What if we had just minded our own business?

Question

What if we never armed Iraq to defeat Iran? What if we never armed Bin Laden to defeat the USSR? Don't we just bring a world of trouble on ourselves when we muck about in other people's affairs? Why do we keep doing it?

Answer 1

...and if we didn't provide unconditional support and strategic protection for the state of Israel, Sept. 11 would never have happened. I mean, what else could really piss-off Muslims so intensely? Our MTV? Our roast pork sandwiches?
Countries like, say, Finland or Switzerland.... nobody bombs their embassies 'cause they mind their own business. But WE have to tell states like Cuba or China that their human rights records stink, as if ours don't.
It looks so hypocritical.
One excuse to depose Saddam was that he killed his own citizens. Yeah, he was a bastard, but he was THEIR bastard.
When I'm dictator, I will take "In God We Trust" off our currency and replace it with "We Mind Our Own Business".
That might be the beginning of peace on earth.

Answer 2

We meaning the US I presume...

I tend to think it's partly from short-sightedness...and a belief in military superiority.

I'm not disputing, for example, the fact that the US has a lot more firepower than my home country here in Australia - but we fought with the US in Vietnam and lost a lot less soldiers in combat per number of kills - because Australian military strategies were built around training and learning the environment - not just coming in with a hell of a lotta firepower! Thats just one example.

I tend to think, IMHO, that theres a US government belief that the world appreciates this interference (or assistance, depending how you look at it...) a lot more than it does...

Plus, these things have a habit of staying around longer than might be wanted...after all, some, I tend to think are done as political movements, not just military/security.

Iran was perceived as a major threat - so to look like that threat was being countered, the US armed Iraq.

Look how that bit back a bit further along - yet that wasn't forseen.

The USSR was another big threat - and bin Laden was fine...until his homeland of Saudi Arabia was turned into a military base - which highlights to me in some ways a form of cultural ignorance - that although the US ally was bin Laden at the time, the government thought nothing of going against him to set up in Saudi Arabia - again, probably planning to fall back on superior firepower.

BUT! All that said...it is very easy to look back in hindsight and say "well, what if..." and its a lot, lot harder to look forward and say the same...ultimately, though I don't necessarily agree...I do see why these decisions were made - they were right at the time or so it seemed...

Answer 3

The answer is that we will never know, what if. It is a pointless question, because there is an infinite number for possibilities. Some possibilities may have worked out better some worse. All we can do is try our best to learn from past decisions. With that said the decision makers of today must utilize an overwhelming amount of information derived from the past and present in order to make the best possible future decisions. And again like in the past there are an infinite number of possible solutions which the person in charge must choose from and make a decision. This is no easy task, but they do there best.

Answer 4

Why stop there...what if we never stepped into WWI or WWII? If the entire eastern hemisphere was called Germany...that'd be a lot simpler wouldn't it? I'll bet our high school grads could find that big guy on the globe!!

I firmly believe that history will show that what we did in Iraq was just. What Saddam did with the power we provided should not hold us liable. Would you hold a motorcylce manufacturer liable for creating a bike that goes 180mph if your relative crashed at that speed? Or did your relative, in using their own free will, decide how they would use this motorcyle?

Answer 5

I believe that's what is called Monday morning quarterbacking. I don't agree with a lot of the decisions we've made, especially lately, but think of some others:
What if we had just let the USSR put missiles in Cuba?
What if we had stayed out of WWII?
What if we hadn't resisted the secession?
What if the colonists had just minded their business and paid their taxes?

Answer 6

Get educated you shmuck! While I do agree that we should stay out of some peoples business, it is a necessity that we as Americans do whatever it takes to preserve OUR way of life. We are the only SUPERPOWER left on the planet, and the rest of the world hates us for it. We should educate the world and quit blaming ourselves for the worlds problems.

Answer 7

its called blow back, what you have to remember is that choices are made as they are needed not for the future. If for instance you hate your neighbor and do everything to get rid of them only to have them move out and even worse neighbors move in. You, and everyone including governments, do what you think is best at the time.

As for minding our own buisness, well thats what we are doing as a capitalistic society it is our intrest to protect and help buisness around the world.

Answer 8

then we would be worried about a rather large iraq developing the bomb, as well as an afganistan that is still unstable, dont overestimate our involvement in world events, things tend to happen anyway

Answer 9

Then there was no black or white, no super powers everybody will be armed & can do anything, The Independence day!

Answer 10

For the sake of money.

Weapons are not free, my friend.

Someone has to manufacture them and somebody has to pay for them.

Sucks, right?