Iraqi leader calls for 'speedy' withdrawal of US troops

A lot of Americans are calling for a withdrawal of US troops from Iraq. Personally, I've never called for an immediate withdrawal because it would probably turn Iraq into a totally failed state. There's enough insecurity WITH our troops that. In fairness, some argue that their presence is a cause of insecurity, rather than a deterrence to further instability. Though given my familiarity with brutal rebellions in other conflict zones, I have a hard time believing that the insurgents would simply go back to their homes (or countries) if the westerners left.

Instability is a Pandora's Box that's extremely difficult to re-close. What starts out as violence with a political motivation often degenerates very quickly into sheer, inhuman savagery whose political component is only token at best. Sierra Leone. Northern Uganda. El Salvador. Liberia. The list of examples is far too long. That's why the US should never have invaded Iraq in the first place. But we did and now we have the responsibility of cleaning up the mess.

However, one proviso I'd add is that if the Iraqi government wanted us to leave tomorrow, then we should. Our invasion and occupation has violated their sovereignty and dignity enough as it is.

So given the fact that those calling for a withdrawal of US troops from Iraq are often called traitors to the Iraqi people, weaklings, terrorist appeasers or, at best, grossly naive, I was interested to read the latest person to call for a 'speedy' pullout of US troops: the interim prime minister of Iraq.


Note: There's something that bugs me about the above referenced BBC article and others that follow the same tack. The article's title attributed a quote to the Iraqi leader ('Iraq PM urges 'speedy' US pullout') but the text of the article did not mention the quote anywhere. Though I otherwise have little regard for Fox News, at least their website often links to verbatim transcripts of speeches, press conferences, etc. that are referenced in their articles. That way, the reader can see comments in their entireity and in context (which is especially important given the way Fox News reports are presented). It's about the only facet of their operation that treats viewers and readers like intelligent human beings, but one that surprisingly hasn't been replicated by its competitors.