Iraq Exit Strategy - What is Your Plan?

[HFishbine]

Now more than ever, it seems the Dems may have a real shot at the White House. Iraq will still be an issue a year from now however. Simply asserting that Bush has screwed things up will not be ehnough.

What do you think is the apporpriate strategy for Iraq now?

- Immeadiate, complete withdrawal of U.S. forces?
- Straight-talk with the American people that we are in it now and must be prepared for a stay of many years, if not decades?
- Relenquish control and planning to the U.N.?
- Other?

What is the exit strategy?

(edit: grammar)

[Drifter]

1. Get the FUCK out now ...

Pay the Iraqis for their pain and suffering, and let them rebuild their own country, whatever way they see fit.

Force Republicans to reimburse the Federal Government for the money paid to Iraqi for restitution.

Pass a constitutional amendment making Republicans illegal.

How's that ?

Cheers
Drifter

[CWebster]

2. lol

This morning I was thinking the same damn thing about the Republicans--the party should be outlawed, like the Nazis were in Germany.

Resolution through international cooperation, via the UN, which is not only the stipulation of the international community, but it would grind georgy-porgy's nose in the dirt for all his huffery-puffery about the UN rendering itself irrelevant.

[Tigermoose]

3. My plan doesn't matter, but here is what is going to happen:

The US will remain entrenched in Iraq -- it is simply too useful a military base in the region. The US has/will establish a puppet government that will be armed by the US government to suppress rebellion. US troops will be gradually moved to bases only, until which will most likely be situated to protect oil fields. The US will in-effect control the production of Oil, thus acting as a leverage against the rest of OPEC. Iran will continue to instigate unrest within Iraq in hopes of a Shi'ite (?) faction coming to power.

This will occur regardless of which party is in power here in the U.S.

[Jacobin]

5. That's exactly what the attempt will be

And you are right...whoever wins will be stuck with this scenario.

However, I have my doubts about whether the occupation can be successful for very long. The guerilla war is going to get worse the longer it goes on. The cost of having 150,000 plus troops there is astronomical.

[Chef]

4. Exit Strategy

First, we step up the bombing of the supply trails. Second we announce our plan for the Iraqization of the war, and then.....Wait a second? Wrong decade. Let's face it we're screwed. Our only hope is to get the UN involved and ease out. Bush won't do this because it means giving up control of the sp-oils. As long as it can be percieved as a successful operation, we have to stay in and if it aint working, we have to stay in. Once you get in these things, your stuck.

[northernsoul]

6. The reconstruction has to become a multi-national effort

If the world abandons Iraq to the chaos and power vacuum that the war has created, it will definitely return to bite us in the ass. However, I want to get the American troops currently getting cooked in 120 degree temperatures and shot at on a daily basis out of there ASAP. Towards that end, I think we need to start rolling in a multi-national force (preferably from nations who've done a better job of training their forces for peace-keeping duties and who don't have a whole lot of "baggage" in the region)and start getting the 3 ID the hell out of there. I hate to say it, but I think that at this point the U.S. is morally obligated to pay to rebuild the infrastructure they destroyed. The revenues from the sale of Iraqi oil should go directly to the Iraqi people and the U.N. should oversee the creation of a new sovereign Iraqi government.

This plan probably won't be too popular with the PNAC gang, but I think that it's what reason and justice dictate at this point.

[bif]

7. Bail, big time.

Say we 're sorry. Pull out. Then put anyone responsible in the administration in jail for life. Or, since George is so big on it, capital punishment!

[Sagan]

8. We have to go through the UN and NATO

My plan would be to rebuild the bridges that Bushco burned. Go to the UN with a plan for overall UN administration of Iraq, with NATO providing the majority of the occupation troops.

We would have to make it quite clear that oil contracts, etc. would be fairly awarded to the best qualified companies to do the job and that the Iraqi oil industry would NOT be privatized, but used to benefit the Iraqi people.

Of course, all this is predicated on giving up absolute control of Iraq, something the Bushistas would never do.

Thus, they are trapped and more of our young soldiers are doomed to die for their greed and arrogance.

[scisyhp]

9. Immediate pullout with restoration of the Baath party government

will be the cheapest, fastest and most casualty-free exit. If Saddam
Hussein is alive, even better, he should be able to consolidate the
authority, restore order and maintain Iraq's integrity fairly easily.
Repat exiles can go back to where they come from, only local
collaborators will suffer the reprisals, and there weren't too many
of those. The occupation is simply too costly to maintain indefinitely. $ 50 bill a year is probably a conservative estimate.
For comparison, it costs about $ 80 bill a year for the US to buy all
the foreign oil it needs. No way this war is going to pay for itself.
There is no reason to believe that conditions for pullout are going
to improve in one year, two years or four years. No need to waste
money and lives on a hopeless project. The final estimated cost,
including the reparations to Iraqi people, should be deducted from
the salaries and assets of all those responsible.