Michael Honeycutt, an Iraq War veteran, wrote an interesting column about the dangers of pulling out of Iraq too early that deserves some recognition.  The message of the column resonated quite clearly: victory in Iraq is possible and essential. 

We've excerpted the highlights below: 

"All we ask is that the our political leaders not pull the rug out from under us and, more importantly, out from under the Iraqi people now that real progress is finally being made.

I was on the ground in Iraq for 16 months, and in that time I talked to hundreds of Iraqis. Some didn't like us; some wanted us to leave, but most did not. What they wanted was for America to live up to its word. They wanted us to rid the country of terrorists and militias so that they could live in peace.

They were willing to help us, but they are not a stupid people. They know that if they commit to the American side and the Americans abandon them as we did in 1991, it means death for them and their families. They know this, and it is real. It is not an abstract idea for them.

Most Iraqis don't support Al-Qaida and the militias, but when our commitment to stay in Iraq and finish the job is in doubt -- as it was when Sen. Harry Reid went on TV and said, "this war is lost" -- Iraqis are going to hedge their bets. They may not support the militias, but when they are betting their lives, most of them are not going to commit to America unless they are assured that America is committed to them."

We all know a little something about hedging our bets.  Whether its casually applying for jobs in case you don't get that big promotion, writing music scores while studying to be an accountant, or flirting with another before ending a relationship, all of us are prone to hedging our investments in time, energy, and resources.  It's the essence of good politics. 

Time and time again, we hear the old adages: don't burn your bridges.  You can catch more flies with honey.  Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.  So why should we expect anything other than hedging from the average Iraqi citizen whose bared witness to terrorist attacks against Iraqi civilians and officials and watched those who rose up against Saddam Hussein be slaughtered after the U.S. pulled out of the region in 1991?

We can't.  And the sad truth is - whether you supported the war from the beginning or not - if Iraqis perceive the political will of the U.S. to continue operations in Iraq on the wane, they will increasingly hedge their bets in an attempt to obtain power for themselves or to gain political favor with the most powerful groups.  The latter might just align the country around the insurgent groups the way Palestinians aligned themselves with Hamas.