The Consequences of Giving Up

"The winner of a match is not always determined by who is right...but in the end...who is left."

       - Victor Niederhoffer, author and investment manager

I don't put much stock in polls, but some of our leaders use them to keep a finger on the pulse of their constituents and many Americans view them as an indicator of what's going on.

The latest Gallup Poll indicates that 34% of Americans feel we should withdraw our forces from Iraq, which is up from 26% who felt that way back in July. These, and other results are available here if you're interested.

I believe that President Bush intends to stay the course in Iraq, and I don't think the latest announcement that we plan to turn government over to the Iraqis by June, means he'll leave them in the lurch by taking our troops away.

It does worry me that public support for the war seems to be drifting downward as casualties continue to mount, and I sense that will be an on-going trend. If public support diminishes enough, will the administration relent and bring our troops home? Glenn Reynolds at  InstaPundit, links to an article by Eliot A. Cohen who talks about the consequences of doing that:

"The United States would bury its dead and get back to business, But the lessons for its political leaders, and indeed for everyone else in the world, would be simple: The United States cannot and will not, under any conditions, conduct a counterinsurgency. When it tries, drips and spurts of casualties will cause it to lose its nerve."

Leaving before freedom for the Iraqis is secured would open the door for terrorists to strike us, or our Allies, at will. Why? Since WWII, we've not seen any conflict to completion, so our enemies know that retaliation, even if it occurs, would be short-lived.