Crossroads How to Win or Lose in Iraq

Author and History professor Arthur Herman has an insightful commentary in Thursday's Opinion Journal Online.

Mr. Herman elaborates on the stunning similarities in methods used to prevail against insurgencies spanning a period of over 50 years. In the stuggle to create a free and democratic Iraq today and the French struggle to keep Algeria from falling into the hands of the murderous FLN during the 1950's and early 60's the strategy used to defeat terrorists remains the same.

Out of the shadows of the struggles for Algeria and Iraq Mr. Herman recalls the foreign policy failures of the "Peace Democrats" of 1974 who callously turned victory in Vietnam into defeat once they had taken control of the Congress during the mid-term elections of that year. Despite the U.S. Armed Forces victory over the Viet Cong and and its halting of aggression on South Vietnam by the North, Democrats sounded the familiar refrain of "let them find their own solutions to their problems." This had been the siren song of anti-war agitators, communists, leftists and their familiars whenever a western power found itself in conflict with tyranny. We hear that song today from the mouths of those who hate and disdain this country.

With Nixon's Presidency destroyed by Watergate the Democratic controlled Congress cut funding for South Vietnam's self-defense and coldly stood by as a faithful American ally was swallowed up by the resurgent North Vietnamese Army's invasion of the South in 1975.

Mr. Herman points out the methods that have worked in fighting, stopping and uprooting insurgencies in the past but notes that today as in Algeria and Vietnam the key to winning these wars is on the Homefront.

We dare not lose.