Dividing Iraq to Save It

During the recent debate in Washington about what is gently termed the "soft partition" of Iraq, I have been remembering one of the macabre signature phrases of the Vietnam War: "It was necessary to destroy the town in order to save it."

I know the senators who endorsed Sen. Joe Biden's plan to devolve power in a more federal Iraq don't mean to destroy the country. They want to save it. But like the unidentified U.S. Army officer who was quoted in 1968 after the destruction of a village called Ben Tre, they are cloaking expediency in the rhetoric of salvation.

An Iraqi soldier at the gates to the Basra Palace complex during British withdrawal from the city. (By Nabil Al-jurani -- Associated Press) TOOLBOX Resize Text Save/Share + Digg Newsvine del.icio.us Stumble It!