To those who thought the war in Iraq was right. What is your reaction to today's headlines..655,000 dead?

Question

The headlines in the paper today say that 655,000 people have been killed so far in the Iraq war. I imagine that most of them are innocent Iraq people including many children. It makes the number killed in 9/11 look tiny. Do you still think it was right to invade Iraq?

Babyrawl: No, war is not a "garden party". It's a shame that wasn't realised before we invaded Iraq. Bush/Blair thought that we would be in and out in a few months, leaving harmony in our wake!

Bob1: Wrong assumption: I did vote, and not for those in power!

Sue 1: Heart attacks and road accidents are more likely to be fatal when a country is in a state of civil war with a fractured infrastructure. Lack of food, jobs, accommodation etc. as a result of war lead to deaths too.

Offenders: Of course Saddam is evil, and has been responsible for the deaths of many, but Bush did not look deeply enough into the consequences of his removal by force. He should have had enough information to know about the different religions, and "war lords" as you put it that would obviously fight for power if Saddam were removed. I predicted civil war before the invasion, and I don't have his resources.

Answer 1

I am not shocked by the death toll, At the time of invasion I reserved opinion as I never knew enough about the true situation in the area. I soon was of the opinion it was not something that should have happened.

What is the real issue at the moment is that their is no real exit strategy and you cannot lead a country to the position they are now in ( semi democracy leading to civil war) and then walk out.
Neither can you let the killing continue, it is a hopeless not thought through situation.

Answer 2

Its a big joke! Theyv'e included heart attacks and traffic accidents and every other death that has has occured. It wasn't a figure based just on war fatalities. Its a load of POO! And do you think it was right for other countries to ignor what was going on over there when Saddam was in power and killing, torturing all those innocent people? It was the right thing to do by ALL the United Nations (not including France they decided not to get involved but then what else did we expect) not just USA and UK. There are over 100 different countries servicemen in Iraq, all committed to giving the Iraqi people a bright and happy future for which the majority of Iraqi's are extremely grateful for. Maybe you should have a look at what they are saying before you pass judgement on what you THINK is happeneing.

In addition to your reply, do you know how many fatalities were in the previous years when Saddam was in power? Don't forget to include the 180,000+ Kurds which were executed under his regime and also check out the link I have provided. Its just liberal BS which is implicated before the US Mid Term Elections.

Iraq wasn't invaded, IT IS BEING LIBERATED!!!!

Answer 3

I've read the article 3 times now and nowhere in it does anyone say "THE AMERICANS KILLED 655,000". Iraq is a very violent country. Always has been always will be. The upsetting of their internal balance of power has caused this struggle for power. Hussein was a very terrible human being. He killed thousands to maintain control of Iraq. BUT on the upside? Local leader/war lords were so terrified of him they kept there mass murders down to a minimum? Now that he have been deposed they are all going crazy. I've been there and have seen with my own eyes the mass graves.

Answer 4

Firstly this figure is way out,the numbers quoted are not based on any official statistics,or research.
The People who have died and still are dying are nothing to do with any war, these killings are being carried out by Iraqis upon other Iraqis,and this has been going on for years and will continue because there are so many different factions all wanting power and there is nothing that the Government can do about it.
Whats needed is for them all to get together and talk along with representatives of other Arab Nations,only then will the chance of any peace come to the region.
You also need to remember there were thousands being killed before any conflict,and we cannot blame the "war".

Answer 5

The truth has been suppressed by governments for the past 3 years, but as always eventually the truth comes out even against all the efforts of the politicians.
The coalition has killed ten times more than President Saddam Hussein, "who will join him in court" for war crimes.
On the night the coalition bombed Baghdad (shock and awe) it is realistically estimated 120,000 were killed.
I lived in Iraq for many years and have many friends their and speak to Baghdad daily what they tell me is terrible.
They say if President Saddam was back ,the country would be at peace with in 3 days.I believe them.

Answer 6

I wasn't for the war, but there are some real problems with the methodology used to come up with that number(its based on surveys and not on actual body counts), though it cannot be denied that a great deal suffering has been caused by the conflict. unfortunately, we are now in a difficult situation where the conseqences of pulling out could be seriously damaging to the security of the region in the world. (not that the war itself doesn't pose the same problem, but leaving could exsasperate it).

It really is a terrible situation, even if the 655,000 number is almost certianly too large.

Answer 7

A difficult question to answer as it is a sensitive issue.

Yes more civilians are killed in Iraq by their fellow Iraqi's.

We did not go to war for the oil, we went to war to prevent Saddam using weapons of mass distruction (OK they were not found), but the threat was there and he'd said he'd use them.

Regime change and oil being opened up to the markets are benefits of going to war.

You are right we need to secure the region and make it safe for the ordinary people of Iraq.

I did not support the 1991 as a teenager I was opposed to violence of this kind, I probably had the same thoughts then, as the hundreds of thousands of protestors in 2003.

But by 2003 I was able to make a judgemnt based on the evidence available and have been a frim supporter of the war and will support the allied troops and the actions of the allied countries all the time they are in Iraq.

Lets keep up the work to secure Iraq for it's future generations!!!

Answer 8

Okay, I'm not one of the ones that thought the Iraq war was right but I'm going to give an opinion anyways.
I totally agree with you. There have been so many innocent people killed because of this illegal war and honestly what has America gained from this? Absolutely nothing. You're not safer because of it and you're certainly not stronger. I know 9/11 was a terrible thing but what do you think the innocent people of Iraq think of this. This is worse than 9/11 for them. American blood isn't worth more than anyone else's. The innocent Iraqis who lost their lives because of this war are just as important as the innocent Americans who lost their lives in 9/11.

Answer 9

Not me. I remember, when the war started, I attended a lecture in London given by a noted professor and apologist for the Bush-Blair warmaking. He spouted on about international law issues -- speaking rubbish -- and as I left I ran into a British High Court judge with whom I'd been at law school.

We shook our heads in sympathetic incomprehension.

Now, years later, we see the first scientific study of deaths in The Lancet http://www.thelancet.com/webfiles/images/journals/lancet/s0140673606694919.pdf (PDF) and are surprised?

We should be surprised only at the cynicism of the US and UK politicians. And the ignorance of the Israeli politicians who thought that the war would be good for them.

But "collateral damage" doesn't matter to most people.

Yet this is the first war publicized by Internet. The fallout will be catastrophic. And not just the deaths, but the wounded, the mentally ill, the economically and politically crippled.

Not to mention that it has to be paid for by future generations in America: that the US will owe China huge sums; interest rates will rise; China will by American land and factories cheaply; US standards of living will fall.

And because there is a new generation of incredibly wealthy billionaires and multi-hundred-millionaires in the USA while the middle class is shrinking, there will be political discontent, if not upheaval, as the dollar depreciates.

What -- no taxes? Inflation is the oldest tax of all.

Answer 10

If its true which i dont think it is, its pure propaganda to turn us into blabbing nodders like those in iraq that need leadership

Watch the news on any channel at any time about someone has said something or done something to the iraq people, there they go, all jumping about burning efferjies of whoever they hate now

Two weeks ago it was the Pope, who's next, the Queen?...

The worst thing that America did was to get rid of Sadly Insane, at least with him they knew how they all stood..