Quote Originally Posted by dragonrider
I also partly agree with you on our responsibilities in Iraq. We should have never gone into Iraq in the first place, but as Colin Powell warned Bush before it even started, "You break it, you buy it." We should not leave it in chaos, and we should not allow it to become another Afghanistan. The big question is how do we do that. Is our occupation a stabilizing force or a destabilizing force? Is there any amount of money or lives we can expend that will restabilize that country? Is it our responsibility to pull it together now after five years, or the Iraqis? I don't know. One thing is for sure though --- this war has been a disaster and never should have happened, and if McCain gets linked to the blame for it without offering a vision of a way forward, he's not going to win the election. I don't think war should be subject to politics, but the fact is that people's feelings about it are so strong, and we are in an election year, so the war will likely have a bearing on how people vote, and the results will affect the conduct of the war going forward. Politics will affect this war.
I've always like Colin Powell. Very smart man.

In regards to whether or not our occupation will stabilize the country or not.. the answer is that no one really knows.

McCain has stated that there are essentially two options and I believe this to be true. Add more troops to secure and ensure the safety of the area until it stabilizes or Pull out competely; there is no sense in fighting a war with 25-50% of the manpowr that is needed to be on the winning side.

Like McCain has said before, he will either Add more troops or pull out of Iraq depending on whether or not signifigant progress is made by the time he comes into office.

Honestly I feel that this is a somewhat acceptable answers. Determining what to do in order to clean up the mess over there is a very difficult decision to make indeed.