| Cake Walking |
31 March 2003
|
White House Faces Over-Confident Public
The Bush administration, having chosen war to resolve the outstanding issues with Iraq, has had reasonable success in the first week and a bit on the battlefield. However, the American people appear disappointed that coalition troops have yet to enter Baghdad. This over-confidence, which doesn't really exist at the Pentagon itself, may prove the Achilles heel in the Anglo-American attack.
In the first few days of the war, one overheard (without eavesdropping, as the beer had made them loud) a pair of young Americans gloating over the fall of Umm-Qasr -- the first time it was reported in American hands, not the second or third. One of these fellows announced, with all the seriousness youth can conjure, "That's it. It's over." The temptation to smite him was intense.
Part of this over-confidence stems from a life in which America has never struggled. The under-30s can't remember Vietnam. To them, America has never fought a war that took longer than a week. The balance arises from the dreadful state of American education about the broader world. As one wag put it, "Americans only learn geography as part of a bombing exercise."
The Pentagon needs to address this situation ASAP. It must be explained that taking a city, destroying a tank, finding WMDs mean nothing now. The death of Saddam and the uprooting of the Ba'athist Party are the measure of victory. Failure to explain the objectives clearly and quickly can only mean diversions to appease ignorant public opinion while Americans, Brits, Aussies and Iraqis die.