Al Arduengo wrote:

What we are doing is trying to prop up the Iraqi military and
current government to be able to take care of themselves while protecting
the interests of the US, Israel, etc.

Interesting that you mention we are protecting the interests of Israel.
I researched it and Israel is not part of the coalition and has no
troops in Iraq. So, the question begs to be asked: Why are we spending
U.S. dollars and more importantly, U.S. lives, to "protect *Israel's*
interests"?

Also, have you considered that if we didn't trash a sovereign nation for
no reason, we wouldn't have spend our dollars and our lives to "prop it
up" as you say?

If we were to leave now we would only
have to return again.

Absolutely true! Let's give the administration full credit for creating
the perfect storm: damned if we stay and damned if we leave. It seems
unlikely that we can "win" because as we stay, an ever larger number of
Iraqis truly hate us and view -us- as the occupiers and terrorists. If
we leave, most likely a huge escalation in the current civil war and
probably big-time instability in the Middle East. Stay or leave, it's
The Perfect Storm!

This is because Iraq is populated by a large number
of uneducated tribal personalities that thrive on power and control and
have absolutely no regard for democracy, life or law, other than Islamic
law.

Yeah, the nerve of those Islamic people, running their Islamic lives by
Islamic law.

But again, you are absolutely correct! What you say above has been that
way for over a *thousand* years. And we think we can change that in just
5 or 10 years? How naive of us. It's a damn shame the administration
wasn't bright enough to realize that *before* they opened this can of
worms... :-(

P.S. While you are at it, could you please explain -why- the Iraqis
should "have 'regard' for democracy". Just because -we- like it and it
seems to have worked for us for 250 years, their tribalism and Islamic
law has worked for them for a thousand years. Hubris on our part? One
size (democracy) fits all? Maybe they "have absolutely no regard for
democracy, life or law, other than Islamic law" because it's THEIR
culture and it works for THEM. Unfortunately, we seem to be too arrogant
to see that.