European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 16, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 28 stars and stripes june 2007 Thomas publisher Richard general Europe Stephen commander news and editorial Robb Grindstaff Doug Clawson executive editor managing editor Europe Sam Europe Bureau chief Joseph Mideast Bureau chief Marni assistant Bureau chief assistant Manani editors Mary news Sean sports Brian features Christopher Patrick news editor lot web editor addresses mail unit Apo a 09211 International mail Postrach 64345 Germany fax Dan 3498416 0 email news  letters  Central office 52914th Street suite Washington do phone Dan 3127630900 or 202 fax 202 7610890 editorial director 529 14th suite do phone Dan 3127630945 or 202 How to Call us editor Dan 3498264 0 6155601264 letters Dan 3498237 0 sports Dan 3498225 0 circulation Dan 3498437 0 advertising Dan 0 news bureaus Germany country code Lambert Mark car 459 Box Apo a 091393703 Dan 4697957 0 or fax Dan 4698007 or 0 email 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timeliness and the ombudsman welcomes comments from and can be contacted by email at , or by phone at euro Pun and Pacific Stan and struts 2007 stars and stripes web site opinion Iraq syndrome pervasive by Christopher Fettweis losing hurts More than winning feels this simple Maxim applies with equal Power to Virtu ally All areas of human interaction and defeat in War damages societies quite out of proportion to what a rational calculation of Cost would the United states absorbed the loss in Vietnam quite easily on for but the societal effects of defeat linger to this the Afghanistan debacle was an under rated contributor to soviet malaise in the 1980s and a Factor in Glas nost and eventually the dissolution of the soviet defeats can have uni tend seemingly inexplicable consequence and As any sports fan can Tell the Only thing that feels worse than a loss is an an upset demands explanation and requires that responsible parties be the endgame in Iraq is now in outline if not and it appears that the heavily favored United states will be once support for a War is it is gone for Good there is no example of a modern democracy having changed its mind once it turned against a so we ought to Start coming to grips with the meaning of losing in the consequences for the National psyche Are Likely to be throw ing american politics into a downward spiral of bitter recriminations the likes of which it has not seen in a it will be a wedge that politicians will exploit for their proving yet again that politics is the eternal enemy of Strate the Vietnam syndrome divided this country for decades the Iraq syndrome will be no the Battle for interpretation already has with fingers of blame pointed in All directions in hastily written Mem the wars supporters have staked out their position quite clearly attacking Iraq was strategically sound but operationally key decisions on troop the disbanding of the iraqi army and the like doomed what otherwise would have been a Glori Ous the american people seem to under historians will certainly agree that the War itself was a catastrophic it was a faulty grand not poor the Bush administration was operating under an International political one that is further discredited with every car bombing of a crowded Baghdad marketplace and every iraqi doctor who packs up his family and flees his the Only significant question still hang ing is whether Iraq will turn out to have been the biggest strategic mistake in the Vietnam War was a much greater moral of and led to far More death and just As the wars critics predicted in the Vietnam turned out to be strategically in Saigon but no dominoes Fol Lowed the balance of cold War Power did not Iraq has the potential to be far one of the of expressed worst Case scenarios for Iraq a repeat of Lebanon in the 1980s May no longer be within Lebanon simmering civil War eventually burned itself out and left a co albeit state in its Iraq could soon More closely resemble so Malia in the an utterly failed state that destabilizes the most vital Region in the hopefully at some Point during the recriminations to the american peo ple will seize the Opportunity to ask them selves a series of fundamental questions about the role and purpose of Power in the How much influence can the United states have in the Middle East is its Oil Worth american blood and trea sure Are we really safer now that Iraq Burns might we not be better off just leaving the Region alone perhaps at some Point we will come to recognize that the United states can afford to be much More restrained in its for Eig policy were our founding fathers they would surely look on Iraq with horror and judge that the nation they created had fundamentally lost its if the War in Iraq leads the United states to return to its re strained grand then perhaps the whole experience will not have been in either the Iraq syndrome is com we need to be prepared for the Divi self doubt and recrimination that will be its they will be the defining legacy of the Bush administration and Neo conservatism parting gift to Christopher Fettweis is assistant professor of National Security affairs at the naval War College in this column first appeared in the los Angeles Tell us what you think stars and stripes welcomes your comments on editorials and columns that Are published in the and values letters on topics of importance in the lives of our All letters must be and must include the writers address or base and Telephone please limit All letters to 300 we Reserve the right to edit letters for taste and Send your letters to mail stars and stripes unit 29480 Apo a 09211 International mail stars and stripes Postrach 1330 64345 Griesheim via fax country code 0 Dan 3498395 f Rev v email doonesbury by Garry Trudeau so Hows your mom she May or May not hip Ling 04nciu6 with the uotdriou5 noun farm to wit of Herman Pap foot until Udouj it prickly City by Scott Stantis c1ndv sheemm4 cutt1h6 map