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History lessons for the future

Originally published 01/11/07 on Cadet Spiff's Deep Space Log

As I am still on a New Year's contemplation jag, I've been thinking recently about history. More specifically, I've been pondering two questions concerning our recent national history: How will history view the Iraq War, and how will it portray President George W. Bush?

To be certain, the two are inexorably intertwined. Of course, history is written by the victors, and we're still not quite sure how all this will turn out. But as time passes and W limps into his final two years in office, we can start to see how things will progress.

It's not a pretty potential picture.

The announcement yesterday that Bush wants to send more troops to Iraq to help stabilize the region probably won't help in the end. I get the feeling that our Iraq actions will likely end up as an uneasy truce, such as happened in Vietnam where we turned tail and ran when it became all too apparent that it was a war which could not be won using Western-style techniques. It's hard to win over a country whose inhabitants don't agree with you and who most definitely don't want you there.

Unfortunately, at this point, I think that's the best we can expect: A draw, with us leaving Iraq in a slightly-better state than it was in before the invasion. The hope that the toppling (and eventual execution) of Saddam Hussein would be the turning point, the linchpin event, that led to the eventual Westernization and democratization of the region is now just a pipe dream. There is no Marshall Plan for the region, and we can only hope that our continued military intervention is not the spark that ignites the Arab world into a full-blown attack on Western culture -- and its people.

Bush, in an historical context, may be even worse off. I believe Bush took office with the desire to be a famous president -- and he had his opportunity to be as such. Despite my leftist leanings, I felt the President did good a good job handling the events immediately following September 11, 2001. He held the country together in many way by presenting a strong, defiant, and resolute face to the world.

If he only could have kept it up. Rather than uniting the country, he lied to the people, got us into a horrible war, and parlayed our fears over another attack into two terms in office.

Unfortunately, I think Bush is now more likely to be relegated to an historical footnote, a leader barely remembered along the lines of Chester A. Arthur or Grover Cleveland, rather than a Kennedy or Rooselvelt, much less Washington or Lincoln.

Better for him to be a footnote than to be infamous.

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