Quagmire Revisited

I used to believe in the expression that you can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time. Now, I am beginning to believe the contention that, if you repeat a lie often enough, it becomes true.

During the television news this evening, I saw repeated commercials saying that American troops should stay in Iraq. It used servicemen and family members of those killed in Iraq or the Twin Towers as the spokespeople. And their words suggest that our troops in Iraq are essential to curb terrorism. They make a link between 9/11 and Iraq.

Well, it's true that Iraq has become a strong center for terrorism -- after our invasion.

It's important that we keep some things in mind. Saddam Hussein was a nasty, brutal man. But he also headed a secular state, he opposed al-Queda and did not welcome its operations in his country, and he kept a nation running with different Islamic sects intermarrying and living among each other, with relatively effective health and education systems (until U.S.-led embargoes crippled supplies coming into that country).

So our country invaded Iraq, with, as far as I can tell, the intention only to topple Saddam. When that happened, our President said: "Mission accomplished." And then what? What did our political leaders think would happen? What did happen is that civil war has broken out, al-Queda has established a foothold in Iraq, the country appears to be leaning toward establishing an Islamic state (if any type of real government gets established at all), American arms have ended up in the hands of terrorists of all stripes, the most educated and reasonable citizens have fled the country, and the health, education and other civil systems have crumbled.

We must keep troops in Iraq, these commercials tell us, until we have victory.

And what, exactly, will victory look like? An American-style democracy? What if the voters choose an Islamic state? Will that be victory? How will we ever make happen what most of us probably think should happen?

In the meantime, while we've been trying to make Iraq into a Middle-Eastern America, the political influence of Iran has been increasing in the region, Pakistan has been increasingly destabilized (with the likelihood for an Islamic state arising there if the present government is overthrown), Russia is experiencing increasing oppression and growing power, and countries everywhere have learned a lesson of how impotent raw military power is against terrorism.

With the repression of civil liberties and reports of torture of prisoners, America has lost whatever moral authority it has held in the world. I wouldn't be surprised if this Iraqi adventure marks either the downfall of this country as the world superpower, or the uprising of this country as a hated, world bully, with eventual use of nuclear weapons.

I fear what we have unleashed, and I weep for what has been done in our name.

And I say all this not to argue for a complete withdrawal of U.S. troops. I'd like to think there is some way to clean up the mess we have made. But our President, who raises the spectre of the bloodshed that occurred after we left Vietnam, should keep another thing in mind. As far as I can tell, Vietnam now is a stable, peaceful, increasingly prosperous country.