The Hideous Thing

[Astrad]

The terrible illusion about the unmitigated disaster that is the Iraq War is that it has an end. Those against the war suffer as much from this illusion as those who promoted it. As the situation worsens (how could it possibly get worse, yet it does) the calls for withdrawal get increasingly loud but the truth is withdrawl, even immediate and complete, will not end the war, it will just allow citizens of the US to feel 'less involved'. The War will go on with or without the US and perhaps even spread. The Lebanese War lasted seventeen years, the Afghan war has been running since the USSR invaded in 1980 with a brief pause under the Taliban. One should be clear about what one is calling for when they want withdrawal, an end to US involvement not an end to the war. Too often these distinct things are treated as the same. The hideous thing is that the US is still responsible and that responsibility won't end when the troops leave. No North Vietnamese army will sweep in and create stability. The killing will go on and america will still be culpable. But some people will feel better because the ongoing violence won't be on the television screens quite so much. A number of senior democrats who are calling for phased withdrawal are justifying it on the basis that the Iraqi government has to 'stand up' and that the continuing presence of US troops allows them not to. Whatever the truth to this, it puts the burden on the victim, the Iraqi state, to heal itself and allows the perpetrator, America, to walk away.

[Dhalgren]

1. Everyone, even the Democrats, dance around what the real

problem is in "fixing" the mess in Iraq. And that problem is the government of the United States. Our government is not willing to do what it would take to end this. We are too stupid and arrogant to admit that we were wrong and criminal and admit defeat. We have to bring all of the parties together along with every nation concerned and, with our hat in our hands, work out a solution to this. It can be done, but there must be a will and intelligence to do it. We have neither...

[Astrad]

2. I agree

I think that's exactly what it would take, some humility to admit openly it was a mistake and a willingness to sit down with everyone and look for real solutions. One can dream...

[Jackpine Radical]

3. What an incredible tragedy the US has spawned.

I think your analysis is very much on the mark. And I still support military withdrawal, if only to reduce by 100,000+ the number of potential victims and perpetrators at large in the country. Plans have been proposed--Kucinich, for one, and others. I don't realistically know if any of them can work (I suspect not), but we have to try. They all begin with us ending military operations, getting peacekeepers (but Migod, who?) in, and making reparations. I'm up for foregoing impeachment & turning Bush, Cheney, Rummy, Condi & the lot over to an international tribunal. I say "foregoing impeachment" because I don't want to see us paralyze ourselves with it for 2 years. We can wait for retribution til the scum are out of office, if only because they will be anyway by the time we complete impeachment, conviction & removal proceedings.