What's worst about this story is that it's true. I'm not in favor of spending American lives and resources on nation-building, but we certainly gain nothing by breaking our promises like this. A little gunship support after the first Gulf war might have been enough to bring about regime change in Iraq without spilling much, if any, American blood.

And, in that case, we'd probably be invading Iran today from American military bases built and supported by the Iraqi people. Perhaps an even more pronounced chain reaction would have occurred: unfettered access to Iraqi oil might have reduced our reliance on Saudi Arabia, thus reducing their ability to sponsor groups like Al Qaida and saving the World Trade Center.