[mercy]

Look for a reinstitution of the draft soon after Iraq falls. We are going to have to keep at least 250,000 troops in our new protectorate/base of operations for the foreseable future as Islamist terrorism is the new norm from here on.

We'll need another million or so to keep the lid on in fifty or so other trouble spots around the globe.

[68skylark]

We'll need another million or so to keep the lid on in fifty or so other trouble spots around the globe.

There are a lot of people in the U.S. who share your gloomy outlook.

I'm glad to say I'm not one of them -- I think the people of Iraq will be happy to be liberated. Muslims in other countries will likely grumble about our actions, but on the other hand everybody admires a winner. And when they see the people of Iraq aren't badly treated I think the overall reaction will be muted.

We're soon going to see if you're right -- it won't take long after the war begins to see how the population of Iraq (and the rest of the region) react to Saddam's overthrow.