As the most zealous defeatists continue to argue that the United States must abandon Iraq because liberation is too costly, actress Angelina Jolie concludes we can’t afford to leave.
She makes a point seldom made on Iraq, that withdrawing wouldn’t end the war, that it would expose millions to murder, starvation and the desperation that makes more war, bigger wars, more savage wars more likely.
Jolie, a goodwill ambassador for the U.N. High Commission for Refugees, just returned from her second trip to Iraq. She says this:
My visit left me even more deeply convinced that we not only have a moral obligation to help displaced Iraqi families, but also a serious, long-term, national security interest in ending this crisis.
Today’s humanitarian crisis in Iraq — and the potential consequences for our national security — are great. Can the United States afford to gamble that 4 million or more poor and displaced people, in the heart of Middle East, won’t explode in violent desperation, sending the whole region into further disorder?
What we cannot afford, in my view, is to squander the progress that has been made. In fact, we should step up our financial and material assistance. UNHCR has appealed for $261 million this year to provide for refugees and internally displaced persons. That is not a small amount of money -- but it is less than the U.S. spends each day to fight the war in Iraq. I would like to call on each of the presidential candidates and congressional leaders to announce a comprehensive refugee plan with a specific timeline and budget as part of their Iraq strategy.
As for the question of whether the surge is working, I can only state what I witnessed: U.N. staff and those of non-governmental organizations seem to feel they have the right set of circumstances to attempt to scale up their programs. And when I asked the troops if they wanted to go home as soon as possible, they said that they miss home but feel invested in Iraq. They have lost many friends and want to be a part of the humanitarian progress they now feel is possible.
Squirming haters. Jolie’s is a message of realism and humanitarianism to which the liberation-haters won’t take kindly. They’ll squirm and whine, and try to belittle her, but they know she’s right.
If your whole political self-image of coolness is wrapped up in proving this political approach or that political party always wrong, you’ll do all you can to block out her words and pretend that wherever the U.S. leaves everything always gets better.
If U.S. military presence is so terrible, why are the Germans, Japanese and South Koreans still generally happy to have us in their countries after all these years? The answer is obvious.
Neighbors in need. Iraq is free, but the Iraqis are vulnerable. If their democracy is to survive, if they’re to have a chance for a lasting peace, they’ll need our help for a while.
Frank Warner
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