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with the Kurds given considerable hegemony in their region. With over 4,000 (?) U.S. dead and $500 billion (?) spent, we will withdraw. With our departure and the country under Shia control, terrorism within Iraq will abate. Iraq will become an ally of Iran - not a bastion of freedom and democracy. While most of the world will recognize that we failed, our leaders will claim that our objective all along was to give the Iraqis the chance to be free but they were unwilling to fight for themselves. They will never admit that the outcome was the predictable result of our failure to send enough highly trained troops to provide sufficient security for freedom and democracy to have a chance.
We elected George Bush in 2000 and 2004. He is our President. The Iraq war is his legacy to us. While he may be unwilling to admit past mistakes, and unwilling to take the necessary measures to fight a real war, we must stop deceiving ourselves about the unrelenting reality of this war. We must insist that our political leaders cease hiding from the tough choices we truly face. They must realize that if they continue to “stay the course,” they are deciding the outcome and that for over three years they have chosen a course leading inevitably to failure.
John H. Pomeroy is a resident of Sperryville. He is a veteran of Vietnam who graduated from the U. S. Air Force Academy in 1970.
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