And yet it is not large enough to be more than margonly effective in
Iraq.  Of course, we shouldn't have gone there in the first place, but
now that we are...

Hypersonic aircraft, stealth (basically UFOs that don't exist) help you
to get in some place. They are largely irrelevant once you ARE in. When
you are in you need something relevant to insurgency. Sure you need
technology, but it is much more surveillance and AI rather than
hypersonics.

There is one quite interesting hypersonic question. When I first heard
about Aurora I asked myself whether it could replace the Shuttle. The
answer is no. At hypersonic speed the airframe is an integral part of
the engines. Aurora has to fly to its target with a lift/drag of 5:1.
An LEO spaceplane would accelerate all the way to LEO. Its lidt/drag
would be meaningless but probable 3:1 on reenry. On climb its scramjets
would provide lift just as anling a rocet motor keeps it up

If the military superiorty that the US has is intelligently used, the
effect is the exact opposite.  Greedy and aggressive countries are for
the most part neutralized.  While there will always tensions among
rivals, the presence of superior forces will usually cool things off.

Can you guarantee this? The US seems to have brilliant scientists and
technologists working in the private sector, and a foreign policy which
is quite frankly run by morons. I do not know whether the Iraq war
should have been fought at all. Bush certainly should not have made the
pigs ear he has.

We are now faced with civil war and a number of unpalatable choices. A
Sunni victory would mean the establishment of Al Qaeda in Iraq just
like Afghanistan. A Shite vitory would (eventually) lead to the
establishment of Iranian influence right up to the Mediterranean. Best
is a new Sadaam whio would be more amenable than the old. Trouble is
can you guantee this. Sadaam Hussein was a great pal of the US until he
invaded Iraq. So incidentally was Osama bin Laden during the Soviet
era.

Probably part of the problem, but the real reason is the dunderheads
who are currently running the show in DC.  Our foreign policy these
days seems to be "we don't really care what you think of us,  Bow down
and obey!"

I did say that UFOs were a threat to democracy did I not. THe President
whatever his intentions may be during his stomping round is in practice
a prisoner of Langley when he is in office. I think that 9/11 was
caused by planes and AQ but I can well understand why people do
consider it to have been a conspiracy. The CIA milked it for all it was
worth to satisfy their own agenda. They even told a pack of lies over
WMD.

Look at history.  All long stretches of peace has been the result of a
superior military power.

Not completely peace has been the result of economic interests. Wars
have been the result of economic calculations.