I did not believe in the invasion before it happened for one major reason. Since WWII we've absolutely sucked at nation building or rebuilding. No administration of any party has been good at it by any measurement. Every time we've attempted it, there have been as many or more bad consequences as good. For every new ally we've created, we've added that many or more new enemies.

Lasting change in any area happens slowly. It cannot be forced especially from the outside.

We fell into a major trap after WWII. We got two examples of success that are highly unlikely to ever be repeated. First there's Germany. In that case, the country was devastated, bombed beyond belief, attacked from all sides, and a major embarassment loomed over many of the citizens as the details of the concentration camps descended upon the world. We didn't have to go it alone either. Local countries jumped into the post-war efforts so our supply lines were not unmanageable. The German culture was similar to ours, same basic religion, a sharing of ethnic origin, similar languages. Our soldiers looked like the Germans and didn't stand out among the citizens.

In Japan, we had the advantage of a robotic culture, ruled heavily by a single emperor. When surrender came, that emperor commanded his country to lay down their arms and never waivered in that committment. The only real resistance we got there were the lone soldiers stranded on remote islands that didn't get the word of the surrender. There were no real warring and competing factions in the country.

I also believe we should simply look for the fastest exit possible in Iraq, not because we're not up for a fight or need to be cowardly, but simply because the situation has no end and our presence causes as much violence as it prevents. You cannot undo thousands of years of hatred among the factions without slow and steady natural cultural evolution. I fear the damage is done and irreversible by force and that only time out of the conflict can begin the healing.

Look, I want to believe as ER does that the intentions to go in were nothing but honorable but my impressions of it, or his, or Tom's don't mean a thing compared to what the perception is of the average Iraqi citizen. I think to them, our country, or at least our leadership, is a bumbling, greedy mess and I get the impression they'd probably prefer to figure out their lives on their own. I think I would if I were in the same situation.

Art