Libya-One Quagmire Too Far?
Is Libya one quagmire too far? The United Nations Security Council’s passage of a resolution on March 17 imposing a no-fly zone over Libya is forcing us to confront the issue of imperial over-reach, a madness that has been the downfall of many a once-great nation. On March 19, President Obama committed U.S. naval and air assets to “playing a supportive role” to what is, ostensibly, a European-led military initiative. In a meeting at the White House before his public announcement of support for the UN actions, President Obama assured congressional leaders that our participation in the no-fly enforcement would not lead to the deployment of American troops on the ground in Libya.
We’ve heard those kinds of assurances many times before. Think: “Iraq will be a cake walk”; “Mission accomplished!”; “They’ll welcome us as saviors”; “We’ll be in and out in no time.” But, our involvement in the no-fly enforcement doesn’t have to lead to U.S. troops on the ground in Tripoli to be monumentally, or even fatally, dangerous.
How many quagmires can the United States step into and still survive? And how do we calculate and define “survival”? The most immediate calculations usually deal with considering the economic and military costs: Can our economy sustain the trillion-dollar costs of multiple wars and can our overstretched armed forces sustain multiple global engagements while still providing for our national security?
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