Unhappy Birthday Iraq War!

[sherriftruman]

From Morphizm's Polemix page:

"Please, one year later, with all we’ve seen -- and not seen -- and all the malarkey we’ve heard (“a war to free the Iraqi people”), and all the denials -- and denial -- that have attended this crusade-like adventure, please do not forget that the Bush war on terrorism cannot be evaluated in terms of September 11 alone. September 11 does not a foreign policy make. We must see the bigger picture -- does this war make terrorism in the world less likely? Has it brought the Middle East closer to peace and harmony? Was it justified as a way of defeating our real enemy, Al Qaeda and its allies?" ...MORE

[SendTheGOPPacking]

1. Has it been a year?

sniff! :-(

[sherriftruman]

2. ...and counting

We've got plenty more ahead of us, unless we bail on them completely. Like we did in Vietnam...

[Martin Eden]

3. When you're in a HOLE ...

... STOP DIGGING.

Bailing was inevitable in Vietmam because our foes were totally committed. They were in it for the long haul; the had been battling imperialism for decades and saw the U.S. as one more foreign invader that had had to be ejected at any cost. Our "allies" in the South did not have this kind of determination and support.

Iraq is not Vietnam, but there are some parallels. Resistance and terrorist attacks will continue as long as foreign (U.S.) troops are in Iraq, and many Islamists will not accept any government we install.

There is absolutely no guarantee the country won't fall apart after we leave -- but there really is no intention to leave. One of the major goals of this war is the permanent installion of military bases in Iraq. The war in Vietnam was ostensibly based on the domino theory -- that other nations would fall to communism if we didn't take a stand. That theory has proved false. Iraq, on the other hand, has something much more tangible -- the world's 2nd largest oil reserves.

If we ever abandon Iraq it won't be a matter of bailing on the Iraqi people -- it will be because the price of staying has gotten too high or because we wised up and made alternative energy a national priority.