Endless War

Andrew Sullivan says it's time for a reality check. All the prattle about benchmarks and timelines doesn't mean much to the Iraqis who are all too aware that the entire situation hinges on the ability of the Iraq government to run the country, which it can't.

So, as Sullivan says, we're either there for an endless occupation, or we leave. There is no way for a foreign military to make a government work. Remember in Gangs Of New York when Bill the Butcher tells his would-be assassin, "You see this knife? I'm going to teach you to speak English with this fucking knife," and then the guy dies? That's what we're doing by trying to instill democracy with a rifle, and the end is the same.