Well, according to Shrub it's all a moot point. I guess we should put away all our questions and misgivings about the reasons for the war in Iraq. The last one to leave, please turn out the lights...
President Bush said the public's decision to reelect him was a ratification of his approach toward Iraq and that there was no reason to hold any administration officials accountable for mistakes or misjudgments in prewar planning or managing the violent aftermath.
Bush Speaks
I would have to agree with you Schraf. As far as Iraq becoming a beacon of democracy in the middle east, I sadly and highly doubt it. If we look historically at the problems the british had with Iraq when they administered it, we would see remarkable similarities with the problems we face now. The three factions, Kurds, Shiites, and Sunnis have been in conflict for so long that for them to learn to cooperate for any length of time would be a miracle. A dictator might be able to quell the rival factions by suppressing freedoms of one group over another. Of course that ain't a democracy and we'd be back where we started. That and there are other considerations, such as Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia, etc. I don't doubt that Iran is doing everything it can to bring about a Shiite victory at whatever cost. If they win they have a religious "partner" in the middle east, if they lose they can still cause Iraq to be unstable for a very long time, leaving them still in a strong position.
By the way, I wonder how long we will be in Iraq. The biggest reason I think we'll stay in for at least the next 4 years is because of the oil fields. Things could get worse really fast if we leave too soon (not that we're doing so hot now). God, I have to wonder why Bush hasn't been impeached. The amount of lying and things he has gotten away with just boggles my mind.
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