Such A Shame Nobody Was Listening

"Iraq presents far from ideal conditions for achieving strategic goals. Saddam Hussein is the culmination of a violent political culture that is rooted in a tortured history. Ethnic, tribal, and religious schisms could produce civil war or fracture the state after Saddam is deposed.

Should an unwelcome occupation continue for a prolonged time, a force initially viewed as liberators can rapidly be relegated to the status of invaders. To reduce the amount of resentment about the occupation in Iraq and the surrounding region, it is essential that military forces hand over responsibilities to civilian agencies as soon as practicable.

If the Iraq war were to progress rapidly with few civilian casualties, the occupation would probably be characterized by an initial honeymoon period, during which the United States will reap the benefits of ridding the population of a brutal dictator. Nevertheless, most Iraqis and most other Arabs will probably assume that the United States intervened in Iraq for its own reasons and not to liberate the population. Long-term gratitude is unlikely, and suspicion of U.S. motives will increase as the occupation continues."

Doctor Andrew Terrill and Doctor Conrad C. Crane, what a shame it was that nobody was listening when you wrote those words.

In February 2003.