Status check-- the Middle East

[Abcdxxxx]

Well I'm not sure you can say the neo-cons were right.... but I do think a lot of the Leftist logic in dealing with the Middle East was... well... wrong. Though, if you really want to be a die hard, you can take comfort in knowing that the Middle East has always functioned better under colony!

Had we gone into Syria first, it would have resulted in a full out war involving Israel, and Saddam would have jumped into the tangle anyway. Syria would have become a puppet government, and Saddam would have controlled three strategic countries. So this made more sense. Removing Saddam was a positive for the region. That's the blunt truth of the matter. It also puts the Saudi's in a more transparent position to be on good behavior.

What you're overlooking is that Arafat is gone too. That's HUGE. So let's take a real tally: Saddam, Arafat, Taliban, and the foundation of Hamas, are all gone. There have been leadership that died in Syria, and Saudi. Mubarak in Egypt isn't in great shape.

Then we have: Libya in financial straights working overtime for good press, the first talk in 30 years of a liberated Lebanon, Qatar and UAA making progressive moves, women photographed voting (mock election or not) in a Muslim nation, a natural disaster in a Muslim nation, Sharon giving Gaza back and releases prisoners, the infrastructure for the old line of terrorists is being challenged, overt funding for criminal acts is blocked, Russia is making power plays our of desperation...there's plenty more....and all the while, a new nation of liberal Iranian youth watch on in hope of change. Very little of that can be credited to Bush & Co.

Uh, but it's still a serious mess over there.