Free Republic

Before the war in Iraq began, many policymakers and oil industry experts believed that Iraq's oil industry, with the second-largest proven reserves of light crude in the world, would recover and provide most of the funds needed for Iraq's reconstruction. On March 27, 2003, for example, Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz said that Iraq's oil revenues could bring between US$50 and $100 billion within two or three years following the country's liberation. "We're dealing with a country that can really finance its own reconstruction, and relatively soon," he said.[1] Iraqi National Congress leader Ahmad Chalabi promised that American oil...

The coalition's campaign in Iraq has become as much a psychological as a military war.Psychological warfare applies a series of messages and actions to persuade an audience to adopt particular policies. Not only formal allies, but also terrorists and insurgents incorporate a psychological component into their actions. Unable to defeat their foes in open battle, smaller, weaker entities often resort to terrorism or guerrilla actions to weaken enemy morale. By choosing their targets to maximize psychological impact, terrorists and insurgents seek to magnify their actions.After coalition forces swept through Iraq, a number of Saddam Hussein loyalists, Al-Qaeda enthusiasts, pro-Iranian Shi‘ites,...