To date 3876 American men and women have lost their lives in
what the Bush Administration believe to be in the cause of
freedom. Freedom. Such a vague response, isn’t it? But is Iraq’s
freedom really that important to us and to the rest of the
world? Is the sacrifice of our men and women, young and in their
prime, sons, daughters, wives, husbands, mothers, brothers,
sisters, friends worth it?
In terms of manpower, the United States has contributed the
most to this debacle being that the Bush Administration created
and enforced this policy, a policy that appears to be based on
bold face lies. Remember weapons of mass destruction? A year ago
the American people finally expressed their opinion and
responded to what has fast become a very good disaster.
The Bush
Administration, to be fair, responded back with the firing of
Secretary Rumsfeld and with the supposed creation of a pseudo-
intellectual/independent commission, to search, find, and
implement a differing approach to the Iraq problem. Their hope?
To direct the US down a more successful path. But how does the
Bush Administration define success?
It is more likely the
Administration itself is unsure of what this is exactly.
IT sounded good in theory, the idea being that an
“independent” and “free” Iraq would create a ripple effect among
neighboring middle east countries, a sort of reverse domino
theory if you will. The problem, however, is one very important
oversight. Religion and ethnicity. Little consideration, if at
all, was given to the numerous religious factions and ethnic
groups within the country of Iraq, henceforth the civil war that
has erupted between the Sunni’s, the Shiites and the Kurds. What
is left is an over boiling cauldron and US forces caught in the
middle. How can the US and their allies contain this, how is it
possible?
More forces?
But if so, and albeit an unpopular notion, doesn’t this take
us down a familiar slippery slope, a la Vietnam? But there’s no
correlation, correct? Really? A country on the other side of the
globe, a culture that is truly unfamiliar to us, one which we
invade, hoping for the most part to establish a clear western
style democracy in order to fend off some clear undefined enemy,
is not something we as a country have ever become embroiled in?
Then how ‘bout a slow staged withdrawal-translation:Drag It Out.
The next US soldier to die in the following hours is not a
sacrifice their family should have to bare. Enough is enough.
The only discussion the Bush Administration should be having at
present is of the following action, withdrawal. To avoid doing
so would truly be a tragedy.
