Steve as you know, the Kurdish issue is very complicated. Just today on the national news, one of our general officers said the Kurds remain the primary destablizing factor within Iraq.

My counterpoint to yours is that perhaps our focus on the Kurds is coming back to bite us in the tail?

We worked with the Kurds during the initial invasion, but like many other cases where we employed unconventional warfare it has come back to haunt us later (Afghanistan being another example)

Posted by Surferbeetle,
Kurdistan appears to be a region in which development and conflict has coexisted for some time.
I disagree, please show the dates that development started and "serious" conflict stopped. We provided security against Saddam's forces since the no fly zone was established (might as well call it a separate economic zone), and the internal conflict was manageable since the late 90's. The development in Kurdistan was no miracle on our part, security came first, then the people reached out and accepted help from outside donors (very simplistic view, but as opposed to the folks on the other side of the Green Line who suffered for many years under punishing economic sanctions, fought us when we arrived, and gradually evolved into fighting one another. You can't compare Kurdistan to Mosul or Baghdad for example).

During my time in Iraq I noted that Kurdish construction and engineering companies regularly pushed out into the Mosul area. My trips to Kurdistan revealed a vibrant business community, good infrastructure, a capable security force, rule of law, and visible participation in daily life by both sexes.
That would be great if it was for the greater good of the Iraqi people, but let's face facts, anytime the Kurds pushed out beyond the green line it was not to the benefit of the Arabs, Turkoman, or Shi'a on the other side. They were displaced, forced out of jobs, etc., as the Kurds established their own overt or shadow government backed by the power of the Peshmerga. Americans who can't see past the nose on their face supported this, because the world is black and white to some of our officers. Kurds good guys, everyone else bad guys. That attitude is coming back to bite us.

The Kurds appear to have a concerned diaspora, Turkey appeared to be a major of supplier of goods to the region, and it is my understanding the Iran is another major supplier of goods.
This is part of the problem, not the solution. Turkey, and other countries to a lesser extent, are very concerned about Kurdish ambitions, since their vision for Kurdistan extends well beyond the borders of Iraq.

From a CA-centric standpoint Kurdistan might be seen as a model for the successes associated with spending more effort on advising a Government as opposed to ‘building’ one.
The Kurds are savvy, and they know their economic development is a powerful tool to expand their influence in the region, but the Arabs would tell you that we allowed the Kurds to get too strong thereby creating a dangerous imbalance in the region, so maybe there are other lessons to take from our experiences in Kurdistan?