Charles Krauthammer and the future of the Iraq war
Will someone out there please take a look at this column by Krauthammer called 'Iraq, a civil war we can still win' and tell me if they are as appalled by it as I am?
This is, after all, his feel good rallying cry to the American public that, by God, we can still win this one. And how? By waiting and hoping for this to happen:
'Yesterday Maliki took over operational control of the Iraqi armed forces, the one national security institution that works*. He needs to demonstrate the will to use it. The American people will support a cause that is noble and necessary, but not one that is unwinnable. And without a central Iraqi government willing to act in its own self-defense, this war will be unwinnable.'
Or did I miss something? A call for a changed strategy, for more troops, for new leadership? Something, anything, other than sticking with the plan and hoping that Maliki has what it takes? Or am I being overly pessimistic and critical?
*Huh?
posted by Clemens @ 1:27 AM
2 comments
2 Comments:
"We might come out of this with an independent Kurdistan that could be a base for U.S. military power, but it would be a shrunken presence in a roiling area, a tragically small consolation prize."
Well, we can at least thank Charles for finally revealing what this war was about. If a base in Kurdistan is a mere "consolation prize," I suppose that permanent bases all over Iraq was the grand prize for which Charles and his friends had hoped, as it would have given us an unprecedented military foothold in the world's most strategically important region.
Moreover, establishing bases in Iraq was essential given that, immediately after 9/11, the Bush Administration shut down the Prince Sultan Air Base in 2003, thus giving in to one of Osama bin Laden's main demands. (Of course this wasn't an example of "appeasing the terrorists.")
Good points. Aside from this, I am just appalled that we now have worked ourselves into a situation where Charles can only say, wait until the Iraqis solve it - or not.
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