I wish to recommend an excellent podcast to all of our readers:

Coyne on Exporting Democracy after War

This follows the excellent post by "Why Me" regarding the role of the US Army plays in "nation-building". From a practical standpoint, what is our interest? The misinformed continually cite Japan and Germany as success stories. Yes, we all agree. However, these represent the select few or "outliers". I would argue that in Germany's case, the proximity of wealthy nations surrounding the country that help promote trade played a large role in their success. Further, how do we expect that to work for Iraq? Will Syria, Saudi Arabia, or Iran come to the rescue? Will the institutions of government be sound? I am going to hazard a guess, I don't expect this to be true.