Iraq conflict more complicated than it seems

Diana Perkins, ‘04 / Letter to the Editor

While columnist Tim Rink's concern regarding the reasons for and results of the war this country waged on Iraq is not unfounded, I am concerned that his hatred for Bush's lack of diplomatic common sense is clouding his perception of the state of things in Iraq.

If Bush is voted out of office in November, a perfect world would see the United States pull out of Iraq. Because it's a perfect world and the only problem is the U.S. occupation of Iraq, we would see the Iraqis peacefully decide for themselves how to govern their country, hold democratic elections, and live happily ever after. After all, in this perfect world, the United States is the only problem.

However, U.S. occupation of Iraq is not the only problem. It probably had something to do with creating some of the other problems, but unfortunately, the damage is done, and we will never know what could have been. So, now, here we are, in an imperfect world, where our nation has created anarchy in a nation where people were used to a kind of government Americans cannot even imagine. We're there, we created the mess and we need to get off our all-or-nothing high horse and really work with the rest of the global community to find a solution to the structural and social damage we've caused.

It's going to be a long, complicated journey. I hope someone out there is willing to take it.