First Diary entry for a longtime (coupla' years) reader....
Ambassador Joe Wilson of Plamegate fame made an impromptu visit to my Political Science class yesterday. It was pretty cool. He plugged his book (or said that was why he was in town) He gave a short talk about WMD's and the Bush administration's false justifications for the war. Then he talked about the war in Iraq, and that we needed to change the "ambiance" in Iraq; to change US troops into UN troops, basically. He said that the Iraqis understand occupation, because of their history with the Ottomans and the British, and that they know that they must resist what is now percieved as the American occupation.
And I agree with him- i think that although the feeling on the ground may not be quite at that stage, it is trending that way. One way to help, as Wilson suggested, is to internationalize the operation- bring the UN in on it, put a different face on the operation. It should have been done from the start, of course, but it will still help; better late than never. Kerry ought to make a point of talking about this as a part of a plan for Iraq , and pound the fact that Bush's personal arrogance has alienated us from our European allies, who we now need in Iraq.
Just a few thoughts for my first Diary entry!