Largest Operable Militaries In The World example essay topic

Throughout history dictators such as the King George, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and Nikita Khrushchev have risen to power and filled the world with fear. Each time one of them came to power, the world sat back and watched as his power in his own government rose, and eventually bringing the world into war. Yet, again, our world is facing a similar rise of power, and yet, again, we are watching with no intervention. On August 24, 1990, Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait against warnings from the United Nations that invasion would be intolerable. Three days later President Bush declares that the invasion "will not stand" and on the 8th of August the first U.S.A.F. fighter planes arrive in Saudi Arabia.

Five months later, Operation Desert Storm commenced, with the objective of ejecting Iraq from Kuwait. After Saddam Hussein's Iraqi forces were defeated in late February, the U.N. passed several sanctions, and ordered Iraq to disarm itself. On February 27, 1933 in Germany, members of the Nazi party set fire to the Reichstag Building, beginning Nazi rule of Germany. For six years, the world watched Germany and Adolf Hitler become a danger to the post WWI peace. On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, beginning WWII.

In all of Europe, including his home country of Austria, Hitler began the total extermination of the Jewish population. By the war's end over 12 million civilians (6 million being Jews) were killed in his quest for a perfect race. In the European theater of the war, over 35,000,000 people were killed, all because a country ordered to disarm at the end of WWI did not. By not intervening with Hitler's rise in power, the world went into despair and war. The birth of our own country was sparked by the tyranny of an individual claiming absolute rule over the American colonies. Because of the taxing and forced entry into homes that King George permitted, the colonies went to war with England and eventually won freedom for our nation.

Our country exists today because of acts against humanity. When the U.S. went to war with Iraq, the Iraqi military was the fourth largest in the world. The U.S. government, after the humiliation of the Vietnam War, prepared for the worst. Drawing every aspect of the military strength available, they gathered forces in the Arab region preparing for a full scale war. Weapons never before seen, such as the F-117 Stealth Fighter, were used for the first time in war, and had devastating results on Iraq. After a month of intense bombing, with a loss of only 28 aircraft in more than 116,000 sorties, Iraq lost 3,700 of 4,280 battle tanks, 2,400 of 2,870 assorted armored vehicles, 19 navel ships, and 42 divisions made combat-ineffective.

Over 71,204 Iraqi troops either surrendered or were captured by the end of the ground campaign. Throughout the whole operation, only a total of 148 Coalition battle deaths occurred, and 36 fixed wing aircraft were shot down in air-to-air engagements, without a single U.S. loss. At the time of the operation, Iraq was one of the largest operable militaries in the world, but was defeated in a little under two months by U.S. and coalition forces. Today, twelve years later, despite orders to disarm, Iraq is still one of the larger armies in the world.

Most of the members of their military however were members when the U.S. overwhelmed them in 1991, and know our abilities. Over the past twelve years, Iraq has failed to disarm as told, and has since done more to advance themselves. It has always been known that Saddam Hussein has had a dream for the possession of a nuclear weapon. In 1991 it was known that he was in the process of developing one, but U.S. bombings targeted all nuclear facilities in Iraq, setting them back an estimated 8 years.

So, today, 12 years later, they are essentially 4 years ahead of what they were in 1991, making him that much more of a danger. If he were to use it against any nation, it would either be the U.S. or Israel, both of which he has severe hatred towards. How many times must the world sit back and watch as men bring the world on the brink of war time and time again. Saddam Hussein is becoming a second Hitler, and is going to bring us on the verge of nuclear war like Khrushchev during the cold War if we do not stop him soon.

We have the technology and the power, and the Iraqi people have seen our abilities. We must act now while we still have the chance.