President Bush and a majority of other Republicans, and a large number of Democrats as well, got us into Iraq and now we are riding the tiger. We are damned if we stay and will be damned if we cut and run. The original premises for going to war in Iraq have been shown to be largely bogus and a lot of legislators who voted for the war now complain they got suckered. (On that point, I, as a former State legislator myself, say they should have done their homework before voting.) Many Americans feel the same way. We did not have access to the pre-war intelligence and could only trust our elected leaders. Nevertheless, we got rid of one SOB dictator and started a popular move to democracy. That has to count for something. With all of this, the lead editorial in The Wall Street Journal today (March 22, 2006) identifies the following consequences if we "cut and run before giving Iraqis the time and support to establish a stable, democratic government that can stand on its own."
The U.S. would loose all credibility on weapons proliferation.
Broader Mideast instability.
We would loose all credibility with Muslim reformers.
We would invite more terrorist attacks on U.S. soil.
Time and space do not permit reprinting the entire Journal editorial but it may be seen in your local library after today. I will e-mail a copy to you at your request (unless WSJ lawyers tell me to stop). Contact me at archinsc@knology.net. It is worthwhile reading and remembering.
