What can we salvage?

I keep hearing politicians from both sides of the aisle and others talking about how, now that we are there, we should not leave Iraq until the job is finished.

I respectfully disagree. I know that I am on thin ice with a lot of Democrats and Liberals who do not want us to be perceived as soft on the war and therefore soft on terrorism. Tough shit!

Number one: As soon as support for the war drops another ten points or so we will not be able to continue waging this war regardless of what may or may not be the correct approach, or in America's best interests long term.

Number two: Does anybody really believe that we are making things better the longer we stay? I would suggest that the evidence is that as long as we are an occupying force the we attract death and destruction and that when we leave it will drop dramatically.

Number three: The lie that we can help establish a government that will survive after we bring the troops home is just that, a lie. We are despised by these people and therefore our political beliefs are not acceptable to them in the long run. What is far more likely to happen is that the country will devolve into a civil war which will eventually bring forth a leader, who is most likely a dictator, who will establish some semblance of peace.

Number Four: The lie that as long as we are engaging the enemy over there they will not strike us here on our soil. I would bet the farm that right now there are numerous plots to strike America and that many of the potential terrorists are currently being trained in Iraq on the proper way to trigger an explosive devise and to circumvent security. They are coming and they are going to be more highly trained then ever before. And for this they can thank George W. Bush.

In my humble, unsolicited, opinion I believe that we need to bring our troops home and begin training our military to provide a better defensive force for our concerns in this country and abroad. We need to elect a leader who is not an ideologue and who can see multiple sides of an issue and quickly reach a decision and implement a comprehensive plan of action.

We are in for some very turbulent decades to come our way soon. This administration has done unimaginable damage to our reputation and credibility in the world. We are going to need to approach the world with much less arrogance and to be far more conciliatory in our language.

We have miles to go before we sleep.