Why We Need To Get Out Of Iraq. Right Now.

After months of skirting around the issue by calling the various factions engaged in violence in Iraq "insurgents," and the ongoing civil war "sectarian violence," the media has finally reached reality. The United States is an occupying force in between warring factions engaged in a civil war. There is no way that this ends well.

Many of you will recall last year's Tribute to the Fallen in April. We placed 2,390 flags, and read 2,390 names. That was April 25, 2006. Seven months and three days ago. The number of U.S. soldiers dead in Iraq is now at 2,883. 2,743 American soldiers have died since Bush staged his photo-op aboard the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln and declared "Mission Accomplished." That's not even counting the tens of thousands of Iraqis - civilians and military - who have died in the war.

The arguments about why we shouldn't be there aside, the question becomes: can we afford to leave? But, how can we afford not to leave? It's clear that we are not orchestrating a peaceful solution between warring factions. In fact, many of the Shiites hold significant stake in the nominal government of Iraq. Execution-style deaths and bombings are often carried out by men wearing the uniforms of Iraqi security forces. But it's not even that simple. The Bush administration, convinced that we would be greeted as liberators, and woefully ignorant of the sectarian rivalries brewing just underneath the surface, plunged us into a war of choice, that inevitably spiraled into a civil war.

The most recent and deadliest wave of violence began on Thanksgiving Day. The Shiite slum of Sadr City in Baghdad was attacked with car bombs and mortars, killing more than 200. Shiites retaliated by burning five Sunnis alive as they exited mosques. The violence is spiraling out of control, and our presence there is doing nothing to help. If this past weekend was any indication, the violence in Iraq is only going to get worse. John McCain and others believe that simply sending more American troops in to Iraq is going to make things better, but the only thing it will do is result in more American deaths. The longer we stay, the more our young men and women will be killed. I will not pretend that our exit will end the civil war that is already occurring. But I will not delude myself into thinking that staying will do us or the Iraqis any good.