Ha, ha, very funny stuff!
> "Let them duke it out?" Yes. That is exactly what the First
> International proposed that England should do during the U.S. Civil War,
> one of the bloodiest civil wars in history.
For somebody who lectures the list about history and its importance, you seem to have botched this comparison. "Let 'em duke it out" was a defense intervention on the bad side, as you know. In this situation, the bad side is us, as well as anybody who refuses to participate peacefully in democracy in Iraq. Totally different situation.
> And who is the "we" you are speaking of?
Everybody talks about we, and should do so. We should ensure the fastest possible democratic election and constitution-adoption. We should then provide as much aid to the new regime as we took away from Iraq through sanctions and economic decline since 1991. We should participate in a UN police force, until things settle down there.
Of course, we won't do this, because it's anathema to our ruling class. We can point this out by talking openly and loudly about what we ought to be doing.