HEADS THEY WIN; TAILS WE LOSE
So here's a clip from a Reuter's article published in the Mercury News:

"If the United States and its allies leave Iraq without a clear victory, it will embolden terrorists from the Middle East to Indonesia, and damage international efforts to contain North Korea's nuclear ambitions, Australia's leader said Tuesday."

At the same time, Iraqi rebels pledge to continue their fight against the US until the "invaders" leave. Other terrorist groups threaten to strike against Americans on American soil until the "oppressors" leave Iraq and the Middle East.

Which suggests the following: If the US troops stay in Iraq, and the Middle East, terrorists will do their best to attack and kill Americans across the globe; if the US troops leave Iraq and the Middle East, terrorists will feel "emboldened" and... kill Americans across the globe.

What is abundantly clear to all involved is this; whether the US stays in Iraq or leaves Iraq, it will not make one blind bit of difference to anti-American terror groups. It will not change the mind of Kim Jong Il, whose nucleur ambitions are independent of US foreign policy; it will not make Iran shelve its nuclear plans, which, for all their protestations of innocence, will include nuclear weapons.

So, if staying or going makes NO difference, why are we staying? The right-wing pundits tell us that leaving Iraq makes the US look weak and will simply encourage more acts of terror against the West, whereas left-wing pundits say that leaving Iraq will save hundreds, maybe thousands, of American lives from a fruitless conflict.

The truth is that terrorists who are plotting against the US will plot whether troops are in Iraq or not. They will plot even in the US gives away free kittens to Iraqi orphans, or holds a big party to welcome North Korea and Iran into the "Nuclear Club," complete with free beer and strippers. They will plot even if there is only one American with three heads emerging from a post-nuclear shelter 300 years from now.

That's what terrorists are about. Sure, they claim to have some "Cause" in mind, but at some point, the thrill of killing, plotting, wheeling, dealing, and wielding of power becomes their raison d'etre.

Whether we stay or go has nothing to do with safety because we are unsafe whatever we do. We should decide based on our interests, not on what some terrorists might or might not think.