If in four years it is still going on, you may very well be correct, but I don't see that happening.
There are a lot more differences between Iraq and Viet Nam. The most obvious is no jungle. The second, there was a long built up by the enemy forces in South Viet Nam before we even arrived there. The infrastructure for guerilla warfare existed. The people have already seen what will happen to them if Saddam (or someone like him) returns to power. Insight that the Viet Cong did not have considering Uncle Ho.
But the real reason it will not happen is because our troops in Iraq have the full support of this administration, and this administration intends to win.
Another way to look at this, however, is to see that the left and the right are equally determined not to "repeat" their strategic mistakes of the Vietnam era. In other words, the fight may be more bitter this time because the tactics will be steeped in history.
There are a lot more differences between Iraq and Viet Nam.
These may be less important than you might realize. An urban environment can be thought of as a jungle of people. Saddam's forces may have been trained and prepared for just this kind of a scenario. And the common people in Iraq are weak and culturally unprepared for fighting for their own freedom.
But the real reason it will not happen is because our troops in Iraq have the full support of this administration, and this administration intends to win.
To say this is to express hope. I agree. However, the fact remains that civilizations are clashing here, and a "war of liberation" may not ever be won. The war to eliminate terror funding, continued WMD buildup, and take the edges off pan-Arab nationalism is already won, however.
Two major comparisons to Vietnam hold: first, our country is again divided at home about the right way to stand against an external threat that is variously seen as severe to nonexistent. Second, we aren't going to "win" this war overnight; fighting it only may seem to stem the tide. I would argue that there is also a similar condition with our lack of will to commit massive force to eliminate Arab ability to fight from one end of the region to the other. The Road Map leads to hell, and Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Pakistan continue to pose horrific threats -- yet we bide our time and even commit resources to the PA while Israelis, Indians, Afghanis, and Chechyens continue to die. Students in Iran right this moment are bloody, confused, and betrayed after their July 9th uprising that predictably recieved little or no support from our CFR-dominated State Department. Indeed, the enemy is within.
The seeds of our decline were sewn when we tolerated internal revolt (as opposed to honest dissent) during the Vietnam war. And they fell on fertile ground, because we had prepared ourselves for defeat in Korea when we pulled back to the 38th parallel. MacArthur warned us that we would regret not winning that war decisively. And so we have.
People, the future is very dark. You must gird yourselves to defend America like you never have before.