You said -- "We won't do that, and won't win."
And we won't win until we *disabuse* everyone of the idea that Islam is a peaceful religion -- like the President keeps affirming.
Regards,
Star Traveler
I disagree.
We are not going to send waves of missionaries to try and convert Islam.
It would be what would be necessary to really permanently change the situation on the ground, but it is beyond the ken of ANY government in 2007. Our Republic in no sense can support a Crusade against Islam.
We can, nevertheless, win a war in an Islamic country like Iraq. Winning means having a friendly government in place able to fend for itself at the end. It's a low threshold, but a real one. So long as they are not launching jihadists at us or supporting terrorists against us, they're friendly enough for our purposes.
In Iraq, it doesn't mean converting the Iraqis. Maybe that would finally bring permanent peace and civilization, but it's beyond the capacity of American government to even contemplate, let alone organize.
What we CAN do is pick the sides that are the least hostile to US, and arm them and support them so that they cream anyone else. Then we end up with a police state puppet, but that police state puppet will not be supporting terrorists against us. That's victory. Whitehall democracy? Maybe someday. But that's impossible until you have defeated the military threat. And that's not what our current strategy is doing.
Pick sides, arm them, and win. THEN we can start administering the peace.