Is the Can at the End of the Road?

UPDATE: What good did the can kicking do? "Many scholars believe . . . that nations which suffer civil wars as large as Iraq's was between 2004 and 2006 have "a terrifyingly high rate of recidivism." Two more years of U.S. military presence cannot control whether that is in Iraq's future. Some people believe the war in Iraq was not only "won" but vindicated by the success of the 2007 U.S. troop surge. Yet as Iraqi violence is resurgent, the logic of triumphalism leads here:

If, in spite of contrary evidence, the U.S. surge permanently dampened sectarian violence, all U.S. forces can come home sooner than the end of 2011. If, however, the surge did not so succeed, U.S. forces must come home sooner."

Can't argue with the logic. Read the Washington Post, Time to Leave Iraq.

Instead of acknowledging the invasion was a mistake, Bush kicked the Iraq can down the road.

Now, under a Iraqi-American security agreement, American forces are scheduled to withdraw from Iraqi cities, towns and villages on June 30.

So is the can an the end of its journey, or just at the end of the beginning of a journey which ultimately will lead to a free and prosperous democracy in the Middle East?

After you read The New York Times, Iraq Struck by a Wave of Bombings, you may wonder.

After the all the blood and treasure, partition seems likely, and hardly worth the price.

In which case, instead of shoes, we should send Bush cans.