re: #11 jc717

It’s encouraging that a secular alliance seems to have won the most votes in the recent elections. I was concerned that our involvement would replace a secular dictatorship with a theocratic democracy. Thus far, it seems, that hasn’t happened.

re: #17 LudwigVanQuixote

I hear that. My fear about this is that we leave and it all goes immediately to shit at the hands of the Iranis. Iran’s game here is clearly to get a nuke, wait for us to leave and then tke over. We have no chance f going back then to clean up with an Irani nuclear threat.

The only good thing about Iraq is direct threat of pressure on Iran. We simply can’t leave at the moment.

Or if we did completely take out the Irani nuclear threat, I mean in a make the rubble bounce sort of way, I would be quite happy to let them have Iraq as a consolation prize.

I have never understood why we invaded a secular Arab state while leaving an Islamist dictatorship untouched next door (not to mention another across the Gulf). What was the grand strategery?

Maybe the plan was that Iran would be shocked and awed into capitulation while we were being strewn with roses and greeted as liberators in Iraq.