This is in response to
Joe Mangiamelli's 12/2/06 post entitled "
Often smaller is better."
While smaller may allow the streets in Shorewood to be plowed faster, dividing political units into ever smaller geographic areas is not a perfect solution for placating groups of people with differing political aspirations. During my campaigns here in Shorewood, many people I talked to, bothered by the geographic concentration of our elected trustees, suggested (
usually tongue in cheek) that we divide Shorewood down the middle of Oakland Avenue, and make two villages.
The reasons this division would not work in Shorewood are a microcosm of why it would not work in Iraq. Two tiny villages, each 0.6 square miles, would not have the resources to effectively carry out the functions of government and education on their own.
Let's relate this back to Iraq. In Iraq, the three regions would not have the economic or military resources to be effective independent entities. Leaving aside the likely outcome of genocidal forced population shifts, consider the political impact of such a division.
The Sunni area would have almost no oil resources (this was a major sticking point in drafting the Constitution) and would thus have no ability to compete economically. The Shiite area would likely survive, but would come under even heavier influence from Tehran. The Kurdish region could well become the spark that ignites WWIII. The Kurds are the largest ethnic group on the planet without their own country. If Iraqi Kurdistan became independent, Southern Turkey, Western Iran, and Northwestern Syria would go up in flames, as the Kurdish populations there demanded to be part of their newly formed ethnic homeland. The map below shows the distribution of Kurds in the region.
Source:
Wikipedia. Subject: Kurdish People.So although there may be regional differences in our 1.4 square miles, and Iraq's 168,743 square miles, it is better for all of us if we just learn to get along.
All of this metaphor and microcosm ignores the more basic reality. Iraq already is "divided...into separate states with one overriding federal government," just as you suggest.
Source:
Wikipedia. Subject: Iraq.
Comments1.
"Steve: You're right. Small is not always better, especially as I applied it to Iraq. I yield to your obvious superior knowledge in this situation and admit that I didn't even know about these existing divisions as shown on your map. Your information adds a new dimension to this subject. I wonder if some of Senators are aware of these divisions. I was hoping to simulate some thinking about how the government of Iraq is going to handle the situation once most or all of our military leaves, whether it is going to be in 10 months, 10 years or 20 years from now. I probably should stick to snow removal problems in Shorewood."
- Joe Mangiamelli, "From The Village Square", 12/3/06
2. Steve, RE: your comment; "So, although there may be regional differences in our 1.4 square miles, and Iraq's 168,743 square miles, it is better for all of us if we just learn to get along." Whoda thunk that, with all the pooled intelligence involved here, in countries like Iraq and in the rest of the world, a simple solution to issues like these could have come from someone like Rodney King? 'Why can we all just get along?'"
- Jim Genthe, Shorewood Resident, 12/7/06
