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Am I suggesting that merely establishing a democracy in the middle east will defeat theocratic authoritarianism, despotism, jihadism, and caliphatism in the Middle East and Asia?

No.

But it is a step in the right direction. Whether Iraq will continue to be an Ally of the United States in the Long Term is yet to be seen, however that does not automatically mean they will revert to authoritarianism or some other extreme. Hell, Germany is not what I would call an Ally these days, but last I checked they have not reverted to Nazism.

But in the long run, yes I do believe we can win the battle of ideas and ideology in the Islamic World. In many ways we have, with a few exceptions, most countries with large Islamic Populations have seen dramatic drops in public approval for terrorism, Osama Bin Laden, and Al Qaeda.

Our Victory is far from certain, and though we have made great strides in the GWOT, we have seen many, many set backs.

The future is not certain, but we do have it in us the capacity to defeat this enemy just like we did Nazism and Global Communism.

Undoubtedly we have the capacity to defeat the Islamists. The question is whether we have the will. My point, and Helperin’s, is that we haven't been showing that will and that GWB has been nearly as deficient in this regard as the Democrats.

I never doubted that we would prevail in Iraq. We had to, so I knew we would find a way. We would have invaded Iraq and defeated all comers there even if President Gore were just finishing his second term or President Kerry his first. We'll be there still securing our victory when former President Obama lies in state after dying of extreme old age. Of course it is worthwhile to set up the institutions of democracy in Iraq now that we can. It is a necessary condition of our ultimate victory. Necessary but not sufficient.

George W. Bush never understood that we had unfinished business with Arabia and Persia that can not be addressed entirely within Iraq. Turning Iraq into a demonstration project was never going to cow our enemies in Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia et al. Bush had a lot of killing to do that he wasn’t willing to get on with. His naivete leaves us in a strategic predicament which we will soon, I fear, regret bitterly.

“The future is not certain, but we do have it in us the capacity to defeat this enemy just like we did Nazism and Global Communism.”

I’m not so sure global communism has been defeated. China and Russia are worrying me much more than the Islamists.