Nu2Salt: Sorry I haven't replied to your posts...I have been busy working on a 25 page term paper (Connecticut's role during the French-Indian War).
You are right that the CIA infiltrated Afghanistan in the 1980s to lend support to the Afghan mujehadeen but this was not a massive undertaking. Most of the training was done with American-made weapons (most notorious of all the US stinger missles that devastated Soviet helicopters).
As for the Soviet defeat excaerbating the collapse of the Soviet Union...the defeat in Afghanistan did not deliver a major blow to the Soviet military, militarily, however, it damaged their economy. Think about it, about ten years of war and it failed miserably. Plus, the Soviet's hegemonic power had been stopped by a rag-tag force of a 'puppet' Central Asian Republic.
As for Clinton's strike on Iraq in 1998, here is some info I found online. Clinton specifically carried out the operation because of Saddam's WMD production http://www.defenselink.mil/specials/desert_fox/
--I did not like your exclusion of John From Madison as a 'gentleman.' I have fished with him and he is just that in every sense of the word. If he irritates you so be it. Val and Spin annoy me with their juvenile posts, but even though I disagree with them, are great debaters and I think they are gentlemen. My mom taught me three words...chivalry, chivalry, chivalry!
Val: I will be totally honest with you as a volunteer in the Bush campaign. Up until the Republican convention, I truly felt Kerry was going to win. Then between the convention and the second or third debate I fel Bush was going to win. I went back to thinking that Kerry was going to win, but with the last poll results I am confident that Bush will win and here is why:
-Bush is popular with males 50 to 31% -Bush is popular with women 46 to 44% -Bush is more popular with African Americans now than in 2000 (Kerry has approximately 80%-Bush close to 19. In 2000 Bush only got 9% of their vote). -Bush has secured 2 more electoral votes now than in 2000.
That being said, I admit that now Kerry has a better chance of securing the electoral college, and Bush the popular vote--a reversal of 2000.
Unless Kerry pulls some serious interviews or actually lays out a plan, his numbers will keep slipping.
Either way, this election will be interesting. I cannot wait.
P.S. A psychic on Good Morning America last year predicted the Democratic candidate was going to be Kerry (this was when Dean was winning) but that Bush would win in 2004. She also said Hillary would win in 2008 :p .
:p .
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