[txrangerette]

Perle was superb.

But did you catch it when he said the mistake in Iraq was not in going in but in carrying out an "occupation"...being an "occupying power", in which case the populace was bound to become disgruntled. I don't understand what Perle would have had us do. Have you heard anyone give a good alternative to our stay in Iraq, after we got there? I have not.

Note he didn't complain that we dismantled the Army or failed in reconstruction or keeping law and order, etc. He said we made a mistake by occupying Iraq, not by going in. Duh? What should we have done?

[Stultis]

He meant (and I think he was wrong even in this) that we should have transfered sovereignty to Iraqis almost immediately. IOW we would have still been there in full force, but once sovereignty is transfered we are not officially an "occupying force" (although try to 'splain that to al Jazeera or your average lefty).