Cabin Window: Future Iraqi change coming
The next few weeks will tell us quite a bit about whether we've done any good in Iraq. We'll know that we've either helped create a free nation, or we'll know that we've wasted more than 4,000 lives and billions in borrowed dollars to do nothing but watch over carnage that won't ever end.
American forces are set to leave Iraqi cities today. Part of a security agreement with Iraqi officials compels us to withdraw our troops from urban areas, and so our troops will leave the cities and move out to large bases scattered throughout the Iraqi countryside.
We've said before, and we believe today, that American troops control the ground they're standing on and not much else. True enough, a .50-caliber machine gun mounted on an armored vehicle can increase that range significantly, but the point remains that chaos seemingly reigns in Iraq. The only buffer is a body-armored U.S. servicemember totin' a rifle.
It's not a far leap to figure that when those troops move from street corners and checkpoints to bases out in the hinterlands, chaos in the form of religious animosities will gain a stronghold.
That's the pessimistic view. We'd like to believe it won't happen, but we've seen lots of examples that prove otherwise.
However, maybe the Iraqi people are tired of that way of life. Maybe enough of those wanting justice for all will stand up to those who want to rule by fear and violence.
Maybe Iraqi officials will fend off insurgents and evildoers, moving society along a peaceful path for all men, women and children in that war-torn country.
We hope so.
We hope peace breaks out all over Iraq. Recent bombings that have killed several hundred don't point to such an outcome, but maybe these are the "last throes" we famously heard about several long, bloody years ago.
Not only for the Iraqi people do we want peace there, though we want peace for everyone. We want peace because that means our men and women can come home, and it means that we won't need to send others to take their place.
For six years, American troops have endured hardships in the Iraqi desert. They've lived in difficult conditions and performed tough jobs. And those are the lucky ones. More than 4,000 have died, and many more thousands have been wounded, often horribly.
We in Arkansas have felt this involvement acutely. We have sent thousands of our friends and neighbors to those sands. Twice.
Hundreds of thousands of Americans have paid a huge price for our involvement in Iraq. If we pull back from the cities only to see violence grip the nation again, then what will we have accomplished with our blood and treasure?
If Iraq descends into death and destruction, how will we justify the sacrifices some Americans have made in these six years?
As we come upon our Independence Day, we look to Iraq to see if its independence is worth all that we have given up. We hope for the best, but only time will tell the reality.