by Xavier Grey

Created on: July 11, 2008   Last Updated: July 16, 2008

We have overstayed our welcome; that is if we assume we were ever welcome in the first place. Liberation was the call to arms that prompted the American public to accept that war was necessary; but among the Iraqi's, oil and profit seem to have been the underlying reason for the invasion. Amid reports that the violence in Iraq is diminishing, and stability in the region is being established; one has only to consider the millions of displaced families, the hundreds of thousands of dead, and the billions of dollars in damage in order to conclude that they are no better off now than they were at the onset of the war, and are arguably worse off now than they were to begin with.

The regime change has removed a dictator; but has placed American supported leaders in his place. The Iraqi citizens, even with their own level of diversity between them, are as a majority rejecting the morals and standards of the American way of life. One could argue that we support the current leaders of Iraq because we share common interests; but it's not too much of a stretch to assume that those interests contradict what is acceptable to the average Iraqi.

The implied desire to have an established timeline for American troop withdrawal, which has been resounding throughout our country for some time, has recently been reinforced by the Iraqi Government. Supporters of this decision are basking in the "I told you so" moment; while opponents state that our need to be there is long term. The statement that no American installations are to be permanently placed on Iraqi soil has served to undermine the ambitions of the American Government in the region; which given the aforementioned beliefs supported by many natives of the Middle East, that our agenda in the region is anything but liberating, might very well end up resulting in an increased level of violence.

One could argue that the violence is at the hands of the Iraqi's; but I can't help but wonder how we as Americans would feel about being occupied by foreign powers who claim to be promoting freedom, but ultimately seem content to strip us of our resources, and kill innocents, and combatants alike on a massive scale. We have waged this war under the premise that it was to preserve the American way of life; but it's increasingly apparent that our efforts to do so come with a hefty price tag. Not only have we violated the sovereignty of their nation; we have indicated that we are intent on continuing to violate it indefinitely. We have all but destroyed our economy paying for the operations in Iraq; and have subsequently undermined their right to maintain their way of life, all under the guise of preserving our own.

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