The problem with Liberals is that they still don’t get it. Many are calling for the Impeachment of Bush because "we were lied into a war". There are several fallacies here.
First, the lies were so transparent that it is hard to understand how anyone could have been so duped. The WMD lie was not believed by many who were keeping themselves informed, Scott Ritter for one.
Second, even if Iraq did have WMDs, it would not have justified an illegal, pre-emptive war in which thousands of civilians were killed. This second issue is important because it implies that the United States has the legal and moral authority to decide which countries should have the right to weapon systems. This arrogant, xenophobic attitude has increased the hatred against the United States.
There is something very wrong about allowing the only nation that has ever used nuclear weapons to kill civilians, to decide which countries should be allowed to have nuclear weapons. In a perfect world there would be no weapon systems, nuclear or otherwise. In the real world it is sometimes suggested that every nation should be given at least one nuclear weapon that could be used in a retaliatory strike. This is an old idea which used to be called MAD, Mutually Assured Destruction.
Third, calling for Impeachment trivializes the war crimes. Imagine looking back on history. Why is there such amnesia about the reasons for the Nuremberg trials? Does anyone believe that the Impeachment of Hitler would have been the appropriate response to the war crimes during his administration? The USA has been bombing Iraq since 1991. This time frame includes the Clinton Administration, a fact conveniently ignored by many Liberals. Some have estimated the number of killed Iraqi civilians at more than 2 million. A half million Iraqi children died as a result of the U.S. sanctions. War crimes trials should be held. The defendants could be tried in absentia, which would be necessary since the accused would not be likely to make a voluntary court appearance.
Fourth, calling for the Impeachment of Bush/Cheney lets Congress off the hook. Congress became complicit when it abdicated its authority under the U.S. Constitution and caved in to the war-lust of the Executive Branch. Every member of Congress should be held responsible for his/her vote and tried along with those in the Executive Branch. In fact, the responsible members of Congress should be put on trial first. Without their votes, there would have been no war.
There is no logical reason for optimism. All of the anti-war protests in the world cannot stop this war machine. War has become so profitable for the corporations that wars will continue. The corporations that manufacture weapon systems rely on the Principle of Perpetual War. Peace has become a victim of Planned Obsolescence. Weapons produce profits only when they are used. War is necessary for the continuation of the Capitalistic system. In 1937, General Smedley Butler wrote, "War is a Racket". In 2007, war is still a racket. That leaves all of humanity with a dilemma. The United States has painted the human race into a nuclear corner with no way out.
War crimes trials might be the last hope for humanity.
