Supporting Our Troops, or Should We Pull Out of Iraq?

February 5, 2006

A cousin recently asked me: “are you saying that we should not stay and continue fighting in Iraq?” Here’s my reply:

Let me first preface my answer to your question. I think it was a horrible mistake to actually invade Iraq. And I think Bush is an incompetent president, but I none the less think his handling of the UN prior to our invasion was good. In fact I think the whole of US behavior leading up to the invasion was good, everything except for the last step of actually invading.

I think at that point we should have stopped, and said "because of the vast world opinion against invading at this time, we will hold off". If we'd done that we'd have earned so much global clout and good will that we could done almost anything later on. Furthermore I do not think such a pause would have weakened us in the least.

Unfortunately that's not what happened.

So now to your question. Now that we're in Iraq I'm a strong follower of the Powell Doctrine including the Pottery Barn line "if you break it, you fix it". I also believe that if we back out now it sends the message "if you're just tough with the Americans for a year or two then they'll lose interest". So, at this time, I think we should stay. In fact I think we should triple our forces there. In fact I think we should be doing what John Kerry said we should have done, but I guess that's not really relevant.

One caveat to this is that if the Iraqis ask us to leave, and even some of the Shia are starting to say that, then I think we should leave. However, so long as the bulk of the political figures (those who are taking part in the political process) still want us to stay then I think we should stay. If we have to stay there for ten years it won't change my opinion though then I'll think it even stupider to have invaded in the first place. And when more American soldiers have been killed than citizens were killed on 9/11 then it will be a sobering day*. None the less that all has nothing to do with whether or not we stay now that we're there.

Despite the fact that I think we should stay I think anyone who wants us to leave is just as much a patriot as those of us who think we should stay. It is essential that American's voice their opinion, and I think it's basic civility that those of us who disagree do not label those who want to leave as cowards or unpatriotic. The US Representative, "Mean Jean Schmidt", who called the Viet Nam veteran and decorated Marine John Murtha a "coward" is, I'm deeply ashamed to say, from my very own district here in Cincinnati. That a US Representative would be so inflammatory as to call someone a coward for wanting the US to leave Iraq, is IMO frightening. If I had my way she'd be impeached immediately for such gross incivility.

The only thing unpatriotic is trying to silence a person who dissents. Most of those people who think we should leave Iraq ARE supporting our troops. Just because you think Bush is an idiot for invading does not at all mean you do not support our troops, and those on the right who equate those two things are heinous for besmirching our troops by trying to use them as political pawns.

^* 2006-10-01   PS: It took five years, but that day has now come.