Iraq, Part 2

The American Thinker has published the second part of an article by Randall Hoven on the War in Iraq.  This section details the alternatives we faced, the choices we made, and the consequences of those choices.  He reminds us of the amazing amount of corruption in Iraq’s military and police forces under the rule of Saddam Hussein.  One of the problems we faced according to the article:

“Jerry Bremer informs us that “in almost every police station, there’d been a rape room, and one of the busiest had been at the Baghdad Central Police Academy.”  These were the kinds of forces in place under Saddam.  Would you want to re-constitute that?  And if you did, what would be the chances of the Shiites and Kurds going along with it?”
 
It’s easy to forget how bad things were in Iraq before we went in and toppled Hussein.  It’s also easy to forget that in his generations of terrorist rule, Saddam Hussein had killed anyone who might have had the brains or inclination to be a leader.  Most of the educated people who would have been able to construct a new government quickly were either executed or fled the country.  This provided many challenges in setting up an Iraqi government.
 
Professor Hoven also reminds us of the war the state department waged against the Bush presidency during George Bush’s term.  The choice of Jerry Bremer was a result of this war.
 
The article also observes:
 
“And even what I do think I know is only in hindsight.  Even Jerry Bremer did well enough, considering his circumstances.  It was not really he and his decisions; it was the fact that we had a US viceroy running the country of Iraq at all.  The Sunnis were defeated in about every respect they could be defeated, and then we kicked sand in their face.  You would think professional diplomats, of all people, would know not to do that.  While our soldiers were giving Iraqi children candy and soccer balls, our diplomats were telling senior and seasoned Iraqis to sit down and shut up.  We’d have been better off letting some Marine Captains run the place.

I am perfectly willing to shut up about this and say everyone did about as well as could be expected.  Would everyone else please do the same?”
 
Iraq is free.  Libya has given up her nuclear program.  The world in our generation may never be a safe place–there are terrorists enclaves in many places–but we have taken a first step toward Middle East peace.