It's always a pleasure to read an intelligent person write in their area of expertise.

Remember the promises? The Iraqi expedition would pay for itself, "democracy" would sweep the area, the WMDs would be removed, (that WMDs existed), and prosperity would be inevitable.

Bush and Cheney guaranteed us those things. Rumsfeld canned Shinseki for advocating an adequate military presence and the various Generals lied their asses off just as they did in Vietnam. Anything for the next star.

It's a tragic outcome, and a great example of how the American public can be led by the nose, propagandized into believing anything, supporting anything, and turning incompetence into heroism. (Remember Rumsfeld early on - the adolation, "I won't lie to you".)

The Bush Administration did not make any effort to understand the cultures in the region, didn't make any effort to learn from the past and apply those lessons to occupying a foreign culture. Condi Rice claimed to own Iraq, and had no plan.

The oil fields were secured, and the rest of the country encouraged to anarchy. Rumsfeld - "Stuff happens!", and all the Kings' men and all the Kings' horses couldn't put Iraq back together again.

And the US actively avoids learning the lessons from the past. They are too painful. If they aren't painful, they aren't accurate. But Americans want to believe they are great, altruistic, generous, wise.

They can be, it's possible, but only rarely shown.

Nope, Iraq is an American disaster, and the lessons are quite simple. But we won't look at them, we won't learn. For proof, look at Afghanistan. We're still there, and Afghanistan isn't a real country, can't be conquered, is not suitable for "democracy" and will not be dominated. Osama is dead, and we're still there.

Discouraging.