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LETTERS IN THE EDITOR''S MAILBAG.

Article Excerpt
Byline: The Register-Guard

Bush created a disaster in Iraq

The Bush administration has engaged us with war in Iraq, claiming that this is the way to fight terrorism. Bush is totally misleading us here. We are not fighting terrorism. We are engaged in guerrilla warfare.

History has repeatedly shown that whenever a superpower occupies a hostile country, two things typically happen: First, the local populace resorts to guerrilla warfare, and second, it is only a matter of time before the superpower withdraws after devastating losses.

We have seen many examples: the Soviets' failure to conquer Afghanistan; the tragic Vietnam War in which our powerful military, and France before us, could not, or would not, maintain a war against jungle-based guerrilla activities; the many instances of British failure to maintain colonization over several countries such as Ireland, New Zealand and Rhodesia. Sadly, we are repeating history in Iraq.

Bush was wrong to invade Iraq in the first place, and he is seriously wrong in proclaiming it to be a war against terrorism. I am hoping that Americans will see through this facade that we are fighting terrorism in Iraq and succeeding. It is like a fire chief setting a huge fire, sending in the firemen, putting them in harm's way, and then claiming success as the fire is extinguished. Bush has created a disaster, and we will experience horrendous losses before ultimately withdrawing. Let us not forget that....