Bush created the war on terror ?

[kentuck]

Yes, there were acts of terror, including 9/11, but Bush created a much larger monster that could have been handled in a different way? Do you believe that? Do you believe we could have used diplomacy and economic leverage to get the countries that were harboring "terrorists" to help us capture them without creating millions more terrorists in the process? Has this turned out to be one of the biggest blunders in military and national history? What is your opinion of Bush's role in the "war on terror"?

[K-W]

1. Actually, Reagan created the war on terror.

Bush redeclared it and adapted it slightly, instead of generalizing everything as communism, we just generalize it as extremism.

Although really, it was political operatives who created the war on terror for Reagan, and many of the same operatives who have adapted it for Bush.

[porphyrian]

3. It was under reagan...

...that we armed and trained the Mujahedin warlords to fight against the Soviets. Our actions there kept Afghanistan in a state of civil war and allowed for the rise of the Taliban in the first place. Fucking republicans love starting wars without any thought about follow through or long-term consequences, and our citizenry have such short memories that they keep electing the pieces of shit.

[tx_dem41]

2. I don't agree with a great deal of the implementation of the "War on ...

Terror", but I do believe the war on terror was actively started by the terrorists. All actors in the world were participants in giving fertile ground for terrorism to grow, but I cannot take the lion's share of the responsibility away from the terrorists themselves.


I also believe that diplomacy and economic leverage, great tools that they are and tools that should have been used to a much greater extent, can not be 100% successful without the threat of military force.

I have a great deal of issues on how * has used that military force.

[Lasher]

4. The 'War on Terror'

as stated, this is a war against a tactic, and not anyone in particular. By the same token, it is also a war against everyone. That is to say, everyone this regieme wants to attack. Just fill in the blanks. The justified invasion of Afghanistan has been used to instead promote the PNAC agenda. That's what this is really about, IMHO.

Iraq had nothing whatsoever to do with the 9/11 attacks, and presented no threat to us whatsoever. Neocons don't care about the impact this has had on us. They are determined to attack Iran now, because that's next on the PNAC schedule.