The Naivete of Some Americans
Gary Ater
February 15, 2007
IraqIn a recent editorial letter, a reader had written: "We could end the war in Iraq right now, if we just supported our troops with the funds for them to finish the job. An upsurge of troops would wipe out the invaders from Iran, Syria and Lebanon as well as the other terrorists in Iraq."
Where did this person get the idea that all the "bad guys" are all outside invaders? The actual "War" with Iraq ended with the removal of the Saddam regime. Since then, the US occupation has been involved with an internal conflict between the same two tribes that have been warring since the sixth century. The US troops are subsequently stuck in the middle of a regional Civil War that they cannot control. Yes, there are some outsiders involved , but it is mostly agreed that the number of outsiders is well less than 5% of those involved in the conflict.
The ignorance of Iraq, its culture and the culture of Iraq's neighbors and Muslims in general, is the foundation of the US problems in Iraq. It's the mentality and the lack of understanding by many Americans, such as the individual quoted here, that has caused the US to initially go to war and to still be in the middle of a conflict that we can never "win" in the normal sense. The average US citizen is just now beginning to understand the current desparate situation, through the loss of so many of our troops that are hopelessly stuck in harm's way.
Where did this person get the idea that all the "bad guys" are all outside invaders? The actual "War" with Iraq ended with the removal of the Saddam regime. Since then, the US occupation has been involved with an internal conflict between the same two tribes that have been warring since the sixth century. The US troops are subsequently stuck in the middle of a regional Civil War that they cannot control. Yes, there are some outsiders involved , but it is mostly agreed that the number of outsiders is well less than 5% of those involved in the conflict.
The ignorance of Iraq, its culture and the culture of Iraq's neighbors and Muslims in general, is the foundation of the US problems in Iraq. It's the mentality and the lack of understanding by many Americans, such as the individual quoted here, that has caused the US to initially go to war and to still be in the middle of a conflict that we can never "win" in the normal sense. The average US citizen is just now beginning to understand the current desparate situation, through the loss of so many of our troops that are hopelessly stuck in harm's way.
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