Originally Posted by ShyGuy

Are you insane? There was no Taliban in Iraq before our invasion. Saddam Hussein was a ruler, a dictator who never wanted anyone to challenge his authority, and al-Qaeda would have done just that. There was nil al-Qaeda in Iraq until we invaded and took Hussein down. Then, once the country was in shambles, the Sunnis and Shias had a power struggle, and al-Qaeda found their way into Iraq and more problems ensued. It was one of the "un-calculated" results of taking down Saddam Hussein.