by Tim Gray

Created on: January 29, 2009

So often, throughout the history of mankind, the core reason or reasons for one country waging war against another have been shrouded in secrecy. Sometimes that secrecy has been thinly veiled, at best. Perhaps the most shining example is the present War in Iraq, undertaken by the United States. It has been and remains a bogus bill of goods. The American public has been lied to and bamboozled since the war's beginning. There was no valid reason for invading Iraq and we have had spin after spin after spin to justify our occupation of the supposed sovereign nation.

America was in a panic and clamoring for swift and thorough vindication, following the events of September 11, 2001. We were, understandably, an angry society determined to hold those responsible accountable, while punishing them to the greatest degree possible. Sixteen of the twenty direct perpetrators involved in the attacks were Saudi Arabians. We responded by invading the country of Iraq. Our nation's president assured us that Saddam Hussein was linked to Al Queda and was in possession of weapons of mass destruction. The Iraqi leader, a former American ally, became our primary target, as our response began. In very short fashion the nation of Iraq was overrun militarily. Hussein was captured, tried, convicted and executed. Meanwhile, we were to learn that our conclusions regarding his level of involvement and access to weapons of mass destruction were without merit. Finally, our president told us that the invasion was necessary, so that democracy could be exported, like some consumer good, to the people of Iraq. As any authority in the area of Social Sciences will tell you, the idea that democracy can be exported is absurd.

We have failed in Iraq strategically, because our presence there is without cause and shouldn't have been authorized in the first place. In the process, we have become the very nation Dwight Eisenhower cautioned us about on his last day as Chief Executive of the United States. Referring to a "military-industrial complex," the 35th president warned of a future for America that would be dependent on the continuance of war for the sake of the economy. In simple terms, the business of war has become good for business. Its a deeply disturbing and alarming circumstance and lies at the root of our involvement in Iraq. Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi men, women and children have been killed and far too many American service people have become casualties as well.

We can only hope that a new administration will end our involvement there immediately and bring our men and women home to their families where they belong. It is up to the people of Iraq to decide what form of government is in their best interests. Any chaos that might manifest itself following American withdrawal is a deeply regrettable byproduct of our misguided and ill gotten intentions. What has been done cannot be rectified. Indeed, it is and will always remain a sad and embarrassing chapter in the history of the United States.

Learn more about this author, Tim Gray.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.