Bush and his hacks all lied, flagrantly. Lots of people predicted Iraq would be ungovernable, especially by incompetents like the Bushies.
Saddam went along with it, though, because the fiction of WMDs was his only chance of staying in power.
For Argentina, what's in force now has long been "normal," with slight variations. I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for the end of the cepo (which, says the government, doesn't even exist).
For Argentine milicos, the Falklands were a trial run for an attack on Chile. Their mistake was underestimating a country that had a serious and well-organized military, but at least their stupidity avoided a war that would have led to large civilian casualties on both sides of the Andes.
I haven't crossed the border here for a while, but I have stayed at http://hosteriadecolon.com.ar, which is really nice. There is good river fish at restaurants such as http://www.colonentrerios.com.ar/viejoalmacen/ and http://www.chivachiva.com.ar (link not working for me, but crowd-sourced...
Will Harper dare use his most plausible campaign slogan? "Shrub's brother is on my side" (http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2015/05/20/jeb-bush-says-he-wants-stephen-harper-re-elected.html)
However, if you're flying a Confederate flag - or flaunting one on your gunrack or tattooing one on your arm - you are not openly admitting and freely discussing the issues.