Some Observations as Iraqis Prepare to Vote

Wretchard at The Belmont Club provides some good analysis on the unfolding political situation in Iraq. Contrary to the clamor of defeatism from the leadership of the Democrat party, Wretchard argues that the U.S. has already won the war militarily, and what is taking place is "long suppressed local and ethnic interests" that are being channeled "into competition through the ballot box -- with the occasional recourse to violence." Interestingly, he concludes that the Iraq War has subtly changed America. He writes,

The Armed Forces have acquired capabilities they never had before. Bill Roggio in Patrolling Haqlaniyah describes three-tour veterans who can talk politics with Iraqis. For many individual Americans Iraq is now something less than home and something more than a foreign country. For America as a whole, one thing that no politician will dispute in 2008 is that aside from being a European and Pacific power -- which it has been since the end of the Second World War -- the US is now a part of the strategic landscape of the Middle East and Central Asia.