by Alex Porter ’13

Ten years ago this month, the United States invaded Iraq, handily toppling Saddam Hussein’s government in weeks. President George W. Bush announced victory 42 days later on May 1. Eight years later, the United States ended this war that was seen as a simple task. The Obama administration is moving toward complete withdrawal from Afghanistan after more than  a decade of war there. With terrorists in West Africa, the Syrian regime falling, and Iran and North Korea’s nuclear programs, the U.S. faces threats around the globe. Some see it as our responsibility to tackle these as the world’s remaining superpower.

However, America did not have to go to war in Iraq, and it should avoid entering more wars out of choice rather than defensive necessity. The initial jubilant crowds in Baghdad disappeared shortly, and were replaced by insurgents attacking Americans seen as invaders. Iraq remains far from a model democracy, still racked with violence and instability, and this improvement did not come without cost.

The buildup to and execution of this war cost time and effort that could have been devoted to the pursuit of Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda. While bin Laden and the terrorists who actually attacked us lived, the U.S. military prepared to invade a country with no connection to September 11 as part of the “War on Terror.” The efforts to eliminate Afghanistan as a hub for terrorism took the backseat to chasing non-existent weapons in Iraq.

Government estimates of the monetary cost of the Iraq war vary from $800 billion to over $1 trillion. Combined with Afghanistan and reducing revenue when the country’s economy should have been directed toward the war effort, Iraq helped to put the U.S. in its current disastrous debt situation.

American global prestige and influence were also reduced by the war. France and Germany, two of our closest allies, would not accompany us on this voyage of choice. The realization that Iraq’s weapons did not exist hurt America’s credibility in the eyes of others, and reduced our ability to lead the world.

The most horrific cost came in the damage to and loss of lives. 4,487 Americans dead and 32,226 wounded, along with over 100,000 civilian deaths are the consequences of this “War on Terror.”

The War in Iraq was a mistake that we should not make again. It is true that Iraq is now a fledgling democracy, albeit one still plagued by the sectarian schisms and violence that existed before and during the war. Still, the damage to our standing in the world and the immense toll of human lives cannot be forgotten. The military deserves better than to fight and die when there is no need.