Iraq’s been sheer folly

Concerning the June 17 front-page article “Crisis growing in Iraq”:

In 2003, our nation militarily invaded Iraq based upon the premise that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction and posed a threat to the United States, a premise that has proved to be false.

Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama attempted to obtain a security agreement with the Iraq government that would allow several thousand U.S. troops to remain in Iraq past the year 2011. The Iraqis rejected this security agreement and demanded that all U.S. troops leave Iraq by 2011.

The prime minister of Iraq has horribly discriminated against the Kurds and Sunnis, which has inflamed ancient hatreds. Sunni insurgents have taken control of many Iraqi cities and were greeted with cheers by the Sunni citizens. The Iraqi army would not fight, threw off their military clothing and abandoned U.S. military equipment. The insurgents have taken control of a half-billion dollars of cash in captured banks.

Very similar to what happened when Saigon fell in 1975. Half of Iraq has fallen to Islamic fanatics, far worse to deal with than the dictator Saddam Hussein. Our nation spent $2 trillion on this failed war, while our highways and bridges deteriorated. Sheer folly.

Mark Johnson

Nine Mile Falls