A walk back in time. A time when a war with Iraq was a certainty and not a
current event. That time is February of 2003. During that time our leaders on
Capital Hill were trying to get answers to important questions regarding the
upcoming war. They had Paul Wolfowitz and Donald Rumsfeld sitting before them
answering the tough questions.

The toughest one was regarding the troop levels needed to occupy a post war
Iraq. General Shinseki was estimating we would need several hundred thousand
U.S. forces to stabilize and occupy the region, along with the help of tens of
thousand coalition forces. Both Wolfowitz and Rumsfeld dismissed that figure and
Shinseki, by his own admission, was ultimately forced to retire.

What was the reasoning for dismissing the estimates of General Shinseki?
Well, as Paul Wolfowitz told Congress, there was no history of ethnic strife in
Iraq and they would welcome their liberators with open arms. That’s right, Paul
Wolfowitz painted a picture that the different factions of Iraq are comparable
to a Catholic and a Jew hanging out together. Their religious differences have
no meaning and they would be glad we are there to liberate them.

Could anyone have been so wrong? Now we are seeing a bloody insurgency take
over Iraq that is fueled mainly by religious difference. To make matters even
worse, the Iraq constitution which was suppose to be completed Monday has been
given another week to settle the differences. The differences they are arguing
on are based upon differences in religious beliefs.

While we are still in one of the bloodiest months since we entered Iraq, the
insurgency is somewhat calm right now. It’s not a calm that would signify truth
to Dick Cheney’s “last throes” statement, but rather an eerie kind of calm. Most
experts are expecting a huge attack in the near future. They are saying we could
see another battle for Baghdad that could reach into the stronghold we call the
“Green Zone”.

We have troops that have been in Iraq for more than a year and are far from
being rested up for such an attack. As matter of fact, this kind of attack could
be the final blow the insurgency needs to break our will and force us to either
retreat or greatly increase our troop levels in Iraq. While all this is going
on, we are still faced with growing tensions with Iran and Venezuela.

President Bush continues to ensure the American people everything is going as
planned. The American people are no longer fooled, as the polls are showing. Now
we are seeing polls where over 60% of the American people think the Iraq war
will not have a good outcome, and the President’s approval continues to fall as
we rapidly approach a midterm election. If the experts are right and this battle
for Baghdad does take place, then it will be time for the right wing of Congress
to cut their losses with this President and demand changes in the policy. If not
it will be a genocide to our soldiers and to the blind followers of this
President.