(an aside...there is some talk saying this man was basically wandering the country looking to make a quick buck and had previously been arrested by the US military because of it)
Yes, this is absolutely horrible, and evil men should be forced to pay for their evil deeds. That being said, it's expected, and just the beginning. The actions of the soldiers at Abu Ghraib are -going- to have these sorts of repercussions, and they are going to continue until this comes to one of a very small set of conclusions.
Those conclusions being, IMO:
1. The US pulls out and leaves Iraq in chaos - this is the worst action I think the US could take. It basically postpones the ultimate end of the situation for half a generation.
2. The US pulls out (some) and is replaced/supplemented by a UN/NATO peacekeeping force that can slowly defuse the situation. "Calmer heads prevail" over and extended period Iraq normalizes and attempts to do away with its more radical elements. My preferred option.
3. The US turns this back into a war, instead of the farce it currently is - Overwhelming force and less political correctness prevails and the US blows a serious hole in the country (figuratively by increased actions or literally with nukes). Every attempt is made to crush the spirit of the Iraqis. This will have dire repercussions with other Arab nations, that may or may not turn into WWIII, depending on the diplomatic skills of the US leaders. It's a HUGE gamble. This is not WWII Japan, and Iraq doesn't have a potent leader that can call things off.
Either way, the actions in Abu Ghraib will cause more American deaths than you can imagine, and this is a very small forecast of the upcoming storm.
Kickstart |
