katlaughing, Lt. Gen. William E. Odom is talking out of his rear end, he could not possibly be more wrong. If the US cuts and runs from the situation that it is in now there will be a number of extremely serious consequences:

- The US will never have any credibility in the world ever again. Internationally you will be a laughing stock. You will have proved to the world that you are the weak willed, indecisive "middling power" that the General referred to. Certainly no-one will ever look towards the US to provide any sort of leadership in any crisis in the future.

- Your "professional", volunteer armed forces will never again trust the population or government. Precipitous withdrawal from Iraq on the terms outlined by the General will only mean one thing to the armed forces of the United States of America - defeat - The lesson that will burn itself into the minds of every serving soldier, sailor, marine and airman will be that less than 20,000 poorly armed irregulars took on and defeated the best trained and best equipped army in the world simply because the population and politicians in the United States lost faith and lacked the will to back them up. The only battles they will fight on your behalf in future will be fought on American soil where they can see you in the front lines fighting alongside them - I could not say that I would blame them for adopting that attitude. It took the US military over twenty years to recover from the defeat suffered at the hands of the Vietcong, they will not recover from the defeat against the insurgents in Iraq inflicted upon them by their own politicians and population.

- Emboldened by your defeat in Iraq, the battle against the USA, declared by Al-Qaeda way back in the early 1990's will arrive at your doorstep. There is no negotiating with this enemy, their intent was clearly stated a long time ago, they are determined and willing. To cut and run as detailed by the General in the face of this attack will only demonstrate to your enemies that the politicians and population of the US are not. How many terrorist attacks have occurred in the USA since the 11th of September 2001? Withdraw from Iraq as described by the General above, then watch the attacks fall thick and fast.

- NATO, the only effective and efficient international military alliance in the world, will disintegrate, because it will have absolutely no credibility. No-one will trust the United States to have the integrity to live up to it's commitments.

- The United Nations will become even less significant than it is today. Like it's predecessor, "The League of Nations", without a powerful and forthright United States of America the UN will become equally irrelevant.