The American Left and the War in Iraq

While reading a post about another outrageous Keith Olbermann statement, I was reminded of a recent (National Review) book review about Bing West's new book on the war in Iraq (The Strongest Tribe):

Bing West has many useful insights on the Iraq War. The nuggets are there for anyone willing to mine them. But two points in particular are worth noting.

The first is the danger of conducting war when American society is divided. One division, notes West, has been ideological and partisan: “Although sacrifice on a national scale is not required for every conflict, a healthy society does not treat war as an extension of domestic political competition. . . . National security cannot be sustained when domestic party affiliation and ideology determine the support for a war. Iraq was a symptom, not the cause of the ideological polarization of American society.”

The second insight is related to the foolishness of leaving Iraq without regard to the long-term consequences, another penchant of the American Left:

The second point concerns the endgame in Iraq. West argues that while the wisdom of invading Iraq in the first place can be debated by reasonable people, four factors should determine whether the U.S. perseveres in Iraq. First, a stable Iraq advances U.S. interests in the region. Second, any reduction of U.S. forces in Iraq should be done prudently, not in such a way as to signal that the U.S. has given up. Third, a precipitous pullout would most likely shatter Iraq, unleashing centrifugal forces. Fourth, if Iraq were to hold together in the face of a precipitous withdrawal, it would “resent America for having given up.” This would have serious implications for the regional balance of power.