Iraq is looming as a huge problem for the US and Bush. And despite Howard sneaking away from it with talk about Australia ‘moving on’, the blowback may yet feature in the next election. After all, the putative new defence policy promises plenty more Iraqs.
One argument that really gets me about Iraq is the one that goes: “Look, Saddam has gone, so it all worked out in the end”.
Well, first, Saddam is still alive and kicking, and the Iraqis are not materially better off yet. Maybe, probably, they will be, but not yet.
But these are not the key issues. The central point is this: If we are to avoid catastrophic conflict, including world war, we must develop a viable system of world governance. What the US did in Iraq (which was not immediately threatening the US) greatly impeded this development. While the US thinks it can act unilaterally (albeit with the support of a few international toadies, like Australia), it has no incentive to join in a real global governance system. If the US opted in, this could be effected very quickly, but while it stays out there is no chance.