Worse not Better

Another, and more informed, voice saying that the presence of American troops is making the situation in Iraq worse not better. Juan Cole of Informed Comment argues that the US troops need to get out of Iraq now. His concluding paragraphs

The situation in the Sunni Arab areas was worse in summer of 2004 than it had been in summer of 2003. It is worse in the summer of 2005 than it had been in 2004. Even the Iraqi political groupings that had earlier been willing to cooperate with the US boycotted the Jan. 30 elections and are now assiduously working to defeat the new constitution.

Things in the Sunni Arab areas are getting worse, not better.

I conclude that the presence of the US ground troops is making things worse, not better.

Let's get them out, now, before they destroy any more cities, create any more hundreds of thousands of internally displaced persons, provoke any more ethnic hatreds by installing Shiite police in Fallujah or Kurdish troops in Turkmen Tal Afar. They are sowing a vast whirlwind, a desert sandstorm of Martian proportions, which future generations of Americans and Iraqis will reap.

The ground troops must come out. Now. For the good of Iraq. For the good of America.

echo my earlier musings that perhaps our presence is more of a problem than a help.

Professor Cole is very familiar with the Middle East and quite knowledgeable of the situation in Iraq. His opinion on these issues counts for a lot. Considering further that Professor Cole has long been more in favor of the US staying in Iraq than have I, or many other left of center bloggers, I think that this most recent post is quite significant.