Yesterday, I published a post in which I criticize Thomas Friedman’s latest column in the New York Times. In it, Friedman argues that there are only two options remaining: all in or all out. He ignores the fact that the world will blame the US for what happens. He ignores the fact that the US will appear weak. He ignores the fact that no country will fear American power as much as it once did. So – I criticized Friedman for not taking the blowback into account. When I did, American readers responded, both here and at my own blog, by saying, basically: “how long do you want us to stay, we cannot solve this,” and “the anti-Americanism will go away after a few years,” etc.
So – I thought, let me talk with some Dutch people about this. I asked 8 people: only one of them supported the war in Iraq, the other opposed it from the get-go. I asked them what they thought would happen in Iraq when the US withdraws. The unanimous answer: genocide. Who, I asked, would you blame? America or Iraq? The answer: America. So, I also asked them what they thought Arabs, Muslims and everyone else would think of it. The, again, unanimous answer: everybody will blame America, and it will greatly hurt America’s image.
Now – eight people is not exactly a representative poll, but I want to make something clear to all of you: I strongly believe that this is how most people will look at it. Mass genocide will be blamed on the US. Why? If the US would not have attacked, Iraq would still be stable. Yes, Saddam would still be in power, but most people do not look at that (besides, they will also argue that life under Saddam was probably not worse that it is today) – most people simply look at the result.
Now, many Americans argue “we have to bring our troops home: they should not die in a far away country, if we cannot win / bring stability any time soon.” To Americans, this sounds logical. To 5.5 billion other people, this sounds extremely egotistical. The other citizens of the world say “3500?? are you kidding me? Tens of thousands, perhaps even hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have died, and if you withdraw prematurely, hundreds of thousands, possibly millions more will die, and you complain about 3500??? You started this war in the first place.”
I realize that the way I choose to word this might anger quite some Americans and I thought about bringing it across less bluntly, but I am not a politician: I am a blogger. And I am simply trying to explain something important to you all (the majority of whom are Americans). To those living in the other countries I ask this: don’t you agree with this post? If you look around and ask other people, isn’t what I wrote the answer the far majority gives? Yes it is harsh, but 300,000 Iraqis killed (quite a random ‘in between’ number) is quite harsh as well.
Another commenter asked (paraphrasing): how long would you want us to stay? 10 years, 20 years?
The answer of the world: as long as it takes. Again: you are responsible.
He also said why don’t you all send more troops? Two things:
– America did not want international organizations involved when the war started. Now, still, they do not want many countries involved, and if they do, they only want it because Americans are dying and it’s better for domestic purposes that foreign soldiers die (again, I’m not a politician)
– You started this war. What gives you the right to tell the world that it should send soldiers just because your refused to send enough / stay as long as it takes / work with other countries?
Please understand, I am not trying to anger all of you as much as I possibly can – I am trying to make you understand how the world perceives this debate in America.
When you talk about what the US should do, you have to take this post into account. Another commenter argued that the blowback would be only temporary. It would ‘fade away’ within a couple of years time. Right. Reality check: as one of the Dutch people I asked about that comment said, “That’s ridiculous. It will increase hatred for America for generations to come.” Again, this is basically what I am saying about this as well: it will not ‘fade away.’ The world – especially Arab peoples – will make it part of its collective memory and it will be used against the US for decades, possibly even longer. When talking about the Mideast, do not forget that they have quite a different culture than we in the West have. Holding grudges is something Arab peoples are quite good at. And this time, for quite a good reason.
My American friends, you must look at how the world will perceive an early withdrawal and a possible genocide. Take it into account. And then ask yourself: is it worth the risk? I am not saying that everyone should conclude “no, it is not worth the risk. We should stay with, say, 75,000 troops.” I am saying, however, that you should be able to deal with this, that you should take this into account. Too many Americans seem to live in some kind of bubble, shielded from the world. Too many Americans seem to have no idea how the world operates, how the world thinks. Take it into account and then come up with a plan.
But one thing should be very clear: total withdrawal will not ‘restore america’s image’ or show that America is quite moral etc. No, it will cause great, great damage.
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