It’s Not Over Yet

Ok, so June 30th came and went.  U.S. forces have finished moving out of major Iraqi cities.  We did not do it all at once, its been a more or less a phased withdrawl over the past several weeks unlike the media has led you to believe.  Iraq did not explode in violence when we left.  So far its been pretty much a non-event, although episodes of violence have risen just like expected.  The next few weeks will determine if the Iraqis were ready or not as the insurgents, Iran, and every other little group that controls some people or piece of land gears up and tries to see how far they can get against the new keepers of the keys.

What I wanted to point out though, is that this war, or whatever, is far from over.  I was listening to the AFN re-broadcast of Fox News today and heard Glenn Beck pleading with Americans not to repeat Vietnam Era mistakes as soldiers returned home.  The way he was talking you’d have though we were busily boarding ships, planes, and every other conveyance to evacuate this hellhole and come home.  Then I started reading my feeds and saw similar bents in the news and online media outlets.  The gist being, we have withdrawn from cities and are coming home.

That couldn’t be farther from the truth. First off “combat troops” left the cities and set up FOBs and other camps outside the cities, becoming a sort of Quick Reaction Force to help out Iraqi Army and Police Units if they needed them.  That leaves the reconstruction teams, MITT teams, and others still in urban areas doing their job and closely working with Iraqi units.  Secondly, we are not packing up to come home.  We are still here, and for the most part still doing the same jobs we were doing yesterday.  The absolute drawdown deadline isn’t for another couple of years!  I am sure as units leave theater and the Iraqi’s gain a foothold and strength in the wake of this move, we will not be sending as many troops here.  However, that is not a withdrawl from Iraq.

Basically, what we have done is taken our faces out of the daily drudgery of the war and placed the responsibility for security firmly in the hands of the established government.  Think of it like this: we were the parents raising our child and yesterday was his first day of school.  We sent him off alone to learn and grow, but we are right there behind him supporting him and ready to help if he stumbles.  That’s the phase of this campaign we have entered.  People familiar with military terms could consider this the “walk” phase of “crawl, walk, run.”

I agree with Mr. Beck in his sentiments though. Just because it looks like we can see the light at the end of this long tunnel, that is no reason to forget the sons and daughters that have served and lost their lives in this fight.  We need to remember to support them as they continue to fulfill their duties.  We do not need to cast them aside and forget their sacrifices when they return, whenever that might be, like this country shamefully did at the end of Vietnam.

Share: