The pro-war cheerleaders must be tiring by now- their arm weighty and voices hoarse.
Fight! Fight! Fight!
Convinced its halftime, they’ve taken to the field and formed a human pyramid. Alternately grinning and snarling, the head cheerleader on top relies on his droopy, tottering squad below to keep him from falling from his lofty perch.
Fight! Fight! Fight!
None of them have even noticed the players have limped off the field, the cheering spectators are gone and the lights are dimmed. The game is over. Only the water boys remain.
The most recent player to have left Iraq is Mokhtar Lamani, the Arab League envoy to Iraq. After a week of speculation, he confirmed in an 8-page, handwritten letter that he had resigned because the mission was "impossible."
Respected and well-liked, Lamani was appointed in March 2006 to help reconcile the ethnic and sectarian groups towards national unity. The Kurdish Peshmerga forces protected him and his aides in his Baghdad headquarters located in what he called the "red zone," referring to all of Iraq outside of the Green Zone.
To whet your interest, following are some responses from an interview given by Lamani. Unfortunately, I am limited in what I can offer, but hope that you will take a few minutes and read the entire post at IraqSlogger.com, including Lamani’s interesting and informative letter of resignation.
When asked of the current situation in Iraq:
"Tragic, I have never seen a crisis in the world that has gotten as complicated as Iraq’s...there is a situation of complete distrust between Iraqis...I noticed that, especially among politicians, one’s commitment towards his sect of ethnicity is stronger than his attachment to his ‘Iraqness’. "
Lamani’s evaluation of the U.S. strategy:
"I met (James) Baker, and we spoke at length. What worries me is that the Iraqi dossier... is being evaluated according to America’s interests, and not Iraq’s...from my observation...the problem will not be solved by adding American troops to Iraq. Adding 21,000 extra soldiers will bring the total to 150, 000 soldiers, which will change nothing. Coalition forces in 2005 were 160, 000 and the situation was worse. America carries a heavy responsibility (for the current situation)..."
On the regional Arabs and Iranians:
"It is shameful that the Arabs are irresponsibly watching the unfolding of events, as if what is happening does not concern them. It is not in their interest. Iran should also review its positions, because it has been using the current state of fragmentation in Iraq to infiltrate the country...it is also not in its interest... many people and tribes from the Southern area expressed to me their discontent over the Iranian infiltration and its form...I believe that Iraq’s collapse will scorch the entire area."
Looking forward:
"There is a failed political project...reconciliation did not succeed, nothing succeeded...some regional players entrenched themselves, others are infiltrating Iraq, and others content to sit idly and watch as if they will be spared the effects of what is happening in Iraq...the security situation is disastrous... the living conditions are disastrous, people are without electricity or water, the core of Iraqi society is being disshelved. Iraqis are leaving the country at the rate of 3,000 families per day..."
Now, will someone please yank that fool off the field and send him back home to Texas, or Paraguay...or wherever. The game is over.