However, my concern is that executing Saddam will rally his supporters and we create a martyr. The war was stupid, let's move past that. The question now is how do we leave Iraq in one piece?
The execution is reportedly to be carried out in a couple of days and I suspect this will tip things in Iraq. It could be for the better, or worse. The problem is that we don't know. I consider it a roll of the dice.
The media doesn't venture out in the dangerous parts of Iraq and the mood of the Iraqi people is quite a mystery to me. I certainly have no faith in our own government to tell us honestly what the conditions are, so you must appreciate my bewilderment of what is about to happen.
This moment in time, right now, is like that moment in time you have to reflect before hitting a bee-hive with a stick. Will they be docile? Or will they attack? Either way, what follows will be confusion and risk of danger.
My final thought is this: why couldn't Saddam be tried in an international court for war crimes? He could die is prison quietly, like Melosovich did (see I forgot how to spell his name) and go down into history as a failure. At the very least, an international court would buy us time. Quite frankly, I have absolutely no faith in our government to do this job right.
I expect the worst - deep inside I feel that all hell is going to break loose in the next few days following the execution. I have nothing to base that view on except the total disaster that has preceeded this event in Iraq. It is a gut feeling - which I guess should count for something since that is exactly what decision making process I believe was used to order our troops into Iraq.