TOO SOON
We need about two more years in Iraq of continued military presence in Iraq instead of two months.
We are obligated to leave the new governing council with a secure awareness of what continuing steps it must try to implement to establish a viable government after forty years of dictatorship rule. It is not something which takes place automatically even while the conflict is either ending or has been side-tracked into tangent political areas. We should know from previous ventures of this type that it takes years to do that job rather than months.
The planned intent, I think, was for the United State to maintain military presence in the country “as long as was necessary.” That concept has wavered from the start because of pressure from divergent religious to a degree, and also - even more apparent political pressures here in the United States. I have a feeling the Bush Administration would rather “stay the course” and assure a completion of the present plans to had over a strong, unified government to the Iraqi Governing Council they can use to rule their new nation effectively. Political opposition here at home has become stronger in vaguely articulated demands that we get out of Iraq at once. If John Kerry supporters continue to insist on withdrawal from Iraq in the hope that resulting the hope that resulting Iraqi might occur within the six months or so of election time remaining to give Bush a black eye on his Iraqi venture.
That sort of thinking, paired with a growing attempt to make the situation in Iraq to be “another Viet Nam” are a very real obstacle in the Bush path to re-election.
This anti-war emphasis may well grow and become dominant in the Kerry ranks based on his anti-war participation in anti-war protesting groups when he came home from a four months tour in the Mekong Delta area. Becoming anti-war oriented in the final days of the campaign could have a marked influence of the religious right voters.
The known facts about his known anti-war pretest marches and campaigns will become campaign fodder and it might well be used against him. If a faltering Bush can be presented as not being able to contain the Iraqi eruptions at all, and made out as being “a warmonger,” a great number of peace ctivists will be attracted to Kerry - Peacemaker for the future.
A.L.M. April 12, 2004 [c422wds]
