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I jotted these down in my LJ recently:
1) Neocon Reason: Power projection. US is dependent on key strategic resources exported by Iran, Saudi Arabia, and a number of other countries near Iraq. It needs an effective lever -- a big stick -- in the region that will allow it to punish all misdemeanours by its suppliers swiftly and pointedly. Just as Italy acted as a giant aircraft carrier for projecting power in WW2, Iraq itself could act as a giant aircraft carrier for projecting power in the Middle East. Verdict: Failure.
2) Theocon Reason: Armageddon. A creative reading of the Christian Book of Revelations indicates that a violent destruction of modern Israel will summon Jesus Christ to Earth. Once here, he will leave again with all the Christian fundies in his entourage. They will all live merrily in Jesus' royal court in the sky. Everyone else may or may not die horribly. Verdict: Getting there.
(Without Saddam's cockerel posturing, Iraq looks as weak as it is. Iranian tanks can roll in at their leisure. From Iraq, Iranians will be able to strike at Israel with or without Jordanian co-operation. Will they? I don't know. Their rhetoric obligates them, but rhetoric can change.)
3) Realpolitik Reason: Flypaper. In some circles, terrorism is a zero-sum game. They say you can't incite or reduce terrorism -- you can only pipe it around. By invading Iraq and killings lots of civilians, the US forces there will be too juicy a target for terrorism to happen elsewhere. Verdict: Failure.
4) Corporatist Reason: Profiteering. Having a war enables the parasites of America's grotesque Military-Industrial Complex to sell the US military ever more shoddy equipment at ever more exhorbitant prices. Verdict: Success.
5) Reaganite Reason: Destruction of the US Federal Government. Military expenses bring the US government ever closer to bankruptcy. This bankruptcy will destroy it and also collapse the world economy, allowing the local wealthy and assorted corporations to establish their own militias, bind the "middle" class in feudal bondage, and reclaim the power of taxation from the people. Verdict: Getting there.
6) Plutocrat Reason: Red herring. Bombs are more sensational than paperwork. Bush's domestic policy is atrocious and tending to redistribute wealth to the rich, but it's overshadowed by his foreign policy. Having a war abroad enables Bush to sell the country and pocket the dividends on the quiet. Verdict: Success.
7) Imperialist Reason: Iraqi oil. Conquering Iraq and handing over control of its natural resources to US corporations may increase US economic prosperity and tax revenue. Verdict: Failure.
8) Bootlicker Reason: Appeasement. Bin Laden orchestrated the WTC attacks because of the blasphemous presence of US troops in Saudi Arabia. This presence offends his nutty Wahhabi beliefs. The invasion of Iraq could be intended as a bribe to Bin Laden -- it deposes a sworn enemy of his, and it allows US to move its troops out of Saudi Arabia. Verdict: Success.
9) Idealogue Reason: Grand experiment. Right-wing think-tanks like the Cato Institute are hungry for an opportunity to prove that things demanded by their ludicrous ideology actually work. They need a country that will implement flat taxes and privatize everything from water to schools to create an entrepreneurial paradise. A vanquished country -- like post-WW2 Japan or Germany -- is an opportunity to implement such notions. And that's what they have done in Iraq. Verdict: Failure.
(Any service not delivered by the central government in Iraq is immediately picked up by a local bishop or warlord. They establish hospitals, food kitches, legal arbitration, and the like. This gains them loyal followers, allowing them to establish a militia of their own and tax/tithe the populace. Iraqis just don't seem to get "personal responsibility" and "ownership society". Right-wingers need to try harder. Iraq isn't pure enough to work.)
10) Unilateralist Reason: Hubris. In the 90s, the countries of the world forgot their fear of superpowers and returned to the multilateral way of doing things. The US cannot have this abrogation of its status. By throwing its weight around and smashing J. Random Country, the US can demonstrate that the planet belongs to it, and that everyone better dance to its tune. Verdict: Failure.
I think these cover all the explanations for US presence in Iraq that I've heard. Some of them ring more true than others.
1) Neocon Reason: Power projection. US is dependent on key strategic resources exported by Iran, Saudi Arabia, and a number of other countries near Iraq. It needs an effective lever -- a big stick -- in the region that will allow it to punish all misdemeanours by its suppliers swiftly and pointedly. Just as Italy acted as a giant aircraft carrier for projecting power in WW2, Iraq itself could act as a giant aircraft carrier for projecting power in the Middle East. Verdict: Failure.
2) Theocon Reason: Armageddon. A creative reading of the Christian Book of Revelations indicates that a violent destruction of modern Israel will summon Jesus Christ to Earth. Once here, he will leave again with all the Christian fundies in his entourage. They will all live merrily in Jesus' royal court in the sky. Everyone else may or may not die horribly. Verdict: Getting there.
(Without Saddam's cockerel posturing, Iraq looks as weak as it is. Iranian tanks can roll in at their leisure. From Iraq, Iranians will be able to strike at Israel with or without Jordanian co-operation. Will they? I don't know. Their rhetoric obligates them, but rhetoric can change.)
3) Realpolitik Reason: Flypaper. In some circles, terrorism is a zero-sum game. They say you can't incite or reduce terrorism -- you can only pipe it around. By invading Iraq and killings lots of civilians, the US forces there will be too juicy a target for terrorism to happen elsewhere. Verdict: Failure.
4) Corporatist Reason: Profiteering. Having a war enables the parasites of America's grotesque Military-Industrial Complex to sell the US military ever more shoddy equipment at ever more exhorbitant prices. Verdict: Success.
5) Reaganite Reason: Destruction of the US Federal Government. Military expenses bring the US government ever closer to bankruptcy. This bankruptcy will destroy it and also collapse the world economy, allowing the local wealthy and assorted corporations to establish their own militias, bind the "middle" class in feudal bondage, and reclaim the power of taxation from the people. Verdict: Getting there.
6) Plutocrat Reason: Red herring. Bombs are more sensational than paperwork. Bush's domestic policy is atrocious and tending to redistribute wealth to the rich, but it's overshadowed by his foreign policy. Having a war abroad enables Bush to sell the country and pocket the dividends on the quiet. Verdict: Success.
7) Imperialist Reason: Iraqi oil. Conquering Iraq and handing over control of its natural resources to US corporations may increase US economic prosperity and tax revenue. Verdict: Failure.
8) Bootlicker Reason: Appeasement. Bin Laden orchestrated the WTC attacks because of the blasphemous presence of US troops in Saudi Arabia. This presence offends his nutty Wahhabi beliefs. The invasion of Iraq could be intended as a bribe to Bin Laden -- it deposes a sworn enemy of his, and it allows US to move its troops out of Saudi Arabia. Verdict: Success.
9) Idealogue Reason: Grand experiment. Right-wing think-tanks like the Cato Institute are hungry for an opportunity to prove that things demanded by their ludicrous ideology actually work. They need a country that will implement flat taxes and privatize everything from water to schools to create an entrepreneurial paradise. A vanquished country -- like post-WW2 Japan or Germany -- is an opportunity to implement such notions. And that's what they have done in Iraq. Verdict: Failure.
(Any service not delivered by the central government in Iraq is immediately picked up by a local bishop or warlord. They establish hospitals, food kitches, legal arbitration, and the like. This gains them loyal followers, allowing them to establish a militia of their own and tax/tithe the populace. Iraqis just don't seem to get "personal responsibility" and "ownership society". Right-wingers need to try harder. Iraq isn't pure enough to work.)
10) Unilateralist Reason: Hubris. In the 90s, the countries of the world forgot their fear of superpowers and returned to the multilateral way of doing things. The US cannot have this abrogation of its status. By throwing its weight around and smashing J. Random Country, the US can demonstrate that the planet belongs to it, and that everyone better dance to its tune. Verdict: Failure.
I think these cover all the explanations for US presence in Iraq that I've heard. Some of them ring more true than others.
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