U. S. Credibility

Force without wisdom falls of its own weight. Horace (65 BC- 8 BC), Odes

In a news conference on December 20, 2006 President Bush said, "But I also don't believe most Americans want us just to get out now," the president said. "A lot of Americans understand the consequences of defeat. Retreat would embolden radicals. It would hurt the credibility of the United States."

Mr. President, I suggest our invasion of the radicals' countries has embolden them more than if we leave them alone. Your quick success in Afghanistan emboldened you to invade Iraq. If you win in Iraq it will embolden you to invade other countries. Both invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq have been a failure.

Retreat is not the proper word for an action that should never have been. Bringing our troops home is the proper phrase.

You said bringing our troops home would hurt the credibility of the United States. Credibility for what? Will we not be able to invade another small country? Will we not have the credibility of a bully when negotiotating with other nations? We lied to the world about WMDs in Iraq. The best way for us to gain some credibility is to say you made a strategic blunder and you hope future Presidents learn from this. To stay in this blunder you are in has the same fog of war ahead that was there before you invaded Iraq, which strategically, is why you should not have invaded, and why you should not escalate.

Others say we should stay in Iraq because of our national interest. What is our interest in the middle east? There are plenty of alternate energy sources so oil is not an interest. Besides they need our money as badly as we need their oil. We have no interest in the middle east. I do believe that Israel has been fighting their religious war for 60 years and their citizens are weary of war, so, the best thing for Israel is to have the United States fight Israel's war.

Japan and Germany wanted to be military empires using force against their neighbors. They were filled with hubris. Japan had colonies throughout the Pacific and Asia. Germany ruled much of Europe and had colonies in Africa. Both these military empires collapsed. Then what happened after their collapse? Both became economic empires by producing consumer goods instead of guns and bullets. Japan gained economic power that was envied by the world, and is copied now by China. China will become a global economic empire without having troops scattered around the world in other countries.

It is time the United States stopped trying to be both a military empire and an economic empire. Producing goods and services that will improve the lives of others around the world is how you create credibility, not by invading their countries and wreaking havoc on the lives of old people and children.

Bilbo Baggins