Last hope.

• Author: Ostrom, Margaret W.
• Position: Letter to the editor

In my view, David Gergen ("Listen to the Voters on Iraq," December 2006) makes the mistake of so many in constructing an erroneous either-or equation:

Leave Iraq immediately = chaos

Stay the course = eventual order

In Vietnam, the United States was forced to flee. Did Vietnam forever dwell in damnation? No! We are now trading vigorously with that country, and it has taken its place among the nations of the world--all in a matter of about thirty years! Why do we conclude Iraq will self-destruct if we leave? On the contrary, I think the country will be forced to face and solve its own problems. Yes, it will be messy for awhile, and yes, all the neighbors, particularly Israel, will be nervous for awhile, but in the end we have to trust that the Iraqis will opt for survival over self-destruction and build a better country, now free of Saddam.

MARGARET W. OSTROM

Media, Pa.

To David Gergen's suggested limit--we can't stay on the same path and we can't just pull out immediately--must be added the one condition that could possibly still save the situation: disavowing permanent U.S. bases in Iraq.

If the administration...