Posted on: Wednesday, November 5, 2003

EDITORIAL
Pronounced dangers for U.S. in Iraq effort

Whether or not you support and approve of the American undertaking in Iraq, it's important that you appreciate the extremely high stakes involved.

There's no doubt that the picture of a prosperous, democratic and stable Iraq is appealing. The strategic advantage of building a peaceful and friendly oasis in the midst of an increasingly hostile Middle East is obvious.

There's also no doubt that accomplishing this goal is proving far more difficult than the Bush administration anticipated.

It becomes clear that at least two divisions of Republican Guards emerged from the war virtually unscathed. While they were no match for invading Americans, their potential as a guerrilla force is rather daunting.

It also appears that al-Qaida has now become a presence in Iraq.

Although many Iraqis appeared to welcome regime change, their enthusiasm appears to be slipping as infrastructure failures continue and security deteriorates.

Enthusiasm is slipping here at home, as well.

The daily drumbeat of American casualties in Iraq, of course, is one reason. Another is the unprecedented magnitude of expenditure approved by Congress for reconstruction and to sustain military operations there. Underlying these costs is concern about how long the patience of Americans who must bear these costs will last.

So far, of course, the effort in Iraq has little in common with the failed American war in Vietnam. The Iraq war began with a stunning military success, something we never achieved in Vietnam. Further, the potential direct threat to American interests by an armed Iraq under Saddam seemed more obvious than that of Vietnam under Communist rule.

At its height, there were more than three times as many American GIs in Vietnam, and tens of thousands of them died. By 1972, Vietnam had become another word for quagmire, and despite the huge sacrifice of global credibility it cost, Americans were more than ready to call it quits.

Our sense is that Americans will never again tolerate military stalemates of the length and cost of Korea and Vietnam.

And that means there's a stopwatch ticking as the United States and whatever allies it can rally struggle to find a formula for success in Iraq.

Clearly the limited window of opportunity in this effort would be wider if the burden were shared by more nations other than our own. It remains perplexing that the White House has not tried harder to win broader support.

For the United States, having defied international precedent and sentiment to mount a pre-emptive war, it is absolutely imperative to bring this enterprise to a happy conclusion. Yet that result is far from assured.