Or successful ill-advised neocon hidden agenda?

What we see, IMO, is the culmination of centuries of a people and culture so subdued by the imposition of strong man rule, undergirded by Sharia as a political philosophy, Since time out of mind, (or since the time of the Mongols) that part of the world has accepted cruelty and mass death as a given of conquest. The civilizing effect of the Judeo-Christian ethos has made no discernable impact. They are simply savages living the lives of their ancestors. Several unfortunate problems arise: they have access to modern weapons, travel, communications and accomplices whose only motivators are money and perceived power. What those accomplices do not realize is they, themselves, will become subjected to the strictures of the conquerors, for they will not have the quality of quantity to resist. In answer to your question, I say "Yes", we should be over there but only in the role of total, unrestricted, war. Whether the American people have the will to sacrifice for such an objective is the linchpin of such a decision. Savages only understand a stronger and more merciless savagery.