SGG's Pick the President Poll

[Beemnseven]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Well that's an argument for never going into Iraq in the first place, but it's not a good argument for why we should just pack up and leave.

We were the ones who made that friggin mess (though not the only ones, thanks Iran and Syria). We'd absolutely DESTROY any remaining credibility we have in the international community if we just packed up and left a power vacuum in it's place. The Iraqi government is not nearly strong enough to stand on its own, and without our presence the insurgents/Iran would quickly move to overthrow the existing government.

I can appreciate the point of those who say we're there now, and there's nothing we can do about the mistakes our country has made in the past.

But for a moment, let's say what is not supposed to be said: They'll say we'll lose all of our credibility -- We have no credibility in the international community. They say Iraq will turn into a bloodbath when we leave -- Iraq IS a bloodbath. The only difference is that American blood will no longer be spilled there.

We were the ones who created the vacuum when we toppled Saddam. He was a Secularist, who quite obviously knew how to keep the Sunnis and the Shia separated and in line. Was he evil? Sure. But he kept order in what we now know to be a volatile environment, and he kept Iran in check. Now he's gone, the insane are running the asylum, and we are caught in the crosshairs of huge mess.

The old saying by Thomas Jefferson goes like this: The tree of liberty must be freshened from time to time by the blood of patriots and tyrants. At some point, the people of Iraq will have to discover their own destiny -- even if that destiny is paved with blood, even if it's a knock-down, drag out with Iran. The right thing to do, the ONLY thing to do, is get the hell out of their way.