Quote:
Originally Posted by Rickypt
Well, the Iraq War is one of the biggest catastrophes of my lifetime and those who sent their militaries into such a mess should be judged very harshly.
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Catastrophe is an understatement!
I do, though, often wonder how history would have judged W if things had gone the other way, which I submit was possible if there had been a plan (much less a better one) in place to win the peace and create a stable government. In other words, I think it is not so much the invasion of Iraq - as almost all think something had to be done there, at least according to a decade of UN resolutions. I think people fault W for the subsequent waste of Iraq and the opportunity to show the world the good that we can do. I think those last two are the reason that W will be judge harshly regarding Iraq, and deservedly so.
As for Blair, I do not see how he could not have stood with America in Iraq given the history of the two countries both in and out of Iraq. I also think he is less to blame that W for no coherent policy after the invasion as W lead the brigade so to speak. But, some fault does surely sit on Blair's shoulders - so he gets no pass there.
Is Iraq mess and his culpability there enough to outweigh all good he did? I think not, though surely it detracts from the overall picture. Others may reach a different conclusion and that is fair I guess.
Interestingly, unlike W, who has failed in everything he touched, Blair has done some good things. So, kudos to him for that I guess.