Talk Radio News Service: News, Politics, Media

By Ellen Ratner
I have been on record as being against the war in Iraq from the beginning. I do not know one person – Red State, Blue State, Democrat, Republican, military, civilian – who can say that the war in Iraq is going well or has gone well. It's so bad we don't even know how to measure "going well." The war in Iraq has been one long domino chain of dysfunction, destruction and death.

It started with poor intelligence and got worse from there. The military assured that if they cut off the head, the body would die. Here's all you gotta do troops – just git rid of Saddam and we can break out the cigars. The military did what they were told and eliminated the official command element. Saddam is in jail. Our military works 24x7 to stay alive and there has never been time for cigars. What's a commander in chief to do?

Why not just declare victory and go home? It's not as though we are making things any better for the Iraqi people by staying there.

Even the most optimistic of government officials admit that the insurgents are becoming more emboldened. As one such official said, "They are pouring into the country from everywhere and they have no shortage of money or arms." An Iraqi I spoke with estimates that the Baathist insurgents alone could number up to 50,000. That's 50,000 men who know they have no future with a new government made up of Shiites.

Remember the Baathists? They are the guys who put the Shiites in mass graves for the last few decades. The insurgents see that their best alternative to losing is death, so why not fight to the death? As the Iraqi official said, "No one will change their hearts and minds."

The generous American taxpayers have gone into debt to the tune of about $150 billion over Iraq. What do we have to show for this money? There are no specific measurable results to point to other than Saddam is in prison. While this may be no small trick, it is a far cry from peace and prosperity. The death toll in Iraq for the U.S. military and civilians gets higher and higher each month.

Iraqi oil production is dropping due to sabotage. Public-works projects are daily targets of the insurgents. We are losing the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people by not being able to secure the nation despite dropping 500 pound bombs like candy in their civilian neighborhoods. This is no way to win a war, a heart, a mind, a peace.

Of course, the administration is putting all the chips on the newly elected government and the Iraqi security forces. I've been told by military members that their hardest job is trying to work with these Iraqi troops. Hello? Can anyone name a time when this commando joint venture plan has worked for the United States? Vietnam, Nicaragua, ...?

The president admits the Iraqi troops have been a "disappointment." I wonder how this president would feel if one of his children or even a distant Bush cousin were serving side by side with Iraqi troops that are known to be infiltrated with insurgents. Wait, this is impossible because there are no Bushes in Iraq.

I can usually count on Secretary Powell for an occasional glimmer of hope when it comes to U.S. foreign policy. The soon to be "former" secretary of state, hinted last week that we may be able to celebrate the return of our troops sooner rather than later. As API reported, when the secretary was asked to define success in Iraq, Powell said it would be putting in place an elected government representing all Iraqis, and creating an Iraqi security force capable of protecting the country from insurgents and outside forces. "If we accomplish those two things, then we've accomplished our mission," he said.

I'm not ready to break out the champagne yet, but it's on ice. After the elections, it will be very easy to make the argument that the Iraqi security forces are "OK" and that their government is the most representative government in the Middle East. Voila! We're cleared for take off. It's like we were never there.

If we don't start sending our troops home, we aren't going to have troops to send anywhere. Currently, 40 percent of the troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan are Reserve and Guard forces. By law, they cannot be activated for more than two years. The clock is ticking. If this law is changed, as some are proposing and our Guard and Reserve troops are deployed one out of every five years of their careers, then you better start getting the draft cards ready because there will be a mass exodus from the Guard and Reserves (who, by the way, are already having a recruiting crisis).

And this time, the young Bushes and Cheneys may have to become Canadian citizens, as there won't be any hidin' in the Guard or deferments. No sireee.