>>You can't expect the re-run to go any better.
>
>Actually, the point of talking about history is learning from mistakes. Not just pointing them out.

The ones who learn from history's mistakes are those who suffered from them, not those who made them. Or we wouldn't be watching so many reruns.

>But you're a dyed-in-the-wool pessimist, so no surprise here.

See below.

>If the West creates another environment for unification, and persuades the new leaders to unite around something else, besides war, we won't be watching a re-run. We'll be watching a sequel.

Iraqis have disappointed me, greatly. I expected a general, if not entirely unified, resistance movement against the occupators, like they did in 1920. Instead we got internal war of all against all. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Mandate_of_Mesopotamia is an interesting read.

And with Iran trying to export the Shia revolution for the last quarter of the century, and the major Arab countries (Saudis, Egypt and to the West of it) being less than happy with that, I don't see them even looking for unity.