As I said, the best we can hope for once we started the war is for a quick finish. I don't know if less than a month is short enough to qualify as a good outcome from a bad start, but I hope that the fall of Baghdad marks a dramatic reduction in the violence that has rocked Iraq under the heel of the US military. With more than 100 US casualties and an unknown number of Iraqi dead (I've seen a British estimate of 13,000+), the cost has not been negligible. I worry that, with the official opposition dispersed, terrorist attacks on the occupying forces will be used by anti-American forces. It would be naive to assume that the entire population of Iraq is ready to acquiesce and cooperate with their conquering "liberators."

The US continues to be in a situation where our government must be closely watched in hopes of getting them to do the right thing. In my mind, that "right thing" would be a serious commitment to working to rebuild Iraq from both the destruction of our latest attack as well as the effects of the decade-long sanctions. This must be done while moving as quickly as possible to recognize an Iraqi authority who can be accepted by the Iraqi people. Unfortunately, our record as seen by our efforts at establishing a stable situation in Afghanistan is not encouraging.