Iraq

It will probably be the most confusing event of our lifetime. I still can't totally make heads or tails over the whole thing. I listened to Left, Right, and Center on podcast today and for the first time, Bob Scheer made a lot of sense. He said, "Look, we invaded a country run by a thug who had no connection to those who attacked us on 9/11 and no ability to produce weapons of mass destruction. On the other hand, we made friends with a thug in Pakistan who runs a country where the 9/11 terrorists are currently hiding out safely, who we know has nuclear weapons, and who has distributed such nuclear technology to North Korea and Iran."

He's right. And yet, we're making military progress in Iraq. Granted, it might be only short term...but with the surge we've been able to quell the violence, turn Sunni tribes against Al Queda, and gain some sort of trust amongst the Iraqis for US Troops being honest brokers.

On the other hand, Iraq does not appear close to a political solution, nor can it function as a country on it's own...the people and politicians don't seem to have liberal, democratic impulses...their tribal affiliations seem to matter more to the majority. So maybe it is a totally lost cause no matter what we do.

But then there's another question - was it always a lost cause? Or did American ineptitude mixed with Iraqi intransigence make it a lost cause?

Was it an honest, but failed attempt at making us and the rest of the world safer?

Was it a great opportunity that we bungled? Was it all about imperial vanity? Was it a vision of a cabal of a few men who hoodwinked the rest of the country? Or does our country simply not possess the patience to see something difficult through?

Pretty much no matter what happens, I will never quite understand it and the forces it unleashed...I can't tell if I'm on the wrong or right side of history...by not supporting the overthrow of a fascist thug am I on that side of history who once apologized for slavery and genocidal rampages for the sake of stability? Or did I support the lynch pin moment of American hubris, when we stepped over that line powerful nations are wont to do...when they impose their will on people who resist.

Was it a misplayed poker hand or the most brilliant move ever sabotaged by self-hating, politically correct apologists?

It is all very confusing.