Judging the Occupation

If George W Bush wins next month, he will have to face the reality in Iraq. We have given them freedom from Saddam and now it's time for them to forge their destiny and it's time for us to refocus on protecting ourselves from Islamic fundamentalism. There can be no doubt that the presence of US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have deepened the security dilemma for Iran and increased their haste in pursuing nuclear weapons and missile technology. That is a regional problem. We have done what we have done and now it is time to quit being paternalistic and allow the moderate forces in the Middle East to wage their own war on the extremists. Playing Islam against the West is the most powerful tool that the religious fanatics have (theirs and ours). Every picture of a dead Iraqi child plays into that image and emboldens those that use America as the straw man for their own zealous retrograde beliefs.