Yeah, but...

Gates told reporters in Hawaii that he is thinking of “a mutual agreement” with Iraq in which “some force of Americans…is present for a protracted period of time, but in ways that are protective of the sovereignty of the host government.” Gates said such a long-term U.S. presence would assure allies in the Middle East that the United States will not withdraw from Iraq as it did from Vietnam, “lock, stock and barrel.”

As I recall, we withdrew from Vietnam "lock, stock and barrel" because there were Vietnamese who were going to keep killing us until we did. Anyone thing there's a "mutual agreement" that will deter Iraqis from the same path? Does anyone believe we can wait out the people who actually live there?

3475

How many more? For how many years?