Sort of Like, Declaring Victory and Pulling Out

CNN has an article and video of President Obama's announcement that all U.S. troops will leave Iraq by the end of December. This comes as no surprise, as he had been looking for a way to pull out of that country even before he was elected. No doubt this decision will meet with mixed reviews - while the level of violence has declined, and most Iraqis recognize that it up to them to end Muslim-on-Muslim violence, nevertheless they may not be strong enough to keep obvious threats such as Iran, Turkey, and Syria at bay. The possibility remains that the country may split into at least 3 pieces.