Damned if we do, damneder if we don't

Look, it's true: an American withdrawal from Iraq will be seen as "retreat and defeat" by anti-American fundamentalists and will embolden them. But you know what else emboldens the terrorists? How about the fact that much of our military, including half of the National Guard, is holed up in Iraq, embroiled in a civil war and being gradually picked off by insurgents, and the amount that's been spent on this war would probably buy enough solar panels to equal the energy value of Iraq's entire oil output?

Personally, I'd say that if there was ever a time to attack us on our own soil, it would be now. It seems that we have so few standing troops left here that the military has been forced to send soldiers with major injuries and illnesses to support the so-called surge! So it seems to me that our government has four options.

1. Institute a draft, thus dooming whichever party proposes it to at least a few decades out of public favor.



2. Improve the disinformation campaign aimed at fooling the world into believing that both our homeland security and the Iraq war are going swimmingly.



3. Ignore reality and proceed to invade Iran without consulting Congress, while still involved in Iraq and Afghanistan.



4. "Give up" on Iraq and refocus on Islamic fundamentalists whose main target is actually us, rather than each other.

As a 22-year-old male with no ailments other than low muscle mass, slight scoliosis, and oddly bent knees, I know which option I'd pick.