Party Political

From much of what I've heard, McCain has some good ideas. I recently saw a video where people were singing McCain quotes and then looking like he continually blew their mind with his expectation of future wars.

Really, I think only an idiot would rule out the possibility.

But I think their point was that we shouldn't automatically accept the idea of conflict as a given. They didn't come right out and say it, but I'm guessing they figure if we really work for peace, peace can be achieved.

One thing that struck me was the duration of our stay in Iraq. I've heard that it could be up to 100 years before we can withdraw. I had been turning this over in my mind, wondering if it really was necessary. To some extent, it does make sense. Conflict in the middle east has had thousands of years (right?) to set in and become the norm. So we make a 5-year change, and it's quickly washed away by the sands of tradition. But what if we stayed there for an extended period? After a few generations, the newest Iraqis would probably have a greater chance of accepting a peaceful and democratic society.

But in the video, there's a quote where McCain says something about 1,000 years or 10,000 years. I don't think it would be necessary to "stay" that long, because I'm guessing that within 1,000 years the world will be unified and peace will be achieved. Or we'll all be dead. But if we had to stay up to that point... It makes me wonder...

Common sense seems to say, "Let's get out of Iraq right now." But if we leave without "finishing the job" and making them understand the benefits of peace, would they resent us and continue to harbor dreams of revenge? It does seem possible. But then again, maybe we're causing that by just being there right now. It's a conundrum. I don't think there's a clear-cut solution that will satisfy everybody everywhere. Once we make up our mind one way or another, we'll have to live with the consequences.

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