VI Day

Apparently, the US has won the War in Iraq.

That just slipped by everyone's attention, of course, because of the liberal mainstream media. Oh, and because there was no declaration of surrender, and nobody really knows if Iraq can even govern itself without US forces there. That probably has something to do with it too.

Go to right wing blogs like this one and you'll see all kinds of pictures of ticker tape parades and post-war celebrations from... the forties. They all declared November 22nd Victory in Iraq Day. Why November 22nd? Well, I really couldn't find out why they chose that date rather than any other. It's not like the insurgents signed a peace treaty or surrendered their arms and gave in to US troops. From what I could find, they pulled that date out of their asses.

Have things improved in Iraq. Absolutely! After they finally decided to throw in enough troops to actually manage the insurgency, the number of attacks are down, and Iraq is a much safer place. But is that victory?

Victory in Iraq should be defined as having accomplished the goals that the Americans set out to accomplish. Was that goal simply getting enough troops in there to keep violence to a minimum? I doubt it.

The goal was to facilitate the establishment of a government and infrstructure in Iraq that could provide for its own security, and be friendly to the US and its interests. In order to find out whether that's been accomplished, American forces have to pull out of Iraq, or at least reduce their military presence, to see if the level of violence stays as low as it currently is. When that happens, I'll be ready to declare victory in Iraq. Not before.

Ask a righty why it is, if the War in Iraq has been won, why it is that there are still American troops there, and they'll say, "well, we still have troops in Germany and Japan!" Those, troops however, aren't holding back insurgencies. Nobody is worried that Tojo's grandson is going to bomb Pearl Harbor again if American troops leave Okinawa. That comparison is meaningless. Stop using it. It's fucking stupid.