what would be your strategy for Iraq, what would you do if you were the one in charge?

Answer 1

If you're talking about going back to the beginning?
I'd carpet bomb the place with Playboys, Budweiser, and Johnny Cash CDs. (True examples of the wonders America has to offer)
Allow a week to go by and we'd be welcome as heros.

If your talking about now, there is no good answer that has currently been stated, withdrawel will certainly end in a global terrorism problem for decades to come, staying the course means we'll have a problem in Iraq for decades to come.

Answer 2

There are two things that I would do first thing; one, establish a Radio/Television Free Middle East with movies and TV shows that show the best of the west. This is to counteract the propanganda of the mullahs.
two, what I call the Fist of God. These people do believe in devine intervention and the visable hand of Allah. I would have satellites, predators, global hawks along with high altitude aircraft watching every square yard of the trouble spots. If is is seen that a group of people are acting suspicious such as buring something by the highway or loading a car with heavy boxes a C130 gunship can be tasked to orbit the area. The firepower would literally tear anyone to ribbons and it would have sound effects like the ripping of canvas and a light show like lighting. Any survivors could say that the hand of God came down and destroyed the evil doers. In other words maybe Allah is not on their side. If a terrorist attack was successful then the video can be rewound to follow the perpetrators back to their lair.

Answer 3

There are 18 providences in Iraq with seven of those providences turned back over to Iraq's government.

I would put 5,000 U.S. troops in each providence to train and provide logistics to the Iraqis.

Out of the 70,000 left, 10,000 would be training Iraqs in Baghdad, 10,000 would be guarding government buildings, especially police stations that often get attacked, 10,000 would be guarding key roads, 10,000 would be part of the air support crew, 10,000 would be part of a fast response team for all of Iraq and 20,000 would be patrolling Baghdad. Politically, I would be looking at the city mayors rather than the main government. Once the citys start functioning the problems with their federal government will become less of a problem. I would also be supplying more stuff to the Iraqis in the form of medicine and military supplies for the Iraqi police and soldiers even if it means the U.S. troops get less (especially non priority iteams). One of the major problems with the Iraqi police and soldiers is the lack of supplies and logistic means including getting paid.

I would also remind the public it took the U.S. government nine years to put half of Germany (the other half went to the Soviet Union) and all of Japan back together again and that the U.S. military is still in Germany and Japan. The U.S. is also still in North Korea and Yugoslavia not to mention Cuba and the Phillipines (the result of the Spanish American War).

Answer 4

This isn't the answer that makes me happy, but it's the answer that I think would work. We should find a political group in the region that most closely matches ours. Then, we should offer to help put them in power if they shift a little more towards our way of thinking. Then, we should start with the propaganda, showing how our chosen political faction best represents the interests of the Iraqi people. Under no circumstances should this propaganda be traceable back to us. Once our cronies have popular support, then we start to help them out. Maybe even make it look like they're chasing us out.

The issue with establishing a functioning democracy over there is overcoming the pride of the Iraqi people. I don't think they want help. Which is perfectly understandable. After our last couple of shady elections, how do you think we would feel if we had U.N. inspectors come and supervise our elections? Most people would be furious about it. It seems that the Iraqis hated Saddam even more than we did, but they didn't want our help. If we want them to develop a stable government, we've got to be able to do it without them realizing.

I know it sounds like we would be treating them like children in this case. And that sucks, adults deserve to be treated like adults. But, if we want to further our own interests, I think this would be the way to do it.

Answer 5

the US should withdraw out of the iraq cities to the city limits and let the religious factions sort out their differences, then move back and make a deal with the winning faction re oil and other us interests in the region; the Iraq religious factions hate each other more than the US presence

Answer 6

Well, since it has already begun, my first instinct doesn't work. :-)

I do not believe we should cut and run. (And, gasp, I'm a liberal.) We need to stay there until the democracy--or some form of government that works smoothly--is working better, and then slowly leave as they are able to more easily take care of themselves under the new leadership.

We just straight out left the Phillipines, and look what happened in the years that followed that.

Answer 7

Pull the entire military presence out of Iraq - let them have their civil war (its going to happen anyway). Develop a cheap alternative fuel source for our transportation (take oil out of the equation). Focus on our own internal problems (we've got enough of them).

Answer 8

I would throw away the Geniva convention scince our enemy has. Every war we have one we have fought very dirty. We are to clean here in Iraq. In WWII we used flamethrowers. In WWI we used trench guns.

In Iraq when a car bomb explodes kill their family and their town they came from. They really don't like that. When somebody show you the heel, blast him and move on. We have to do this if we want to win.

They think they fight dirty they haven't seen us pissed.

Answer 9

well, first, i would send dubya and his administration to prison and then get our troops home....let the iraqi's deal with it now, we can give them the cash to fix their stuff up, we never use it where we need it in our own country anways and besides, there are so many american contractors over there right now, we might as well leave.

honestly...right now...i am sick of the dying....i want my husband home. 2 guys in my husbands unit got killed already and a neighbor of mine just got her visit...this is too much.

sorry, its hard to be hyper-patriotic right now. my husband has been stop lossed and we were supposed to have been out in may.

Answer 10

If I was in charge I would try retiring soon as I can and hand it off to next guy.