Iraq war in focus
Looking forward

Readers respond to the question: What's next? What role should the U.S. play in the Middle East?

The biggest danger is that the U.S. will leave Iraq too soon. Following what (Secretary of Defense Donald) Rumsfeld called a "catastrophic victory" by coalition forces, Iraq has been plunged into chaos. Yes, that's better than the ravages of the fallen regime, but such chaos does not provide a fertile ground for the democracy that (President) Bush and (British Prime Minister Tony) Blair promised to the Iraqi people. Having liberated Iraq for its own purposes, the U.S. and its coalition of the willing must be prepared to pay for rebuilding the country. We must recognize that Iraq doesn't owe us anything, while we owe them a great deal. We must accept the inevitable criticism (and a possible high number of casualties) as Americans occupy the country for long enough to give Iraqis the civil and economic infrastructure that they will need to build the democracy they've been promised by our leaders. It will probably take a long time. It will probably be very expensive for the U.S. It will probably make Americans less secure in the short term. The government that the Iraqis eventually create for themselves might not even be friendly to the U.S., but that's their right. Those are the costs of victory. We must now pay them.

If the only legitimate global action is through the UN, then we are all in trouble. The UN has a dismal track record; its most recent debacle is how it has stood by while 3.5 million people have died in the last 5 years due to the conflict in the Congo. If people really believe the UN is the only legitimate body to resolve world problems, then why haven't we seen massive demonstrations in front of the UN Building in New York, demanding the UN act to resolve the many conflicts and human rights abuses around the world? It seems the demonstrators don't believe their own rhetoric, otherwise we would see this pressure on the UN.

Many people don't seem to understand that the UN is an organization comprised of representatives from various countries. Representatives from some of those countries opposed the Iraq war. The UN, as an organization, did not take a stand for or against the war. However, the UN has more experience and resources to rebuild Iraq than any individual country and should be allowed and encouraged to do so. Besides, given our current economic situation, why should the U.S. even want to foot the bill? We simply don't have the resources.

It is obvious that our intended role for the Middle East is the same one we had for Germany and Japan after the Second World War and where indeed we were so successful in establishing prosperous, democratic societies. I believe that this is a plausible, even if highly challenging, objective that deserves all our support.

The UN should be evicted from the United States territory, and the building used for a Trade Center Museum. The UN may have ruined the war effort by stalling long enough for Saddam to either get away or bury all evidence of W.O.M.D. They are no good to us and merely cost money we could spend on other things.

The United States has once again played the role of the global police department. We have completed the mission and now it's time to turn it back over to the thankless Iraqi people. When will the U.S. reconsider foreign policy and return to isolationism instead of trying to be the world police and the world bank? Get our troops out before the Iraqi people turn on them. We have other countries which we can purchase oil from and bargain other resources with. Job well done by the men and women in our armed forces! Let's bring 'em home now!

We should play a very small role in the Middle East. I believe we should reduce our dependence on oil and stop supporting corrupt, brutal regimes. Our Middle East policies, to date, have been focused on short-term gains (keeping that oil flowing, maintaining our gluttonous way of life), while ignoring long-term consequences. Our children will end up paying the price for our greed and shortsightedness.

What role the U.S. should or should not play in the Middle East is a mute point. They are going to do what they damn well please — turn it into a U.S. colony and control its natural resources. Isn't the writing on the wall already that Syria is next?

The defeat of Saddam Hussein and the fall of his brutal regime have created a golden opportunity for the United States. If we can establish a free, democratic Iraq that exists peacefully with its neighbors and practices tolerance within its borders. it will not only serve as beacon of light in the war-ravaged Middle East, but also will help dissipate the longstanding enmity towards America prevalent in the Arab street. Years from now, we may look back upon the war with Iraq as the turning point in American-Arab relations, the act that brought the Middle East into the modern world and curbed the propagation of ignorance and terrorism in the region. Of course, all this is a big IF. The United Sates must make good on its promise to rebuild Iraq and return the country’s governance and natural wealth to its people. We cannot afford another Afghanistan. Rebuilding will require a good deal of American patience and perseverance, as well as the good sense to say when enough is enough and let Iraq stand on its own. It will also require significant investment, both intellectual and financial. This means taxpayer money. I for one think it is a good investment because if we do this right, and I think we will, it could mean a brighter future for the entire world.

A competent administration would be crazy to refuse international offers of help rebuilding Iraq. It is going to be expensive if we do it right. The Bush administration, on the other hand, wants U.S. taxpayers to be responsible for a half-hearted effort at doing the hard work of reconstruction, while good corporate Republicans roll in cash from the easy profits of the oil-related contracts.

The U.S. ought to allow extensive UN participation in the rebuilding of Iraq. We have already alienated a great deal of the world, and taking the exclusive right of making Iraq in our image will only serve to undermine genuine democracy in Iraq and global goodwill toward that new country and our own.

If the U.S. does it right, our presence in Iraq will be short, six months to a year. We should ensure that a fair and just government is in place. As far as the entire Middle East, we have to play a role. We have a lot at stake, (a) oil, of course, buying and consuming but also the technical help, (b) the containment of terror groups (c) more importantly, we need to improve our image, which can be done by dealing honestly with these folks but also making sure the truth gets to the people. The most recent example of course is Iraq's Minister of Information; the rest of the Arab nations actually believed him.

First of all, the U.S. and coalition of the willing are obligated to provide all the necessary humanitarian aid that is desperately needed, and restore the electricity and water supply to the Iraqi cities. The U.S. should be a part of the rebuilding of Iraq, along with the UN and the Arab League of Nations. The U.S. should not be able to act alone in the restoration of Iraq due to its negligence of international law and its past record of establishing "puppet" regimes in countries where we have used military force to get what we want. There need to be some checks and balances as to all major decisions in the rebuilding of Iraq, or else the U.S. will act solely for its own profits and neglect the citizens of Iraq and global needs. This is mainly what this "war" is about, reshaping the Middle East, establishing a new international policy, and gaining power. It is not about WMD, terrorism, regime change, or even democracy for the Iraqi people. It would also be nice if the U.S. made some reparations to the people of Iraq for the many years of strife it has caused due to our helping bring to power Saddam and the Baath Party, and the many sanctions we imposed that caused the people of Iraq a great deal of suffering and death, not to mention the killing and maiming of the people there. The people and state of Iraq were doing quite well before we started to impose our will on the region. The U.S. also needs to make changes in its relationship to the Israel-Palestine conflict and make a serious effort in establishing a state that can function for all of the people there. And there is also the issue of piecing together Afghanistan, which we should not ignore. I know that all of this is unlikely to happen because it would cost us too much. There wouldn't be any capital return on these investments and these actions won't help the U.S. gain control and power across the world. I think we have learned some things from this war: Mainly that preventive war is something that we Americans let happen and that the U.S. is the only superpower in the world. And also: Don't mess with Texas. I just hope that we can learn something more valuable in this critical time of rebuilding, and that serious efforts are made to establish some sort of international peace. We the American people have a large responsibility as to what goes on in this world and I am ashamed that countless amounts of people have suffered in our name and by our money. Hopefully we will be able to prevent the next "pre-emptive war."

The Iraqis now face a rare opportunity to shape their destiny. They could use help. I'd like to see American families and Iraqi families link up via e-mail and get to know each other better. The kids would love it. What Americans take for granted (elections, taxing districts, educational structures, law, land use policies etc) many people in Iraq will find a mystery. To the extent the common person in Iraq sees how things can work, their chance for success will go up. This sort of communication would be good for both sides.

Make sure there is a pro-West moderate government in Iraq. Make sure all countries that harbor terrorists are forced to stop by whatever means it takes — period.

Send the perpetrators of this savage aggression to Iraq! Rumsfeld, Perle, and Wolfowitz should be forced to open a Chubby and Tubby franchise store in downtown Baghdad. Bush can open a liquor store. Cheney must wear a Playboy bunny costume and solicit customers for his gas station.

The U. S. should have a lead role in helping to rebuild Iraq. The only role the UN should have is if they "work" for us and the coalition of the willing. The biggest nay-sayers against the war — France, Germany and Russia — now want to come out and play again because they want some sort of financial reward or recognition for helping to rebuild the country. You guys can't have it both ways. Stay home. We don't need you.

I believe Mr. O'Keefe is not quite right in his thinking, that the UN not be on the Iraq building team. What if we took the notion that as the UN's position was no on war and applied that to our election process? Does that mean then, that if I voted Democratic, and we have a Republican president, that I am to be no longer involved with our political system? I don't think so.

The U.S. has no business in the Middle East. Bush can't impose democracy on a country — that is tyrannical. Nor can Bush sell the whole idea of democracy when he is ignoring the democratic processes of the UN Security Council.

The U.S. should get out of other countries, especially Middle Eastern nations. We have no business, nor does any body else, being in someone else's land and dictating their way of life and murdering their people if they don't obey us. This is worse than any dictatorship in the history of the mankind. This is as barbarian as anything we have read in the history books. We are murdering people while putting these dictators in power and then murdering even more innocent people while the usefulness of the dictators are worn out for us and we are taking them out. History and humanity will not forgive us for what we have been doing to these countries and the innocent human beings.

We need to help install a UN-sponsored interim government as soon as possible in Iraq. Begin serious negotiations with Israel and the Palestinians, bring sanctions against Israel if it refuses to cooperate, get our bases out of Saudi Arabia which is what fueled so much of the hatred that led to (Osama) bin Laden’s power and 9/11 and in general (and) look like a country interested in peace rather than oil and dominance. Will it happen? Not under this administration. We will push to get a pipeline through Syria to Israel, which is why we are now hearing the rhetoric against Syria.

The U.S. should be replaced by a UN peacekeeping force and a real multi-national coalition should be formed to build a new Iraqi government. If this were done, critics throughout the world and the U.S. that don't believe the Bush administration's stated intentions would be silenced. If the Bush administration maintains its current posture of "to the victors go the spoils" then the worldwide critics will be proven correct and we can be assured of a long and bloody occupation.

Next is to get some order in Iraq, give them the tools to govern. The game then gets interesting — if Iraq can be made an example of a democracy in the Middle East, then the other Middle East nations will have to take a hard look at themselves. It's important to remember, if the Arab world wants to be respected and play on the world stage, they have to act like it. There is way too much talk about how the Unites States has to be respectful of the Arab Street. You don't get respect, if you don't deserve it.

The U.S. must assume a proactive role in Iraq until a grassroots government has the time to develop and to mature into credibility. A strong hands-off message must be sent to all other governments throughout the world, including Israel. The U.S. must focus on Iraq and develop trust and mutual respect between our representatives and the citizens of Iraq. Emerging leaders, religious and political, must be endorsed based on their vision of a free and prosperous Iraq. The U.S. must above all else show impartiality in their intermediate leadership role. This includes guarding against corporate profiteering and partisan politics. The UN has proved its impotence in dealing with Saddam and has no credibility in this matter. Each nation has an obligation to contribute to humanitarian aid to Iraq. The UN can provide a great service by coordinating this aid provided it is not linked to administrative control.

Turn the rebuilding over to the UN ASAP. We should get out of this Bible Belt crusade now. We are, and should not be, fighting Ariel Sharon's war. I am more frightened of Secretary of War Rumsfeld than of the Arabs. Who's next?

I think the UN needs to be disbanded. I find it chilling that the worse countries (Libya, Old Iraq, etc.) have so much power. While they had the gall to kick the U.S. out of the human rights commission. the UN is now nothing more than the destroy America club. And the continuation of participation will only ruin our quality of life as our resources will continue to be sapped. And the countries that don't have the will to change continue to bring down the rest of the world into anarchy and destruction. The system is broken.

Many liberals in this country portray themselves as the champions of the poor & downtrodden. They say it is the duty & responsibility of the fortunate to assist the unfortunate. Liberals castigate conservatives as being selfish & heartless. It is very enlightening to note the absence of liberal interest in championing the poor & downtrodden of Iraq. Apparently, assisting those less fortunate only applies domestically; or is it only where there is a voting constituency that can be swayed by a handout? The United States of America is the most prosperous nation the world has ever known. We have an obligation to promote and engender a world political climate that allows the same prosperity we enjoy to be possible for other peoples. War is a terrible thing, but sometimes drastic measures are necessary to put wrongs to right. Chemo & radiation are deadly poisons; surgery is a radical invasion of the body. Yet done properly, it saves lives. Sometimes an arm or a leg must be amputated. Sometimes a kidney must be removed. Now that the cancer in Iraq has been dealt with, the U.S. has a historic chance to assist the Iraqi people with establishing a government that will foster & promote the economic and political well-being of the people. And through this, provide the impetus, the catalyst for change throughout the region.

The U.N. has shown how worthless they are in a 21st Century world. To let them take over the reorganization of Iraq would be similar to what happened in Afghanistan in the '90s...where a war-ravaged nation, devoid of true leadership allowed disgruntled terrorist thugs to thrive. The result? September 11. Ten years from now, our children will thank us for insisting that the U.S. play an active role in reorganizing Iraq. If we back down, or back out, an even angrier group of extremists with even more intense hatred for America will rise up and train their sights on the destruction of America. We MUST be involved or watch lawlessness and terrorism climb to new heights!

Maybe we should have allowed Hitler to mass murder Jews also. What the hell, it wasn't our business after all.

We Americans can no longer be ignorant of matters beyond our borders. To better protect the future of our nation we need to understand and educate ourselves in the social and economic implications our foreign policy has domestically on other nations.

We have a bad history when it comes to replacing regimes. Let's get the Arab world's input on this one.

We should get out of the Middle East. It is obvious that we are there for the oil. There are stirrings that the next country to be attacked by the U.S. is Syria. Then we will probably go on to Iran, etc., etc. The "golden boys" in the Bush administration, Perle, Rumsfeld, etc. are out to take over the Middle East for its oil. They are powerful people who have no conscious and the sooner the "pro-war" people understand this, the sooner we can get rid of these these people. If the "pro-war" people would just read the history of these neo-conservatives they will know why we are in the Middle East. Please read Gore Vidal (Jackie Onassis's step-brother), and Noam Chomsky (professor at MIT). Both are very well-informed and brilliant people.

Two U.S. presidents allowed the UN to create rules that killed over 1.5 million Iraqi civilians in the last decade and supported an evil regime. Until George W. Bush, no U.S. president had balanced our support for Israel with a clear call for a free Palestine. We need to keep our promises to turn over Iraq to the people, and to broker independence for the Palestinians. In doing so we will alter the core impressions of the U.S. as choosing Israel and oil over Arab dignity. This, more than any bomb, will cripple al-Qaida. Young Arabs will begin to see the U.S. as a force for liberty. They will not share the hatred of the old men, who count on youthful passion to carry out terrorism.

What's next? What role should the U.S. play in the Middle East? Answer: Cash to repair the damage done and get the hell out. Bush and the current administration is an embarrassment to the true spirit of the United States. Get the hell out of the Middle East and let the GREATER democracy of the UN take over. With the Bush administration coming to power, the United States has eroded to a state other than it was during the WWI and WWII era.

What's next for the Middle East? Well, first you build a McDonald's, then add Coke, throw in Nike for those quick looting sprees and for added assurance a pinch of the Dixie Chicks played nightly from loudspeakers placed strategically throughout towns and villages. Soon, they will all turn into complacent, gullible lemmings like the rest of us Americans and do what they're told.

The only appropriate role for the U.S. in the Middle East is in the rebuilding, but not governing, of Afghanistan and Iraq. At this time globally, the U.S. has confirmed every negative stereotype of our unique form of diplomacy, with the recent threats directed at Syria (complete with the same, tired accusations of weapons of mass destruction) as a horrifying climax. We should address the destruction that we created in Iraq and leave the Iraqis to establish a government of their own choosing, democratic or not.

The U. S. should get the heck out of the Middle East. That includes telling Israel no more money for their illegal settlements!

The United States (free democratic nation) should submit a resolution to the United Nations that requires Syria (a dictatorship) to turn over Iraqi government officials to stand trial in international courts for humanitarian crimes, and to send weapons inspectors into Syria for WMD destruction monitoring. As France, Germany, Russia and Canada (socialist democratic nations) realize that their business dealings with the Iraqi regime will be exposed - records now in Syria - spearhead an alliance to thwart enforcement of the resolution. The United States should then form a Coalition of the Willing (other free democratic nations) to enforce the UN resolution. Secretary (of State Colin) Powell will present a convincing case to UN, but intransigent members of the Security Council will threaten to veto all resolutions without consideration. The president of the United States, with 80% backing from the American people, should then set a deadline for the Syrian government to turn over Iraqi leaders and its WMD. The Syrians, with staunch backing from the French, Germans, Russians, and Canadians, will refuse to submit any documentation proving it is not harboring the Iraqi leadership, or have WMDs. Kofi Annan, (U.S. Rep.) Jim McDermott, church leaders, media pundits, Hollywood and peace groups will demonstrate around the world, pointing to the dangers of toppling dictatorships, and that it will inflame the Arab world. As the final deadline passes, the Coalition of the Willing, with limited military and civilian causalities, liberate Syria in 3 weeks; and have in place a democratically elected government, supported by the neighboring Arab nations, governed by Syrians, within 18 months. The United States (free democratic nation) should submit a resolution to the United Nations that requires Iran (a theocracy) to seize its production of WMDs, and to allow weapons inspectors to monitor WMD destruction...

The U.S. and its allies should be responsible for rebuilding Iraq and leave the UN out of the loop, due to the fact that they did not support military action. As for the Middle East, we need to ensure that the countries of the Middle East are included in the rebuilding of Iraq, for it will help promote unity and peace in the region.

None. Get the hell out. We have enough problems here that are only being exacerbated by this illegal act of aggression.

The U.S. shouldn't be in the Middle East to start with. They need to clean up their mess and get out, ASAP. That means before they have a chance to set up their puppet (Ahmed) Chalabi. What frightens me most is that (Secretary of Defense Donald) Rumsfeld is war mongering again, sounding like he's ready to go into Syria. He wants to rid them of imaginary chemical weapons, the way we ridded Iraq of imaginary WMDs. I hope this country is paying attention, and will get these madmen out of office next year.

I truly feel that the U.S. should play a diminished role in the Middle East. I feel that our presence there has been part and parcel to overall negative perception that the U.S. has in the region. There isn't one country in the entire region that either despises the United States on religious grounds or on cultural or political grounds. We have no real allies in the region and as long as our fingerprints or influence is perceived as being predicated upon the peoples of the region, we're going to have nothing but trouble.

Purchase a large piece of desert property in Iraq for the long-term purposes of a military air base with direct access to the sea for military and supply vessels.