One thing that the tension in Iraq has often been likened to is the 1956 Suez Crisis. If you can't remember the details of the Suez crisis, like me, you can look it up on everything2.

A lot of the feelings and opinions on Britain and France's attack on Egypt were very reminiscient of things being said today, as this article from November, 1956 showed me.

Militarily, Suez didn't turn into a quagmire, just like many of us thought was possible with Iraq today. That's not to say that Suez in 1956 didn't have important ramifications, just like is still possible today. Indeed, we have definitely laid the foundations for plenty of trouble in the future. After about a week after the fall of Baghdad (looks like I was wrong, and last Wednesday pretty much was the fall) plenty of humanitarian as well as law and order issues still remain. Then there's all the people who, whether they're glad Saddam is gone or not, don't like us being there all that much. Let's not forget about those who have lost loved ones in the American invasion. And of course, who knows what unforseeable things we've done to piss off the next Osama.

So far, things could be much worse, obviously. Let's just hope we don't screw this reconstruction thing up too badly