Gus, the people involved in the conflict in Iraq understand what they're doing there, it seems to be mostly armchair generals here at home that don't understand.
The offensive was over when US troops took Baghdad. After that, the mission was similar to what it was in Germany and Japan after WWII, namely creating an environment for a stable government.
We may agree or disagree with the initial invasion (personally, I disagree), but regardless, it happened. Now that we're there, there are two goals. First, we need to make the place safe enough that an Iraqi government can exist. Secondly, and this is a "stealth" goal, we need a place to stage out of in the very likely event of future trouble in the region. The other Arab countries we now use, like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, can't be relied on in the event of a large scale disturbance in the region.
Our very presence in Iraq will prevent the outbreak of a general war in the region. Specifically, if Syria or Iran want to invade Israel, without a strong presence in Iraq, we could do little to stop it.
Folks may agree or disagree, but that's what we're doing there. |
