Reply #35: I do not believe

[H2O Man]

that self-rule is possible in Iraq, so long as the US has the massive military/para-military forces there. Those force will be there so long as the Cheney plan continues to be US policy. It will not matter if a democrat is elected in '08, or if the democrats gain more seats in both houses of congress, if they do not reject the Cheney policy.

The most immediate need is to impeach VP Cheney. Every day that congress does not move in that direction, the Cheney policy becomes more entrenched. I need not argue that point -- the proof is in the pudding, as we have seen since January of this year, when democrats took control of both the House and Senate.

General Wesley Clark is correct in saying the US must negotiate with Iran, and that Iran is going to be extremely influential in the future of Iraq. The Cheney/PNAC plan to keep them being a key player in the Middle East is delusional.

As US troops leave, UN troops could be an option as "peace keepers" on a limited, short-term basis.