The real reason that 500,000 people died in Iraq

From the Attytood blog at Philly.com, courtesy of Eschaton:

We invaded Iraq....to, ahem, kick ass. This according to a new book by a stellar journalist, Peter Baker of The New York Times:

"A senior official from former President George W. Bush's administration is quoted in 'Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House' saying American troops went into Iraq because the U.S. was looking for a fight.

'The only reason we went into Iraq, I tell people now, is we were looking for somebody’s ass to kick. Afghanistan was too easy,' the anonymous official said, according to Politico."

More here. 

You know, the thing that really bugs me about this isn't the war itself, which, does, in fact, still bug me.  I mean, I HATE that we invaded an essentially defenseless nation under false pretenses in a disgustingly cynical manipulation of righteous outrage and sorrow over 9/11.  And I hate that we then horrifically botched the occupation.  Perhaps the worst thing this nation has done in my lifetime.  But at least majority opinion eventually came around on that, and most Americans now fully understand that the Iraq invasion was an extraordinarily bad idea.  

No, what bugs me about such an admission is that, if you take Iraq out of the equation, most Americans probably still support the concept of ass-kicking as an acceptable tactic when it comes to international relations.  I mean, in the abstract.  If something another nation does really pisses off the American public enough, I'm quite certain that we'll once again have a large crowd of Americans screaming for blood, somebody's blood, anybody's blood.  Syria just didn't do it, which is a good thing, but, rest assured, somebody else will.  It's inevitable.  And that's when we'll start grabbing our crotches again and making Hitler comparisons to make it all moral and etc.  Sure, whatever warmongering administration is in the White House at that point will definitely be in PR warp drive in order to whip up such a frenzy, but Americans will willingly walk into it.  Run into it, even.

We're a bloodthirsty, arrogant people.  And it's just awful.

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$