Imagining Victory
With all the talk about whether we can win in Iraq or whether we are fighting a war we have already lost, perhaps we should take some time to try to envision what victory in Iraq what look like. Most Americans will say that they want us to win in Iraq, but it may be more difficult for them to explain what victory entails. Perhaps victory is like obscenity, we’ll know it when we see it. But, if we are truly committed to winning this war, we should have a clear goal in mind. That is a lesson that our politicians would do well to remember.
Victory in Iraq must involve the establishment of a country that is free form the clutches of Islamic fanatics who use intend to use Iraq as a staging ground and a training ground for attacks against the United States and other free and democratic societies. Iraq must be a country that is free from terrorism. Any foothold available to terrorists in the country is an invitation for further violence against us and our allies. To leave Iraq a stable and free country, victory must also necessarily include the elimination of the insurgents who are actively working against the establishment of a democratic society. Does that mean that Iraq must become a mirror of Western society? No. Iraq can be free to chart its own course, but it must remain a country free from fanaticism and free from terrorism.
Victory in Iraq also means that our troops can leave. When the Iraqi people and the Iraqi government can successfully defend the country, then our troops can withdraw with the knowledge that all the good they have done will not be undone as soon as they board the planes home. We cannot simply withdraw today and call it a victory. We will leave the Iraqi people at the mercy of a well armed and well funded insurgency which has no true concern for the good f the Iraqi people. Therefore, victory must also necessarily involve our continued presence in Iraq until the Iraqis can take up the fight with the training and confidence they need to defeat our common enemy.
There is an end in sight to this long war, but whether it is a victory or a defeat is still to be determined. The most important element to that determination right now is whether those in charge of the big decisions can formulate a clear goal for victory in Iraq. When we know where we are going, when we can visualize the goal, it makes the getting there so much easier.