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There's no secret conspiracy here, it's all right in the open. The thing is, hardly anyone has been paying attention.
PNAC was a think tank formed by so-called "neoconservatives" in order to develop a new foreign policy for conservatives in the post-Cold War environment. This policy had nothing to do with countering the threat of terrorism here at home. Instead, it had to do with asserting American power and influence abroad in the hopes of maintaining order and challenging unfriendly regimes.
When 9-11 occurred, these guys saw their opportunity and tried to use the threat of terror against the United States as an excuse to push their unrelated agenda. Afghanistan was merely a launching pad from which to begin their previously determined plans in Iraq. Even though they said that a "key goal" should be to "capture or kill Osama bin Laden", they were all too ready to move onto goal #2 before the primary mission had been accomplished. As a result, they severely compromised the War on Terror.
It would be alright if the War in Iraq would have made us safer or at least benefitted us in some way. I mean I'm happy for the Iraqi people who can now live without fear of Saddam, I really am. But I'm also sad for the 1000 American soldiers who have lost their lives, the thousands more who have been maimed beyond repair, and the thousands of Iraqi civilians who have been caught in the crossfire. I'm sad that my children and potential grandchildren will have to pay off the $200 billion and counting bill. All for what? I don't think anyone knows, not even PNAC.
Any way you look at it, this war was a mistake, a colossal mistake. If this is the new American century, I want no part of it. Some like Pat Buchanan are saying that the neocons are out, but I don't believe it. Not as long as Cheney, Wolfowitz, and their ilk roam the White House. The only way to get them out is to vote for John Kerry this November and so that's what I'm doing.
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