Some time ago, one of our community members put forth the punitive operation suggestion. Given the way Iraq has played out, I wonder if this might still be an option for the future. I just finished reading an article discussing Kissinger's opinion that we cannot win militarily and I'm sensing another "peace with honor" movement. I think this sort of thinking plays into the hands of those that oppose us because it makes us look weak. Punitive ops might provide a solution for the future. I'm sort of thinking out loud here, so here goes...

Assume for a moment that instead of staying in Iraq, we launched a punitive operation. In other words, we pushed to Baghdad just like we did in OIF I, but instead of staying, we pulled out and left.

1) What would we gain from this type of action? What would we lose?

2) Given the huge anti-war mentality across the globe, would we have been better off by just doing a punitive op? Would we still have to deal with the anti-US activity, just of a different type?

3) In the long run, doesn't the punitive op play to our strengths and mitigate our weaknesses, especially when it comes to US public support for a "long war?"