Of Course the Iraq War Would End in Iran's Empowerment - Conor Friedersdorf

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2011/10/of-course-the-iraq-war-would-end-in-irans-empowerment/247289/

The U.S. was always going to leave Iraq eventually, and Iran was always going to exert more influence on the region as a result. What writers like Rubin fail to understand is that, if the war you advocate requires for its success the indefinite deployment of U.S. troops, you've advocated a failed war. The American people have never and will never agree to a perpetual war of choice that costs billions of dollars each year and results in the ongoing death of American troops -- especially if its proponents suggest before it begins that it will be a cakewalk costing $50 to $60 billion. That's hardly a difficult lesson, but neoconservatives still haven't learned it.