This might sound shallow to some, but I can tell you how at least on chapter in this mess is going to turn out.

When we do finally pull out (or retreat if you're of that mind set) somebody will once again set the dogs on the military budget as we try to bring down the deficit. As has happened so often through U.S. History there will be a massive draw down, not in spending on equipment and weaponry, but on troops and support services. Thousands of servicemen and women will be turned out of the service into a bad economy. This will lead to an increasingly bad economy and also cause the degradation of the military. On top of that the spending for the VA that has been well behind needs for years will also be cut. The promises made to our veterans will once again be betrayed.

But if you call on those same soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coasties the next time the shit hits the fan...they'll be there for the country.