Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Crisis and Credibility
Andrew Sullivan's interlocutor warns of the catastrophe that will result if we withdraw from Iraq-- al Qaeda will align with Iran, Pakistan will be absorbed into the caliphate, lions will lie down with lambs, a great king of frightfulness will come from the skies, etc.
He is correct that there are no good options.
That said, the people who planned and sold this war were the people who said we'd be greeted as liberators, we'd be done in a few months, and the war would be entirely funded by a modest tax on Iraqi oil profits.
(I supported the war, BTW).
These people traffic only in extremes-- delusional optimism, or paranoid fearmongering-- and they are ALWAYS WRONG. About everything, all the time.
Remember, the "occupation today, occupation tomorrow, occupation forever" crowd are the folks who were on the wrong side of this debate:
"Point: This War Will Destabilize The Entire Mideast Region And Set Off A Global Shockwave Of Anti-Americanism."
He is correct that there are no good options.
That said, the people who planned and sold this war were the people who said we'd be greeted as liberators, we'd be done in a few months, and the war would be entirely funded by a modest tax on Iraqi oil profits.
(I supported the war, BTW).
These people traffic only in extremes-- delusional optimism, or paranoid fearmongering-- and they are ALWAYS WRONG. About everything, all the time.
Remember, the "occupation today, occupation tomorrow, occupation forever" crowd are the folks who were on the wrong side of this debate:
"Point: This War Will Destabilize The Entire Mideast Region And Set Off A Global Shockwave Of Anti-Americanism."
"Counterpoint: No It Won't."
