Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

LETTER TO THE EDITOR:

We keep making same mistakes

Post-Memorial Day is a good time to reflect on America’s current and past foreign policies and see what we might do to make better decisions in the future. As a former combat medic (Vietnam, 1969) and student of Vietnamese history, I’m disappointed that we apparently didn’t learn a thing from this tragic and senseless war. We continue to make the same mistakes, ignoring past strategic and moral blunders.

The unprovoked invasion of Iraq, which resulted in the needless deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and traumatized the population beyond repair, is the most egregious example. We upset the balance of power in the Middle East, creating a vacuum that ended what little stability there was and paving the way for multiple terrorist organizations to become viable entities. By invading Iraq, we alienated our friends, blackened our reputation, emboldened terrorist groups and squandered trillions of dollars. The United States suffered thousands of dead and wounded, failed to spread democracy and devastated a nation by shattering its economy and social fabric.

The U.S. mission to all of mankind should be carried out by example and persuasion, not by force. We must stop going abroad in search of monsters to destroy and define with better clarity what is and what is not vital to our national interest.