Nobody wants American soldiers in harm's way, but like the expensive item in the antique store, you broke it, you bought it. Amazingly, the bulk of our armed forces come from places that have consistently voted "red", and I'm sorry, but y'all really did break this one - a very expensive antique called Iraq, and you have to stay to clean up after yourselves.
Anyhoo, my plan is different from the Democratic Party's, and certainly from the Republican Party's, because it has a component that seems to be omitted everywhere I look: Social Justice.
There's never any mention of creating an equitable society, one that gives the locals hope for a future in which they have a participatory voice. "Elections" over there are a farce and the people have no real choice. That must change.
The first phase of this plan is a media blitz which is sort of a mea culpa, but not an outright apology. We are a man, after all, we don't apologize. But the point of this campaign would be to inform and assure the people of several things. First that the goal would be stabilization and autonomy. True self-governance. (This would involve tearing up the oil production and distribution contracts that were signed by puppet governors after our invasion.). Secondly, that UN troops, composed mostly of Muslims from neighboring states, as well as Western countries would enter to restore order and secure the populace. The United States' role in this process will be one that diminshes progressively over time. Neighboring states will gladly participate - they are seriously endangered by an unstable Iraq.
Democratic elections, with publicly financed campaigns would be held as soon as possible, and a constitution would be drawn up and implemented by duly elected members of the governing body.
In a nation with new hope, and real promise of a peaceful, prosperous future, tyrrany and terror are much less likely. Terrorism is a road of despair and impotent rage. Our democracy proved that universal suffrage and rule of law can be uniters, not dividers. With a 2/3rds majority requirement for laws, oppression by a tyrranical half is not possible, and horse trading becomes a means of conflict resolution. When all ethnicities have a vested interest in cooperation, and are viewed equally in the eyes of the laws of the land, civil war, insurgency and unrest are much less likely.
All reconstruction contracts held by foreign companies would be cancelled and new contracts negotiated that required (unlike our post-Katrina contractors) local workers who would be paid a living wage, with appropriate benefits.
Oil contracts would be voided, and the petrol infrastructure would be nationalized. Foreign management of the resources would be necessary, but revenue would be structured like Venezuela's system: 80% of revenue to the country, 20% to the foreign entitiy. Traditionally, that formula is inverted - with 80% of the revenue leaving the country. All petrol industry activity would be closely overseen by a committee drawn from many nations to prevent abuse or scandal.
Habeus Corpus would be enacted, and all prisoners who haven't been charged with a crime will be immediately released.
Terrorists imprisoned for nonviolent reasons would be released.
Terrorists imprisoned for violent crimes would be sentenced humanely.
All torture would be immediately banned. Any infamous torturers in any uniform will be tried in The Hague for crimes against humanity.
A sustainable infrastructure would be constructed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Might as well do it right from the start.
With the promise of a bloodless future, one of peace for themselves and their children, and with a concrete plan to humanely restore order where today there is chaos, the people of Iraq would welcome these troops as liberators, with rose petals and sweetmeats, and see that the despair that leads to terrorism is no longer their own despair.
The British learned during the Troubles in Ireland, that the process of infinite detention and torture was by far the best recruiting tool the IRA ever could have wished for. We failed to learn from this history, and are repeating it.
The time has come to put what we've learned to use.
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