Fred's Short Survey

Texas Fred posted this survey on his blog a few days ago and asked readers to post their responses. Here's my entry, in case anyone is interested.

1. Describe your political persuasion.

I'm hard to classify, as noted here. I would say I'm conservative with libertarian leanings on some issues. For the most part I think we are better off with as little government as possible, but unrestrained capitalism merely brings a different set of problems. Democracy works only insofar as you have an educated population with some semblance of a moral compass, which we don't anymore. The Constitution is still probably the best balance, but as soon as George Washington left office it started disintegrating.

2. A huge number of Conservatives and quite a few Republicans are seriously pushing to get Fred Thompson to declare his run for POTUS, if he doesn’t declare, or should he declare and not win the nomination, who would you want to see in his place from the current crowd??

From the current crowd, Ron Paul and Sam Brownback are closest to my ideal. Chuck Hagel would be very appealing to me, but his recent chumminess with Michael Bloomberg is bothersome. Giuliani, Gingrich, and McCain are all out of the question for me.

3. Describe your feelings in regards to the war in Iraq…

I supported the war initially. Since then I have decided that the entire concept of "preventative" war is unsound and probably immoral. Having done it anyway, once Saddam was ousted and no WMD were found I think we should have left the Iraqis to sort things out for themselves. We should not be nation-building because, as events have proven, we're not very good at it. Democracy cannot be forced on people who don't want it.

4. Do you think Iraq was a part of the terrorist organization that attacked the USA on 9-11??

There were definitely some connections, but I do not think Saddam knew what was planned or knowingly cooperated. UBL hated him as much as he hates Bush.

5. Do you believe the U.S. government was in ANY WAY involved in the attacks of 9-11??

No. Maybe different agencies had information that in hindsight would have shown what was coming, but the pieces were never put together.

6. Do you believe that we can achieve a victory in Iraq?? A true victory?? Is it still possible??

If by victory we mean a stable democracy, no. That's at least a generation away. The best we can hope for at this point is to keep the insurgency manageable and defend Iraq from interference by its neighbors, namely Iran and Syria. Daily life in Iraq will, at best, come to resemble the low-level background conflict that now exists in Israel and Lebanon.

7. If you believe that we can achieve victory in Iraq, what do you think the USA is going to have to do to make it happen…

The Bush Administration, specifically Rumsfeld, made a huge mistake trying to fight this war without rebuilding ground forces (Army & Marines) to at least the size we had at the time of Desert Storm. Gen. Eric Shinseki was right when he said in 2003 that several hundred thousand troops would be needed to occupy Iraq. Problem: we don't have that many troops, and cannot have them short of a WW2-style full national mobilization. Bush probably could have rallied the country to do it had he acted right after 9/11 - but he didn't. Instead we were all told to go about our normal lives. Now Bush wonders why the people aren't behind him. It's because you didn't lead us, sir.

Having said all that, how do we get out of the current mess? I think the best solution is for U.S. forces to forget about peacekeeping. Withdraw to defensive positions along the borders with Iran and Syria and then let the Iraqis build their own nation without outside interference. It won't be pretty but it is probably the best we can hope for now.
8. If you believe that there is a possibility for victory in Iraq, can that victory be won thru diplomatic negotiations?? And if you answer yes, WHO would these negotiations need to include??

Diplomatic negotiations unlikely to accomplish much at this point because governments are not the problem. People who hate each other for economic, cultural, and religious reasons will not follow whatever compromises the diplomats come up with. Until hearts are changed and people become willing to co-exist, negotiations will not help.

9. If you happen to be a Dem, who is your candidate??

I'm not a Democrat or a Republican. I can't imagine voting for any of the Democrats who are running. I'll stay home or vote for a third-party if the GOP doesn't nominate someone who is pro-life and willing to get us out of Iraq ASAP.

10. And last, but not least, what are your feelings concerning the security of the USA and our borders and coastlines??

We need to get control of our borders, whatever it takes. Allowing every Tomas, Ricardo y Pierre who wants to walk right in is foolish. Employers who hire illegals need to be severely punished. If foreigners want to work here and U.S. employers need the help, I would support admitting them in an orderly process that screens out criminals and terrorists. Those who want to stay here permanently need to learn English, pay taxes, and otherwise assimilate into our culture as quickly as possible.