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BOOK REVIEW Squandered Victory: The American Occupation and the Bungled Effort to Bring Democracy to Iraq by Larry Diamond Times Books - June 2005
Reviewed by Dr. Jonathan Dolhenty
Squandered Victory is, I submit, a book which will have wide appeal to those who are intellectually interested in America's recent intrusion into Iraq, its justification for that intrusion, and its problem with "building a peace" after defeating the Iraqi military, bringing down Saddam Hussein, and occupying the country. The general reader, however, may run into difficulty handling the depth of detail that Larry Diamond provides and upon which he bases his evaluation of the current Iraq situation and his recommendations for establishing a stable and prosperous Iraq in the future. Therefore, I suggest that the general reader may be better served by reading the Introduction and then Chapters 1 and 2, followed by reading the last two chapters (10 and 11), before tackling the other chapters in the book. I don't often recommend this procedure but, in this particular case, I'm afraid the ordinary reader may get bogged down amongst the "trees," and fail to complete a reading of the book, thereby missing the "forest." Diamond's book is steeped in detail. And rightly so. But his conclusions (Chapters 10 and 11) should not be ignored and, indeed, in my opinion, constitute the most important part of the entire work. The author is eminently qualified to draw the conclusions he does, criticizing the policies and practices of the American occupation, pointing out what went wrong, and suggesting possibilities for making things right. He certainly has the proper credentials: senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, well-respected political scientist and sociologist, academic position at Stanford University; and the appropriate experience: an activist expert and lecturer on democratic institutions, coeditor of the Journal of Democracy, and, of course, serving as a senior advisor to the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Iraq, this latter position providing the experience which forms the basis for what he has to say in Squandered Victory. It was Dr. Condoleezza Rice who asked Professor Diamond to go to Iraq as an advisor to the CPA. In January of 2004 he arrived in Baghdad and worked inside the now famous (infamous to some) "Green Zone" until April of that year. He experienced firsthand the frustrations, the fears, the angers, the ups and downs, the hopes and disappointments, not only of his fellow coworkers in the CPA, but of the Iraqi people as well. Diamond's accounts of his personal experiences while in Iraq are secondary to the main intent of the book, but he relates them in a vivid exposition of the dangers and frustrations of daily living within what was and still is a war zone ((I mean, how would you feel about going out for a pizza, realizing you were risking your life in the process?). The author was not a supporter of the war in Iraq; he makes that announcement at the outset. He felt, however, that since the war and occupation were now realities and the Saddam Hussein had been overthrown, and being, if my interpretation of his position is correct, a pragmatist when it comes to political affairs (as I am), then, if he could help in building a democratic Iraq, he would do so. What he discovered, once he was working within the CPA, was a series of blunders, miscalculations, and missed opportunities on the part of the American occupation authority in dealing with the actual situation. Many of those who were in positions of authority and advisement are severely criticized by Diamond, including CPA Administrator L. Paul Bremer who, if Diamond is correct, was simply not prepared for the task at hand and had no clear plan as to what to do to establish a democratic government in the country. Obviously the United States "won" the war on the ground. But I think, considering the overwhelming capabilities of the U.S. military, that was a given. We could literally destroy any country on the face of the earth if we wanted to. The problem, however, as I think Diamond clearly points out, is "making" the peace on the ground. This has not been done and, it appears, may not be done for many years. Squandered Victory provides plenty of evidence as to why this is the case. It exposes both the naiveté and the premature optimism of the Bush administration in deciding to invade Iraq and "impose" a democratic form of governance on a country which had no tradition of democracy and little understanding of it. It also seems, if I'm interpreting the author's presentation correctly, that there has been little opportunity to actually present the fundamentals of a democratic sociopolitical organization to the Iraqi people themselves (who, after all, wants to conduct seminars, workshops, or give lectures while being shot at or at risk for roadside bombs?). Professor Diamond does appear to remain somewhat positive about bringing democracy to Iraq, provided certain changes in policy are made and implemented. I have to part company with him at this point. I am not at all optimistic about success in Iraq, despite the author's take on the matter. My considered opinion, for what it's worth, is that Iraq may likely become Bush's Vietnam. I sincerely hope I am wrong. But, if we should have learned anything from the hard experience of our previous military misadventures in the latter half of the twentieth century, it is this: We may "win" a military victory over any army that dares to challenge us; but we cannot "win" a war with insurgents or factionalists who look upon us as an occupying power and have the support of a significant portion of the population. Lest some readers think my review is biased in favor of the "leftist" or "liberal" position on the war, let me inform you that my views are in accord with traditional American conservatism (Classical Liberalism) which adheres to at least five fundamental tenets, one of which states that we should refrain from getting involved in foreign political entanglements, particularly of the military variety. This is an important book and I recommend it to all readers. |
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Enrich your life with a book about politics and current events... Enrich your political & social life with a politics or news magazine... |
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