repudiate the Powell Doctrine, and it just cause headaches we didn't need by fighting a war on a budget with no exit strategy. Take that, Rummy.

The other failure of the Iraq invasion and occupation is that there was no clear purpose for it. All the horse pucky about weapons of mass destruction and conspiracies between Iraq and al Qaida that we were told was obviously not the reason. The Bush junta came to power in a stolen election, acted dictatorially and treated the Consitution as a "God damned piece of paper." The idea that they were spreading democracy in the Middle East was ludicrous.

As for the matter of Libya, it's not so much that the lack of a clear purpose is evidenced by telling lies, as it was when the Bush and the neoconservatives manipulated us into Iraq, it's evidenced by the lack of discussion about a clear purpose. I'm not even sure why the UN Security Council is discussing this matter.

While I would be delighted if Colonel Gaddafi were dancing under a lamp post when this is over, it must be the Libyan people who put him there. This must under no circumstances be mistaken for another act of Western imperialism under the guise of supporting democratic values. It must not be that or simple revenge against Bother Colonel for his various and sundry acts of terrorism over the last forty years.

The Libyan rebels have not requested any assistance from the west. They desire no more assistance overthrowing Brother Colonel than the French people had overthrowing the Bourbons. This is their revolution that will give birth to their democracy.

Power to the people. Down with all dictators, military and corporate.