I'm a liberal democrat, opposed to this war from the very beginning. But I don't support pulling our troops out of Iraq, yet, perhaps not a popular position on this website. I'm disgusted at the political football that withdrawal has become.
The left and the right argue back and forth with the president: "bring home the troops", "get the job done", "set timetables for withdrawal", etc., but where is the analysis of the actual consequences of any of these actions? Where are the panels of experts discussing how this decision will affect Iraq, the Middle East, the long-term security of the US?
More below the fold.
What happens if we pull out of the country now, or in six months, or in a year? Will the insurgency tear the country apart, turning it into bloody civil war hellhole and dooming the US to a century of terrorist retribution? Or will it evaporate for lack of an enemy, leaving a stable, diverse democracy behind? Or would the result be somewhere in between?
Does it matter how long we wait? Sunni leaders are now issuing edicts that their followers participate in the political process. That's a good sign, does it mean things will be more stable if we wait for the next elections? Or does every minute we stay fuel the insurgency and create so many terrorists that no political change is worth our continued presence?
What will be the attitude across the Middle East if we remove our presence? Relief that white crusading boots aren't trampling the soil anymore? Anger that we invaded but left before we even had the power back on and the schools rebuilt?
There must be experts who understand the cultural landscape of Iraq and the mindset of the insurgency (at least better than I do) who can make educated guesses about these questions. Where are they? Why aren't we deferring to their wisdom - or at least consulting them - in our shrill calls for pulling out?
What about the moral issues? Is it immoral to invade but not rebuild? Tens of thousands of Iraqis have died as a result of tha war. If we pull out, will we be culpable for an unchecked insurgency killing half a million? Or is it immoral to stick around when we aren't wanted? Is the ethical question even strong enough to trump the loss of our own troops' lives?
Most of all ... in the shrill debate over the war, why do I feel like few people on either side actually care about these questions?