In my opinion it makes the whole thing even worse the longer they stay. Right now the American and with them the British are seen as occupants of a free land trying to impose their will on a country with different belief and cultural settings.<ankh> wrote:..because the longer they stay the more aggressive will the iraqi's become. They dont want them there and they sure as hell wont want them more just cos they stay longer. There is no reason for british/american soldiers die fighting for something when the ones they fight for dont want their help or wont show any gratitude.
This is the perfect breeding ground to use propaganda to recruit persons who want to change the lifes of them and around them to a "better" - speak non-western - way of life.
The main thing that motivates them not only in Iraq but also in the countries around it and all over the world is America. And this comes down to Bush's decisions. He lost the credit that America had in that region - which cost Colin Powell his job in the end. Now Rice is trying to make nice and restore that credibility. Darn tough job.
The problem right now lies in the perceptions. If America (and Britain with it) pulls out of Iraq to remove one of the main motivations for insurgents it will also be exploited by the insurgent's propaganda as a loss in battle.
Unlike in Vietnam where the pull-out of the Americans just resulted in a country regaining its independence terrorists operate worldwide and are not interested in state affairs. Giving them this "moral" victory would destroy much of the leftover credibility that Bush has to work with in politics.
Unfortunately this means that people die for nothing due to Bush's view of the world and the actions of his administration.