An autocratic government. A ruthless dictator who abused his people with biological warfare. A booming oil industry. These were all characteristics of the Middle Eastern country known as Iraq. The invasion began in early 2003, when the United States deployed 130,000 troops to southern Iraq in an attempt to prevent former President Saddam Hussein from continuing to build a regime that systematically took part in countless human rights abuses, to harboring weapons of mass destruction and supporting terrorist organizations, according to former US President George W. Bush. Known for hosting the fifth largest untapped oil reserves in the world (according to the US Energy Information Administration), the potential Iraq had politically and commercially was almost unparalleled. In the 8 years that followed, the United States struggled to improve the quality of life of the Iraqi people and to establish mutually beneficial trade relations. President George W. Bush's decision to get involved in Iraqi affairs was necessary and overall beneficial to both the Iraqi people and America. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Iraq suffered 25 years of tyranny under Saddam Hussein, a brutal dictator known for committing human rights abuses such as chemical warfare against the Kurdish population (The New York Times, 2006), suppression of freedoms and inhuman punishment methods. After the dust settled, US influence paved the way for democracy in Iraq, one of the few countries in the region that now bears this title. Many surrounding countries, such as Saudi Arabia and Yemen, are authoritarian countries with ruthless dictatorships that limit freedoms and impose harsh restrictions on everyday life. After the American intervention, the Iraqi people have much more freedom and live under an effective and democratically elected government. Furthermore, according to findings from the World Bank and Harvard University, both inflation rates and violence have decreased significantly since 2007, in direct correlation with the rising standard of living of Iraqis. Although this breakthrough was only possible with the US invasion of Iraq, it did not come at zero cost to the United States. According to a 2013 Reuters article, the war in Iraq cost the United States $2 trillion. The fact is that the problems Iraq faces do not occur on American soil. The United States has had many internal problems. However, instead of delegating this money to fix the situation in the United States, an already prosperous and developed country, the government decided to spend it to help improve the alarming situation in a less developed country. This is known as the “opportunity cost” theory of economics. Defined as “the loss of potential gain from other alternatives when one alternative is chosen,” the United States demonstrated this by choosing to overthrow Saddam Hussein and establish a democracy in Iraq, losing the potential benefits of strengthening its infrastructure. This selfless act saved countless Iraqi lives and eradicated a growing threat to international security. It's no secret that oil was one of the driving forces behind the United States' decision to invade Iraq. Indeed, numerous US officials have supported this claim, including the former head of US Central Command and Military Operations in Iraq, General John Abizaid. During a 2007 roundtable at the University ofStanford, Abizaid noted that, in reference to the Iraq campaign, “Of course it's oil, we can't really deny that.” This is because Iraq has an “absolute advantage” over the United States in terms of oil. An absolute advantage can be delegated to a country when it is more productive in creating a good than another country. In this case, US oil reserves are small compared to Iraq's. Before 2003, the supply of Iraqi oil was closed to privatized Western countries and was accessible only to the government-backed Iraq National Oil Company. But, after the fall of Saddam Hussein, rising oil prices in the mid-to-late 2000s led to a “doubling of oil production from a low of 1.3 mbpd during the 2003 turbulence to a high of 2.6 mbpd in 2011”. After US influence spread to Iraq, it can now be said that a large part of Iraq's oil fields are owned by American oil and gas companies. Establishing trade relations with Iraq not only strengthened its economy but provided the United States with a valuable raw materials partner. I believe the benefits of going to Iraq outweighed the costs. However, in the eyes of many, the war in Iraq was unjust. People might argue that one of the reasons Bush went into Iraq was to find weapons of mass destruction (WMD), which apparently didn't exist. While this is true, Saddam Hussein's regime used chemical and biological warfare against the Iraqi population in the past. Furthermore, this was not the only reason for entering Iraq. Others might say that the death toll from the American invasion was too high to justify. The losses suffered by American troops and Iraqi civilians were, without a doubt, a tragedy. However, it was a "necessary evil", something that had to be done because it was necessary to obtain a better result. The United States is a global superpower and a supporter of democracy. The United States could not stand by while the Iraqi people suffered. The government set out to neutralize the threat known as Saddam Hussein, a man who had a history of violent extremism and posed a legitimate threat not only to the Iraqi people, but also to the United States. Keep in mind: this is just one example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Before the United States intervened, Iraq was sitting on a pot of gold and was ruled by a towering dictator. The current state of life of the Iraqis should be sufficient to demonstrate that the invasion was necessary and justified. The economy is constantly growing thanks to oil exports, the Iraqi people have democratically chosen their new leader and chemical warfare is no longer used against citizens. The United States saved Iraq from a seemingly inevitable catastrophe and gained a valuable trading partner in the process. In the words of former US President George W. Bush: “As long as the United States of America is strong and determined, this will not be an age of terror; this will be an era of freedom, here and around the world.” ReferencesMobilia, M., & Villar, L. (2019, January 11). US Energy Information Administration - EIA - Independent statistics and analysis. Retrieved December 13, 2019, from https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=37973.Inflation, consumer prices (%) - Iraq. (n.d.). Retrieved December 13, 2019, from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/FP.CPI.TOTL.ZG?locations=IQ.Kimmitt, MT (2009, April 24). Middle East Strategy at Harvard. Retrieved December 13, 2019, from https://blogs.harvard.edu/mesh/2009/04/measuring-iraq/.Trotta, D..