Stabilizing The Middle East -- Then And Now

U.S. Personnel And Equipment Disembarking At Beirut

From The American Thinker:

Fifty years ago today, an American president successfully stood up against the Moslem tide in the Middle East and won a victory. But the anniversary may pass completely unnoticed by most of the media, and the lesson of that event remains unlearned by most Americans.

On July 15, 1958, President Eisenhower began what was called "Operation Blue Bat." President Chamoun of Lebanon, a Maronite Christian, had refused to side with Arab Moslem nations against the West. The result was that within Lebanon, supported by Syria, Muslims pushed for the end of the Chamoun administration (and, tacitly, for an end to the middle course of democracy that Lebanon had long pursued.

Read more ....

My Comment: My background is the study of history, and I have made it a career to always say that "the more things change, the more that they stay the same". Bruce Walker's "American Thinker" piece illustrates my point perfectly ..... it is an excellent summary of previous American attempts to bring peace to the Middle East, outlining its past successes and defeats.

I have argued that for Iraq to succeed, an American military presence must stay in the country for the next few generations. Like Germany and Japan, the presence of the American military has been a credible and a long lasting influence that help to stabilize both countries. Extremists were never able to attain power because the vast majority felt secure that the presence of U.S. forces would always ensure their freedom. The same argument can now be made for Iraq.

If U.S. forces left Japan or Germany a few years after the end of the Second World War, my gut tells me that both countries will not be the stable and affluent societies that they are today. I can say the the same for Iraq. Therefore the next U.S. President will have some very hard decisions to make.

If Barack Obama becomes President and decides to withdraw U.S. troops out of Iraq within 2 years, the odds of Iraq becoming a stable and affluent society will decrease. If U.S. troops stay as Senator McCain is advocating.... the odds are now better than average that we will have a stable partner in terms of politics, international relations, and oil production.

Both U.S. Presidential candidates have two very clear and distinct policies .... and in the end it will be the U.S. electorate that will make the decision on whether it would be worth the blood and treasure to continue to stay .... or it is not worth the effort and it is now time to leave.

In addition, the Iraqi people and their leaders will also have to make the same decision. Do they want the presence of American forces on their soil for the next few generations .... or do they want them to leave.

Hmmmmm ...... the next 6 - 12 months will be interesting.