I get what you guys are saying, but my train of thought right now is on the avoidance of hearts & minds, nation-building, or whatever you want to call it. I keep returning to the thought of punitive expeditions vice post-conflict stability operations. It is something I've been giving alot of thought to lately and as I see the ramifications of our attempts at building a new city upon a hill I can't help but wonder whether there is another way. Perhaps I am thinking too much like a realist, but I cannot grasp the need to export our brand of democracy everywhere. A punitive expedition, in most cases (there are always exceptions), will meet our national security goals without the problems we see now in Iraq.

I'll stop before this turns into a pure brain dump. I'm sure I am missing something here. I welcome your comments.