Iraq Withdrawal?

Maybe it is time to cut our losses and pull out of Iraq.

I never thought I’d be saying this, but things are going from incredibly bad to worse, and our presence clearly isn’t having much effect in tamping down a progressing civil war. I wouldn’t endorse a full withdrawal – I believe the establishment of military and intelligence bases there is too valuable an asset to discard – but might it be time to remove U.S. troops from standing on corners and conducting patrols?

Check out this Vanity Fair feature article: Rules of Engagement: The Haditha Killings.

On November 19, 2005, in Haditha, during Kilo Company's third tour of duty in Iraq, a land mine planted by insurgents exploded beneath a Humvee, killing a 20-year-old Marine. What happened next—the slaughter of 24 Iraqi men, women, and children—was not entirely an aberration. These actions were rooted in the very conduct of the war. As the men of Kilo Company face investigation, the author exposes the political, military, and human realities that now make such carnage routine.

The piece is pretty darn long, but I believe it fairly describes the vicious and self-perpetuating cycle of violence bred by our continued presence in Iraq.