Iraq Memo Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Iraq Memo - Essay Example Katrina victims, requiring nothing more than 2.5% of the total cost of the war to date, in relief aid, have not been granted those funds due to the unavailability of resources (Becker and Posner, 2004). In other words, the economic cost of the war is such that it is adversely affecting the quality of life in the country and capacity of federal and state governments to extend much need services to their populations. Iraq war has incited anti-American sentiments across the world, including in Europe. As Albrechtsen (2007) quotes a European thinker and writer, Markovitz as saying: "European anti-Americanism is becoming an unprecedented Europe-wide lingua franca †¦ key mobilizing agent for a common European identity.† Defense analysts maintain that troop levels in Iraq and Afghanistan are â€Å"sapping’ American military power and undermining its capacity to effectively defend the mainland (Conetta, Knight and Murphy, 2004); and Apart from the political implications of the economic and the national security concerns cited in the above, the argument for a phased withdrawal from Iraq is further predicated on a set of domestic political concerns. Central to these concerns is the divisive nature of the war. The war in Iraq has divided the American people and, in so doing, has transformed the very concept of political debate and differences of opinion in this country, into conflict. While divisions and disagreements are not new to American society, they have only reached their present heights in very few instances, such as the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War (Black and Black, 2007). This means that the very concept of national unity and cohesion, such as which make nations strong and ensure social stability, are being undermined by the Iraq War. This, in itself, is a strong and powerful indicator of the