13 November 2006
Everyone knows where he or she was at September 11, 2001. Wherever you may have been, you heard or watched the most horrific events in America start to unfold. The attacks on the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., as well as the World Trade Center in New York City were unimaginable. More than 3,000 innocent men, women, and children lost their lives. Freedom no longer came free that day. Many Americans can recall December 7, 1941, a day which will live in infamy. Unfortunately, 9-11 has had the same affect on Americans and life, as we know it. We felt justified in fighting back in 1941 and just as justified to do the same in 2001. After two years of many investigations and intelligence reports, our President, George Bush decided it was in our best interest to end the rule of the dictator, Saddam Hussein, the ruler of Iraq. Intelligence reports linked Saddam to Bin Laden, the Al Quida leader, who was behind the September 11th attacks on America. On March 19, 2003 Bush launched an invasion on Iraq. Since the attacks, present day Iraq is nothing more than a work in progress. From fighting, the establishment of a democracy, and a chance at stability, these are all things Americans and most Iraqi’s are hoping to improve.
The United States has had more than a few setbacks in trying to "fix" the broken country. Our soldiers are fighting everyday for their lives to give the Iraqi’s a chance to live the "American dream". However, it is not that simple. Each day is a guarantee to hear of another life lost. According to the Associated Press count, the US military death toll is around 1500, and steadily rising. This makes many Americans furious, because they see no need for us to be there. It’s easy and understandable to see why they have such strong feelings against the war in Iraq, but it is also obvious as to why President Bush cannot allow the United States to sit back and look in the opposite direction.
According to Lawrence Kaplan, the more one learns about the Iraqi dictator, the clearer it becomes that he epitomizes, no less than Osama Bin Laden, sheer malice (The War Over Iraq). One of the greatest accomplishments since the attacks is that we succeeded in the removal of Saddam from power and his subsequent trial and conviction for crimes against humanity and mass murder. Removing Saddam has finally given Iraq a chance at a fair and equal life. The Iraqi people held the first democratic election of a president in April of 2005 (www.news.com). Jalal Talabani and his cabinet are in the process of building a free and democratic government for all the people of Iraq. With all the progress that has been made, the people of Iraq still have a long journey ahead. There are many Iraqi’s in full support of a democracy for the country, but there are just as many that want to continue to live the life of Saddam. There is much resistance with the changes taking place in Iraq due to the three religious groups in Iraq. The Kurds, Shiites, and Soonies have made it impossible to create a democracy. Their fighting is solely based on their religious issues that they can’t seem to come to an understanding and overcome their differences. Until these groups can unite, work together, and make compromises for the well being of all Iraqi’s, the United State’s presence should remain. That is until the seeds of democracy are firmly planted in the minds as well as the hearts of its people.
With this democracy there will come a new stability to this part of the world. This stability will bring economic prosperity and greatly decrease the terrorist attacks and threats towards other nations of the world. President Bush as well as most Americans feels that if Iraq becomes a stabilized country, then there will be no reason for attacks against anyone. Stability is of number one importance in Iraq today. The feeling of reliability, dependency, and a constancy of purpose are things the Iraqi’s have been without for so long, and are in desperate need of.
Democracy in the United States of America did not come without a great price. The price was paid in lives lost and great hardships. Because of these sacrifices we have become on the greatest and most powerful nations on Earth. We can only hope that such sacrifices will do the same for the people in Iraq. Yes, we could sit back and let the Iraqi’s fight there own battle, but lets not forgot the sole reason we are there. The American people in terms of lives and resources have paid a great price. Although it may seem the price is to high to pay, there is much work left to do. Many Americans think we have no business in Iraq in the first place, but most have forgotten the true reason we are there. Many Americans are very upset with the lives of our soldiers that we have lost. However, our soldiers have gone down fighting for what they believe in. They believed that 9-11 was a day America and its spirit could have been ruined but instead united us together.
Everyone knows where he or she was at September 11, 2001. Wherever you may have been, you heard or watched the most horrific events in America start to unfold. The attacks on the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., as well as the World Trade Center in New York City were unimaginable. More than 3,000 innocent men, women, and children lost their lives. Freedom no longer came free that day. Many Americans can recall December 7, 1941, a day which will live in infamy. Unfortunately, 9-11 has had the same affect on Americans and life, as we know it. We felt justified in fighting back in 1941 and just as justified to do the same in 2001. After two years of many investigations and intelligence reports, our President, George Bush decided it was in our best interest to end the rule of the dictator, Saddam Hussein, the ruler of Iraq. Intelligence reports linked Saddam to Bin Laden, the Al Quida leader, who was behind the September 11th attacks on America. On March 19, 2003 Bush launched an invasion on Iraq. Since the attacks, present day Iraq is nothing more than a work in progress. From fighting, the establishment of a democracy, and a chance at stability, these are all things Americans and most Iraqi’s are hoping to improve.
The United States has had more than a few setbacks in trying to "fix" the broken country. Our soldiers are fighting everyday for their lives to give the Iraqi’s a chance to live the "American dream". However, it is not that simple. Each day is a guarantee to hear of another life lost. According to the Associated Press count, the US military death toll is around 1500, and steadily rising. This makes many Americans furious, because they see no need for us to be there. It’s easy and understandable to see why they have such strong feelings against the war in Iraq, but it is also obvious as to why President Bush cannot allow the United States to sit back and look in the opposite direction.
According to Lawrence Kaplan, the more one learns about the Iraqi dictator, the clearer it becomes that he epitomizes, no less than Osama Bin Laden, sheer malice (The War Over Iraq). One of the greatest accomplishments since the attacks is that we succeeded in the removal of Saddam from power and his subsequent trial and conviction for crimes against humanity and mass murder. Removing Saddam has finally given Iraq a chance at a fair and equal life. The Iraqi people held the first democratic election of a president in April of 2005 (www.news.com). Jalal Talabani and his cabinet are in the process of building a free and democratic government for all the people of Iraq. With all the progress that has been made, the people of Iraq still have a long journey ahead. There are many Iraqi’s in full support of a democracy for the country, but there are just as many that want to continue to live the life of Saddam. There is much resistance with the changes taking place in Iraq due to the three religious groups in Iraq. The Kurds, Shiites, and Soonies have made it impossible to create a democracy. Their fighting is solely based on their religious issues that they can’t seem to come to an understanding and overcome their differences. Until these groups can unite, work together, and make compromises for the well being of all Iraqi’s, the United State’s presence should remain. That is until the seeds of democracy are firmly planted in the minds as well as the hearts of its people.
With this democracy there will come a new stability to this part of the world. This stability will bring economic prosperity and greatly decrease the terrorist attacks and threats towards other nations of the world. President Bush as well as most Americans feels that if Iraq becomes a stabilized country, then there will be no reason for attacks against anyone. Stability is of number one importance in Iraq today. The feeling of reliability, dependency, and a constancy of purpose are things the Iraqi’s have been without for so long, and are in desperate need of.
Democracy in the United States of America did not come without a great price. The price was paid in lives lost and great hardships. Because of these sacrifices we have become on the greatest and most powerful nations on Earth. We can only hope that such sacrifices will do the same for the people in Iraq. Yes, we could sit back and let the Iraqi’s fight there own battle, but lets not forgot the sole reason we are there. The American people in terms of lives and resources have paid a great price. Although it may seem the price is to high to pay, there is much work left to do. Many Americans think we have no business in Iraq in the first place, but most have forgotten the true reason we are there. Many Americans are very upset with the lives of our soldiers that we have lost. However, our soldiers have gone down fighting for what they believe in. They believed that 9-11 was a day America and its spirit could have been ruined but instead united us together.
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