Teribus - If you call civil war, "political advancement", I think you are delusional. I do not think Saddam is or ever was (even when the U.S. supported him) a good guy. I do think that democracy cannot be imposed.

If, "by the end of the year the first democratically elected Government of Iraq will be in place" we will have to wait and see how long it will be in place and/or how democratic it actually turns out to be. Islamic governments are not well known for their civil liberties.

I think you would have to ask the people of Iraq if intervention by the U.S. and Britain has improved the quality of their lives. Its a bit smug to assume that, from the perspective of an outsider, that the people of Iraq have more freedom now.