| When Ronald Reagan died, the media showered | | | | invasion began. Spreading freedom was one of |
| him with praises and compliments. They talked | | | | those reasons. |
| about how people loved him; how he did great | | | | President Bush said this in his State of the Union |
| things; and how he liberated millions of people. | | | | Address in January 2003: "And as we and our |
| They credit him with playing a hand in bringing the | | | | coalition partners are doing in Afghanistan, we will |
| Soviet Union down. Even Mikhail Gorbachev hailed | | | | bring to the Iraqi people food and medicines and |
| him as a great world leader. | | | | supplies -- and freedom." Hence the name |
| The world finally learned of President Reagan's | | | | "Operation Iraqi Freedom." |
| legacy. | | | | Look at the map of the Middle East. Thanks to |
| The media sang a different tune from 1981 to | | | | the U.S. invading Iraq, Iran is flanked by |
| 1989. They referred to Ronald Reagan as senile, | | | | democratic countries. Syria is surrounded by |
| dumb, and prone to cowboy diplomacy. He was | | | | Israel, Lebanon, Turkey, and Iraq. Every one of |
| too old and had to take naps on the job. His inner | | | | those countries is in various stages of |
| circle had to lead him around like a child. His foreign | | | | Democracy. |
| policy was supposed to start mass conflagration | | | | The heart of the Middle East is now a |
| and get us all killed. He was just an actor; the list | | | | checkerboard of democratic countries. The US |
| went on. | | | | has free trade agreements with Israel and Jordan. |
| The media beat Ronald Regan up, and criticized his | | | | We're developing Iraq and Afghanistan. It's |
| Cold War policies. According to Peter Schweizer's | | | | reasonable to see them as having free trade |
| book, Reagan's War, these were decisions that | | | | agreements with us as they develop further. |
| ultimately lead to the fall of the Soviet Union. It | | | | Countries involved with free trade with the United |
| wasn't till communism collapsed throughout the | | | | States speed their economic growth. |
| Warsaw Pact that large segments of the | | | | Once Iraq and Afghanistan become fully |
| population finally understood Ronald Reagan's | | | | developed countries; the political and economic |
| actions. | | | | power base in the Middle East will shift. Iraq and |
| History prevented the media's distortion of Ronald | | | | Afghanistan will become the Middle East's new |
| Reagan's legacy to last. Now they're trying to | | | | centers of gravity. There are enough people in |
| distort another one. | | | | Iran and other parts of the Middle East that want |
| Once again, the media portrays a republican | | | | a western style democracy and economic |
| president as dumb; needing to be lead by the | | | | competition. When they see what's going on in |
| finger; and constantly messing things up. For | | | | Iraq, they'll want the same thing for themselves. |
| example, they insist that the Iraq invasion was | | | | This is the strongest "weapon" in our arsenal |
| just about WMD. However, President Bush gave | | | | against the terrorists. |
| other reasons for invading Iraq before the | | | | |