I come from the "Conan, the Barbarian" School of thought... regarding conquests: if you can't take home the gold, the cash, the artwork, and the women, then what's the point of going to war?
This hogwash about the goal of the war being liberation of the Iraqi people is like betting on a horse after it's won the race. It may make you feel good, and it might fool some of your friends, but it's far from candidly answering the question as to why, initially, Mr. Bush committed our troops to the effort thereby placing a $100 billion bet. The true goal of the war was in our national interest insofar as we sought to destroy a regime bent on destabilizing the Middle East region by perhaps employing Weapons of Mass Destruction; the region which we depend upon for the steady flow of cheap crude oil.
The elimination of the military dictator and his tyranny of fear is a crowd-pleasing side show.
