Alien Drums

After watching President Bush’s speech last night announcing a surge in troop levels in Iraq, it seems there is really only one pertinent question to be asked — Will it work?

I don’t think so. It might have worked three years ago but not now. The chaos has spread, and a civil war has erupted. It seems to me that it would take a lot more than 21,000 additional troops to even have a chance of succeeding; but ultimately outside intervention is not going to solve the problem in Iraq.

I wish all people in the world had the chance to live in a liberal democracy where the common good is pursued and minority rights are respected; but, ultimately, a people have to want it, not have it imposed on them. This is because democracy requires sacrificing what you want individually in order to pursue the greater good. It also requires the rule of law, and Iraq has shown more interest in the rule of power.

George W. Bush is a good man, but he took a misstep in leading us into Iraq. Then he made more missteps in executing the war effort. This will be another one. Once you start down the wrong path, the only way to solve the problem is to admit it and then find another path.