I’m not advocating such an action, but I’m not totally anti pullout either.
So what if the US were to go ahead and do the Turn Over the end of June, and then pull all of our military before the end of December? The only troops who might remain would be as part of a UN peace keeping body. Nah, pull 'em all, and let the chips fall where they may. We do have Saddam, and others, who we could hold on to.
Who would prevail in the aftermath of our departure? Iran? Kuwait? Iraq themselves with a democratic government?
I think possibly the latter, Iraq, given enough material aid, and given that that’s what the people want. It’s like when you’re 27, and the parents finally kick you out to survive on your own.
From what I’ve seen and read, Vietnam’s not doing so bad, and we left there in defeat. 'Course, Vietnam doesn’t have any oil.
I’m tired of losing our troops, and I want them home. The mercenaries are on their own, but can leave too if they want.
Peace,
mangeorge
lol, we"re never pulling out. They’ve already started construction of “medium term” bases that will be in place for at least 10 years (likely until they can make permanent ones).
But it’s OK, because somehow I have a feeling that the puppet government we install is going to ask for them. :-p
Even if Kerry beats Bush in November, that doesn’t mean the end of the occupation. According to an article in ther July-August 2004 Atlantic Monthly, “Kerry Faces the World,” by Joshua Micah Marshall, Kerry’s approach will be different in that he intends to “internationalize” the occupation – get some other countries involved, assuming they’re willing – and focus more on nation-building than on suppressing rebellion. But he isn’t setting any timetable for withdrawal. Which is reasonable, I suppose – things are changing day-to-day in Iraq, and any plan Kerry could outline now probably would be irrelevant by the time he takes office in January.
But I do wonder how safe Halliburton’s contracts to run the oilfields would be under a Kerry Administration – especially as he’s almost certain to make a campaign issue of the sweetheart deals the Bush Admin has been giving to its business friends . . .
Realistically, I know all that. BUT I wonder what would happen if we did pull out as promised. The Saddam regime is toppled, the WMDs :rolleyes: are gone, and a democratic govt. is set up. If the Iraqui people want that, they got it. Can’t they, with a little help, keep it? Do we really need to be there, imposing our will on them? If the UN asks for our help, we can consider giving that help. By most accounts the vast majority of Iraqui citizens want hostilities to end, but they’re going to have a really hard time garnering the sympathy of anyone in the region as long as we’re there. We are the “insurgents” excuse for being.
I don’t believe so.
In my opinion, if we pulled out, we would see a very rapid collapse of the fragile government we have set up, and the country would possibly erupt into civil war.
Even if there was no war, the conditions are ripe for a dictator to rise. Poverty, confusion, ethnic tensions, an identifiable enemy, and resentment are a dangerous combination. The concept of democracy isn’t firmly rooted enough for the people to necessarily oppose the idea. We can’t assume they want a democracy just because we like it and think they should, too.
Really, if the Iraqi people were free to do so, how long do you think it would be before they had an anti-US government voted into power? The problem right now is that we can’t let them have a true democratic vote because the outcome would likely be against our interests. Telling the Iraqi people they have freedom but then restricting who they can vote for will only lead to more resentment of the US.
Frankly, I think we’re screwed. We have to stay and keep control of the situation, else the Middle East could become a danger to us, and it’s going to be very hard. Soon, the public is going to start getting restless with the situation, and may begin demanding that the troops be brought home. The manpower needed to sustain control is going to be very draining on our armed services. While I don’t think they’ll bring back the draft, I’m sure there will be a lot of talk about it. A stong leader will say, “Damn the polls!” and do what is right for the stability of the region, but the political pressure will be intense.
I honestly am having trouble seeing a positive outcome for this situation. God help me, I hope I’m wrong, but I think in twenty years, give or take, we’re going to be fighting another war over there which will be a direct result of the mess we made.
I think the only thing we disagree on, Lissa is when. Me, 6 months. You, 20 years.
Except that 40% of your brain is Shi’ite, 30% is Sunni and 20% is Kurdish. None of them exactly see eye to eye.