You Have Been Warned

The US and Iraq have apparently agreed to a deal to withdraw combat troops by 2011. This is good news for us; let's hope it's also good news for Iraq.

And then Megan McArdle dusted Iraq off her hands and went shopping. No problem, though, I can always read the news and other bloggers if I want to hear about the Iraq government's request that we leave, the military bases we leave behind, the Iraq elections, and the internal struggles of a country bombed back into the pre-Industrial Age. (Remember when Megan said the infrastructure was just fine? Those were fun times.)

The election being nigh, of course, thoughts immediately turn to who this is
good for in the presidential election. Kevin Drum is very
sure that the answer is Obama. My first instinct was the
opposite.

That's our Megan. Go with the instinct, even when history usually proves you wrong.

McCain gets to claim that the Surge worked, the war issue is off the table,
and McCain gets the credit for steely resolve without people fearing their sons
will end up in Iraq.

Aren't you paid enough to edit your work? You have an English degree; use it.

Some people do want the war issue to be off the table; those who enthusiastically supported the invasion. The rest of us would rather keep Iraq on the table so we don't end up adding Iran, Syria, Lebanon, or anyone else to our list of Countries to Help. And oopsie! A draft might possibly happen with McCain, something that will cause so much public anger and fear that even my love of drama will be satisfied.

I'm puzzled by war opponents who think that voters will suddenly love Obama
for having been "right all along". Assuming arguendo that this is true,
the psychological logic is off. Most Americans supported the war. Do
you become more endeared of your spouse when it turns out that you really should
have taken that left fork thirty miles ago? Most people prefer folie à
deux.

Latin and French, no less. Megan should work on her English before she tries to branch out and look all Continental and Frenchified. Now, did most people support the war? Oddly enough, if you google for this information you can actually find evidence if it's true or not. In fact, within two or three seconds I found an article called "Public Attitudes Towards the War in Iraq:2003-2008" by the Pew Research Center.

Five years after the start of the conflict in Iraq, many public evaluations
of the situation in Iraq have turned more positive. But there has been no
turnaround in the public's opinion about the original decision to take military
action in Iraq. While ratings of how things are going in Iraq have improved over
the past year and more Americans now say the United States should keep troops
there, the proportion saying the initial decision to go to war was wrong has
increased since the spring of 2007.

Obviously people are conflicted about our invasion of Iraq; they are slightly more supportive when we appear to be successful but are not as supportive as they used to be in the full flush of our exciting explosions and statue destruction.

I don't think we'll have a draft because even if McCain is stupid enough to try to implement one, he will be stopped by someone who doesn't want his career in Washington to end immediately. People will tolerate almost anything that doesn't affect them personally. The second Ezra Klein or Rich Lowry or Kathryn Jean Lopez* is drafted, opinions will change. And Megan? You are eligible for the draft too. The age limit was raised to 42.


*Heh. It could happen.